Camp Love Without Limits

Shriners Hospitals for Children-Houston believes in healing the whole child, no matter the cost. Many of our children come to us as victims of traumatic events such as severe motor vehicle accidents, gun-shot wounds or domestic violence and others are born with special genetic conditions. Due to the sensitive nature of their entry into our care, we try to provide every additional opportunity possible to aid our children’s physical, emotional and psychological healing process.

A group of compassionate Shriners staff turned to the brilliant idea of taking children to Camp For All in Burton, TX! Camp For All was founded in 1993 by two physicians who cared for children with special needs and a parent who had recently lost a child. Much like Shriners Hospitals for Children-Houston, the Camp For All founders knew that they wanted to impact the lives of as many children with special needs and illnesses and their families in Texas as possible. Camp For All provides a unique camp atmosphere with limitless and barrier free camp activities and opportunities.

In February of 2015, 16 of our dedicated doctors, nurses, physical therapists, occupational therapist and child life specialists volunteered their time to provide the first annual unique, therapeutic, and integrative community experience for 24 kids from ages 8-19 to Camp For All in Houston, all of which had been battling many different orthopaedic conditions. Camp For All hosts a Health Cabin, Dining Hall, lakes, a farm, an Activity Hall, a pavilion and several fire pits! Activities that the campers took part in included horseback riding, ropes courses, archery, canoeing, free sports, campfires, and a carnival. 76% of children treated in 2014 registered as uninsured or lacked adequate insurance for specialty care, so many of our kids may not have had this opportunity outside of Shriners Hospitals for Children-Houston. Our staff was beyond thrilled to provide this experience to our kids, who are often wheelchair and walker bound. Shriners Hospitals for Children-Houston children finally got to know what it feels like to roast s’mores, learn campfire songs and scale a high-ropes course among his or her peers.

Like many of our campers, a boy named Pedro was able to try new, foreign activities and sports with the help of our loving staff and encouragement from his peers. Pedro is usually wheelchair-bound, but was able to look past his usual barriers and even ride a horse for the very first time. Many stories such as this one occured thanks to Camp Love Without Limits. "I don't ever want to go home!" "Can we live here?" These are just a couple quotes from our very grateful campers while experiencing some of Camp For All's unique and fulfilling activities. These girls were able to witness other kids, with similar conditions to their own, perform activities they had no idea they would be able to do. By witnessing their peers overcome their apprehension, some were able to build up the courage and try certain physical activities for the very first time. One of our incredible staff members stated, "every single activity we did was a blast but what I enjoyed the most was watching them [campers] overcome their apprehension..."

February 2016 will be the second year our inspiring staff will be taking up to 48 of our children ages 8-18 years old to Camp For All for Valentine’s Day weekend, which is double the attendance as last year!