JULY 30, 2014
Camp Soaring Eagle announces new camp site
Nonprofit celebrates seventh anniversary and closes on 26-acre camp location
SCOTTSDALE – Camp Soaring Eagle today announced it has closed on a new camp property in Cornville, AZ. The nonprofit organization, founded in July 2007, provides seriously ill children with the opportunity to attend medically supervised camps at no cost to the campers and families. The organization offers a variety of programs to Arizona families and children ages 6-15 with chronic and life threatening illnesses including: Illness Specific Camping Weekends, Illness Specific Family Retreats, Sibling Camper Weekends and Veteran’s Children Camper Weekends. Camp Soaring Eagle’s new camp location will welcome its first set of campers this October.
“Camp is a great adventure, something healthy kids look forward to and a place they can experience new things and make new friends,” said Juan Morales, Camp Soaring Eagle Executive Director of Camp Operations. “Unfortunately for children suffering from serious illnesses, their medical conditions make a traditional camp experience out of the question, and that’s where Camp Soaring Eagle comes in.”
Camp Soaring Eagle has been running its programs out of Jackpot Ranch in Camp Verde and the Briar Patch Inn in Sedona. Having its own, permanent, camp location will allow the organization to offer even more services and provide a local camp experience year-round. The new space will expand the programs - accommodating up to 80 campers at a time where Jackpot Ranch was limited to only 25 kids per session – and help Camp Soaring Eagle reach its 2014 goal to serve more than 1,600 campers.
“The new camp will allow us to bring hope to even more children as we help them get away from the everyday pressures of their illness and medical treatments and let them just be kids,” said Morales. “Some of our campers do have obvious signs of their illnesses, they have physical scars, but the thing we don’t see are the emotional scars they have deep inside. Those hurts are what we address at Camp.”
Depending on the program, campers enjoy a wide range of activities such as horseback riding, fishing, archery and crafts. Each event is specifically tailored to the child’s individual needs and medical restrictions. Campers are usually referred to Camp Soaring Eagle from their pediatricians and medical professionals volunteer each weekend to provide the highest level of safety and care.
Illness-specific programs are geared towards campers and families facing a variety of illnesses such as: blood disorders, cancer, bowel diseases, respiratory diseases and type 1 diabetes. Camp Soaring Eagle gives children a chance to interact with peers facing the same battles and a place where they don’t have to feel alone or different anymore. To learn more about Camp Soaring Eagle, visit: CampSoaringEagle.org.
