SLOAN HAMPTON

As campers and counselors gather in the parking lot behind Adventure Tower, two girls raise their hands to volunteer to be the first in their group to zip line. Ashlei Johnson, 14, and Elissa Hunter, also 14, step into their gear and take a swig of water before they approach the zip-line platform.

For Ashlei and Elissa, this was more than just zip lining; this was a competition. The goal: be the first one to reach the other side of the zip-line platform.

As the young ladies are secured into their harnesses, camp counselors sang a rendition of the Backstreet Boys’ hit, I Want It That Way—in a slightly different key than the original—while lounging under the shade.

“I’ve been on the highest roller coaster in North Carolina and South Carolina,” said Elissa, who is beginning her fourth session at camp. “This is nothing!”

The counselors chant the zip line song: “Feel the rhythm; feel the run. Step right up, it’s zip line time,” and just like that, the girls were launched into motion.

Zip lining proved to be no challenge for Ashlei and Elissa; it was their favorite activity at camp. The only obstacle they didn’t predict, however, was climbing the steep hill to get back to the beginning of the platform.

“I won going down on the zip line,” said Elissa. “But [Ashlei] beat me coming up the hill. It’s too steep!”

However, zip lining isn’t the only thing that keeps Ashlei and Elissa coming back to camp.

“I like [camp] because every time that I come, there is something different that you can do. Especially when you start getting older,” Ashlei said.

When Ashlei and Elissa aren’t zip lining, you can find them teaching their counselors the art of hula hooping, perfecting their aim at the archery range or eating donuts at NASCARnival.

At Victory Junction, it is our purpose to provide extraordinary kids with extraordinary experiences so they are empowered to look beyond their medical diagnoses and recognize their strength and courage. Ashley and Elissa, like many of our campers, don’t let any obstacle—whether it be a medical diagnosis or the steep hill at the zip line platform—stop them from coming to camp and showing us what it means to BE YOUR CAMPSELF.

 

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