“Camp is one of my favorite things in the whole world,” exclaimed Lauren Grochocki, a Roundup River Ranch volunteer extraordinaire.
Lauren, who has volunteered for Roundup for six years, completed 12 camp sessions in 2020, and 14 so far in 2021 – more than any other volunteer! Since Lauren lives in Houston, she said that volunteering online now is actually much easier for her than traveling to Colorado. “I get so much out of camp,” Lauren said. “It resets me. The weeks and then the evening clubs really help to keep me connected. It’s been awesome!”
We hear these same sentiments from campers who are grateful for the year-round offerings. Lauren also used some of the same words that campers use to describe their experiences with Roundup River Ranch; “magic, joy and laughter.”
One magical memory for Lauren was witnessing a camper’s excitement about the climbing wall and the zipline. “The first year I had a fearful camper who was terrified about the climbing tower and was only comfortable walking out to the wall to watch her cabinmates climb, but by the next year she was so excited to tell me that she mastered the wall climb. Then, her third year she ran up to me to let me know that she also rode the zipline and loved it.” Lauren shared that she appreciates that camp is a YES, you can for campers who hear so many things they cannot do in the hospital.
Lauren’s favorite camp activity is boating because it is relaxing to be on the water and because she can watch the zipline and the horses come by from the water. She found out about SeriousFun Children’s Network after hearing from her father about Hole in the Wall Gang Camp. She was thrilled to find out that others volunteer at camp well beyond their sixties which gives her confidence that she will continue to enjoy laughter-filled magical camp experiences for decades to come. THANK YOU, Lauren!
