More than 2.7 million children under the age of 15 have been affected by HIV/AIDS worldwide, and more than 8,000 under the age of 13 in the United States. A local camp in Malibu offers some children an escape from the harsh reality of this deadly and devastating disease.
By Sylvie Belmond/Special to The Malibu Times
Living under the shadow of the deadly HIV virus is difficult enough for adults. It is even harder for children as the disease can shatter their innocence prematurely. But their hopes and dreams for a better future can be retained or restored when they are offered a chance to spend time in an unbiased environment, away from the everyday challenges the disease can bring.
That is why a group of volunteers decided to sponsor Camp Pacific Heartland, also known as Camp Hilltop, which took place earlier this month in the Malibu mountains. They wanted to offer a safe place where children and adolescents affected by HIV and AIDS can find understanding and acceptance.
“The kids that come to our camp are both infected and affected,” said Lisa Cavanaugh, executive director for Camp Pacific Heartland, who explained that while some children have the virus themselves, others are living with HIV in their families.
The camp gives the children an opportunity to refocus in a safe and fun environment as they realize the possibility of a brighter future, despite their health circumstances, she said.
“These kids very often live with the secret. They don’t let very many people know that they have HIV or that someone in their lives does, so it’s a huge burden to carry and the camp offers them a chance to be open about it,” Cavanaugh said.
The children enjoy a week of escape from AIDS in a place where others face the same circumstances.
“It’s a creative and altruistic outlet,” Cavanaugh said.
Augie Loya, 14, who chose to go public about his HIV condition in part to honor his late mother after she died from AIDS, has attended the camp four times so far.
“I love Camp Pacific Heartland,” Loya said. “It is the best thing that ever happened to me. It helps me feel normal and to learn more about what I have.”
Living with HIV is really hard to deal with, explained Loya, who takes a large amount of medications and has to worry about getting overheated and exhausted on a daily basis. But when he is at camp, Loya can temporarily leave aside the loneliness these daily challenges cause.
The children live in a safe environment where they can play, learn and discover a variety of summer fun activities, while they also receive full medical, emotional and psychological support, Cavanaugh said.
Cavanaugh was one of the camp’s first volunteers. She initially got involved in Camp Pacific Heartland while working as a story editor for Gale Anne Hurd’s Pacific Western Productions with the camp’s founder, David Gale.
Gale formed a group of volunteers to get the camp started in the Los Angeles area because he wanted to make a difference in the lives of the children who are living with HIV and AIDS. He is currently the senior vice president of MTV films.
In 1999, Lisa decided to take a hiatus from her television and film career to dedicate her efforts to Camp Pacific Heartland, becoming the foundation’s first full-time executive director.
Camp Heartland is a nonprofit program funded by individual donations and an annual fundraiser.
The organizers initially get in touch with the children who attend the camps through various social service agencies serving the pediatric AIDS community as well as local hospitals.
“We get bigger every year,” Cavanaugh said.
This year, the Malibu camp hosted a total of 167 children.
The camp’s popularity even produced a waiting list. But to create a sense of continuity and maximize the benefits of the camp experience on the children who come, organizers give some priority to those who attended before. Some of the youth who attended camp when they were young are now starting to come back as counselors, Cavanaugh pointed out.
The Center for Disease Control reports that by the end of 2001 there were 8,994 AIDS cases in children under the age of 13 in the United States. Worldwide, 2.7 million children under the age of 15 have been affected by HIV/AIDS with 580,000 of them dying in 2001.