Meet Camper Pippa
Summer Camp 5: Hematology/Oncology & Endocrine Conditions
“Refuge. Calm. Exciting.”
For Pippa, those three words captured everything camp has come to mean to her – a place where she has experienced new adventures, connection, and the freedom to leave her worries behind. At Roundup River Ranch, she has felt a sense of joy that allowed her to think less about her diagnosis and focus more on making friends and trying new challenges such as the zipline and Low Ropes course.
Pippa’s medical journey led her to the Roundup River Ranch community last year.
“I had Hodgkin’s lymphoma when I was 12 until I was 13”, she said. Camp has been part of her life ever since.
Of all the memories Pippa has made at Roundup River Ranch, one remains especially meaningful: welcoming her family to Family Camp and sharing the place that has become so important to her.
“When me and my family all came to Family Camp together,” Pippa said. “That was very special to me because I was super excited to show them, like, why I love this camp so much.”
For Pippa, sharing camp with the people she loves most has made the experience even more meaningful. When she reflected on why she loves camp so much, she said that she enjoys participating in the activities, especially the zipline because you have a partner to share the experience with. Camp has become special to Pippa because she knows she will have help from staff when she needs it, but she also has the freedom to experience “ordinary” childhood moments like laughing with her friends over a game of volleyball or climbing up the rock wall side by side.
That same sense of connection and understanding translates to the care and encouragement campers receive from seasonal summer staff. According to Pippa, the counselors, program leaders, residential life assistants, and medical staff strike the perfect balance between providing guidance and empowering independence.
“Well, for me, I feel like they talk to us kind of like we’re adults, almost,” Pippa explained. “But they also treat us like we’re kids.”
That balance is part of what keeps Pippa coming back to camp. If she could change one thing about camp, it wouldn’t be to fix something; it would be to have more of it.
“I think it would be really cool if they made two-week sessions available to people so they could stay here for longer,” Pippa said.
To Pippa, Roundup River Ranch is a refuge – a place to turn when things feel hard. It’s a place where she can form connections and find a sense of belonging. It’s a place where she feels understood, at peace, and free to have the time of her life.
“If you’re feeling unhappy about things that are happening in your life, this is a good place to come because there’s people that you can talk to about it that can relate to it,” Pippa said. “And it’s so much fun.”
