Dear MCBC Community,
As we close in on 2021 – and another year with COVID-19 making its presence known in almost all areas of our lives – I wanted to share an update on all of the amazing things our organization accomplished this year and look ahead to 2022 and what we have to feel excited about!
Young Adult Retreats, Camp, and Social Gatherings - we did it!
I think the accomplishment of which I am most proud is that we ran a number of in-person events in 2021 with a grand total of 0 positive COVID cases. While we did have to make some changes in the way we prepared for and delivered our programming, we achieved our main goal of providing a safe and uplifting space for burn survivors and co-survivors to gather in fellowship. And we were not alone in our accomplishment; the CDC reports that “summer camps with strong COVID protocols kept infections to a minimum”, a finding that certainly inspires confidence as we look ahead to more in-person programming in 2022. We are now podding, mask-wearing, physical-distancing, hand-washing, temperature-taking, symptom-tracking superstars!
Midwest Children’s Burn Camp received ACA Accreditation.
In November 2021, Midwest Children’s Burn Camp received accreditation from the American Camp Association (ACA) and confirmed to the camping community across the nation what we have known since 1997: that MCBC provides a premier and empowering experience for young people that meets the highest standards of safety and integrity in the camping industry. This process involved providing written documentation as evidence of our program meeting over 100 camping standards and an in-person visit by fellow camp professionals to MCBC this summer. And we passed with flying colors. Share it loud and proud, MCBC people!
Burns Recovered and Midwest Children’s Burn Camp awarded over $6,000 in scholarships to current and former MCBC campers
Two MCBC Alum – D’Angela Jeffries and Ryley Sweet – received scholarships to pursue their higher education dreams, D’Angela as a Business major and Ryley as a paramedic. We wish the best of luck in their studies to both!
Three current MCBC campers – Meili Simmons, Deyvion Plunkett, and Hayleigh King – received Jim Neff Scholarships to pursue their passions of Chinese Dance, Karate, and Acrobatic Dancing, respectively. We can’t wait to see their sweet moves at the talent show in 2022! Congrats to one and all!
If you are interested in applying for a scholarship to pursue higher education or an extracurricular activity, view our website for more information!
Looking Ahead to 2022
Let’s address the elephant in the room…COVID-19 is still very much with us and we anticipate it will continue to be with us through our in-person programming in 2022. While this is certainly disappointing, it is not the doomsday scenario it has been in the past – we have new tools, procedures, and preventative measures in place so that we can put on in-person programming safely and effectively.
Burns Recovered and Midwest Children’s Burn Camp continue to support the CDC’s position that the best way to protect yourself against the Coronavirus is to get vaccinated. This position is further supported by the American Academy of Pediatrics who highly recommend that our younger community members (ages 5 and above) also get vaccinated unless there are contraindications. I know many caregivers have concerns about the safety and the effectiveness of the vaccines for their little ones and I hope these myth busters provided by the CDC are useful in addressing some of those questions.
Because the COVID landscape is always changing (sometimes hourly), I feel that it is too premature to say with certainty what COVID protocols we will have in place for our in-person programming this summer and beyond. I do anticipate we will have some sort of mask-wearing and health-screening policy but the extent to which this will be in place is unclear at this time. I will continue to send updates and information as we have them!
If you have questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact Director of Youth Programs, Madeleine Carson (camp name: Maddog) by email or at (314) 939-1550.
Yours in Service,
Madeleine/Maddog
