Today was one of the best days of the summer. Yes, it’s true, our 11-and-under lacrosse team played magnificently and won the lacrosse tournament. We hosted a round robin tennis tournament for neighboring camps. The tennis tournament gave a number of our campers who have been working hard on their game all summer, a chance to participate in an awesome event.
But, what made this day one for the record books, was the assembly that we hosted here at Camp Takajo for the Max Cure Foundation, called Dunk Your Kicks. We invited the eleven and twelve-year-old girls from Tripp Lake Camp over for breakfast. Immediately following the meal, we assembled on the Warrior basketball court, and listened to David Plotkin, a father of one, very special boy named Max who had been diagnosed with cancer.
Max’s dad created a foundation to help others who have similar disease, but are less fortunate and are unable to receive the medical treatment needed to fight the fight. Surrounded by Takajo’s natural beauty, among the towering pines and manicured sports fields, our boys along with the Tripp Lake girls, listened to this father speak about those less fortunate, and how we as individuals could all make a difference to help others.
We all have sneakers that we outgrow, or simply exchange for the newest craze. We learned this morning that the landfills are blanketed by millions of sneakers a year. David has partnered with an organization that pays his foundation one dollar for every pair of sneakers he collects. The sneakers go to children in need in the developing world, and the money raised goes to underprivileged children who are fighting this dreadful disease without financial resources.
One of the most important things we can do as a society is to teach our children to develop a social conscience. While we are so fortunate to have our health and be at a place that offers so much, it was incredibly rewarding to see how touched our children were by David’s story.
Our campers asked great questions about the foundation and how they could become involved. At the end, we had an opportunity to literally “dunk our kicks” through a hoop on the Warrior basketball court. Camp Takajo, Tripp Lake Camp and the Maine Camp Experience are happy to be proud sponsors of the Max Cure Foundation.
Camp Takajo community members may view more photos of today’s event on the myTakajo portal, starting the afternoon of July 26.
- Today, in Warrior camp, our Warrior Indian campers had a special play date with the ladies at Camp Vega. They traveled to the girls’ camp for some dodge ball, tennis, gaga and dinner. The rest of camp was on a regular schedule. This evening, a group of Warrior Brave campers will sleep overnight in the tree houses, s’mores included!
