Program / Camp Little Red Door
One week of camp is not enough!
Those words are the annual consensus among kids on the final day of Camp Little Red
Door at Bradford Woods, 30 minutes south of Indianapolis.
Organized by Little Red Door Cancer Agency in Indianapolis, Camp Little Red Door was
the first camp in Indiana for pediatric cancer patients ages 8-18 and was only the second
camp of its kind in the country when it was established in 1981. It was founded by physician
and former Little Red Door board member Virginia Wagner.
What started with 14 campers and a mission to focus on fun instead of illness, Camp
Little Red Door has grown into a much anticipated week that fills to its capacity of
90 attendees. The camp is unique in that one sibling per patient is invited to attend
once all cancer patients who have applied have been accepted.
Camp Little Red Door
Camp Little Red Door offers an environment free of stereotypes and full of
opportunity to discuss the fears and anxieties that accompany a child’s cancer
diagnosis with others who have been through similar experiences. A child
diagnosed with cancer or is receiving treatment and who lives in the state
of Indiana is eligible to attend Camp Little Red Door. Camp is offered one
week each summer. Consequently, campers return year after year. Consequently, campers
return year after year.
After campers check-in and complete an entrance physical, an opening campfire sets
the tone for a week filled with fun and lasting friendships. Breakfast each day is followed
by two activity periods, lunch, cabin time, and two more activity periods. Dinner is followed
by special activities, such as dances, games, etc., which are planned for the younger campers
by camp counselors and a Leadership Group consisting of older, experienced campers.
Program activities for the week are age-appropriate and based on each group’s skill level.
Campers ages 16-18 participate in the Leadership Program 2-3 days before camp where the goal
is to work as a team
and mentor the younger campers. The Leadership Group often goes off-site to explore caves,
rappel, or learn survival skills such as raft construction. The younger campers, ages 8-15,
participate in activities designed as building blocks for later summers when they return as
teenagers. Activities offered at Camp Little Red Door are the same found at traditional
camps: swimming, archery, fishing, canoeing, nature hikes, astronomy, arts and crafts, and
more.
The last night of camp consists of an exit physical and the closing campfire where
each camper receives an award representing their personal strengths and attributes. One
camper in the Leadership Group is chosen to receive the Virginia Wagner, MD Award for exhibiting
the attributes and qualities exemplified by the founder of Camp Little Red Door: Courage,
Perseverance, Integrity, and Leadership. The motto for the Leadership Program throughout
the week is “to lead is to serve, to give, to achieve.”
Items Needed
Your donations are needed to help make the experience more enjoyable for the kids at Camp Little Red Door. Thank you.
Cash Donations
Coloring books
Comic books
Crayons (small paks)
Disposable cameras
Insect repellant
Personal
Journals
Lip balm
Mini first-aid kits
Mini flashlights
Mini photo albums
Stickers
Sunblock
Sun glasses
Sunscreen
Toothpaste/Toothbrushes
Water bottles
Writing pens in fun colors
Yo-yos
Water guns
Other “Stocking Stuffer” items
*No food or candy please
SPECIAL PROGRAMS
Camp Little Red Door
The actual cost to send a child to camp for one week is $900. Little Red Door asks families
to send their child for a nominal fee of $25 ($50 per sibling), and financial assistance is
arranged for anyone unable to make the payment.
Camp Little Red Door is made possible through the annual Camp Little Red Door Golf Tournament,
grants,
the Adopt-A-Camper program which encourages individuals and companies to sponsor a child’s trip
to camp, and contributions from the community.