Camp Smile brought a week of joy to campers during the annual event hosted by the Pediatric Cancer Foundation of the Lehigh Valley at Muhlenberg College\u2019s Moyer Hall.<\/p>\n
Held in June the day camp gave local children battling cancer, their siblings and children who have lost a sibling to cancer an opportunity to play games, meet the Lehigh Valley Therapy Dogs and participate in theater activities. Campers ranged in age from 4 to 15.<\/p>\n
\u201cCamp Smile is more than just a week of laughter and fun,\u201d Camp Smile Director Kristine Buss said. \u201cIt\u2019s where our campers build friendships, find a sense of normalcy, gain confidence and simply get to be kids. For many of them, it\u2019s the highlight of their summer and something they count down to all year long.\u201d<\/p>\n
In keeping with this year\u2019s \u201cUnder the Sea\u201d theme, Mark Krokos, owner of That Foam Party Guy, and his 14-year-old daughter, Ella, filled the air with bubbles and waves of ocean-like foam for campers to enjoy. The Plains Township-based business has operated for five years.<\/p>\n
Other sea-themed activities included swimming, a visit from Ariel from A Storybook Party and ocean-themed arts and crafts.<\/p>\n
\u201cI had a really good time here,\u201d said Robert DiGiacomo Jr., recalling his years as a PCFLV camper. Diagnosed with leukemia at age 5, he has been cancer-free for about eight years. Encouraged by his mother, the 17-year-old is serving his second year as a volunteer counselor.<\/p>\n
\u201cI loved it so much,\u201d said his sister, Maddy DiGiacomo, 15, of her experience attending camp as a sibling. She became a volunteer last year when her brother signed up to help.<\/p>\n
\u201cI always knew I would be a camp counselor,\u201d Maddy said. \u201cCancer is obviously a hard thing for someone who is battling it, and the whole family is affected by it. Camp Smile brings a sense of comfort and joy, even during a hard time.\u201d<\/p>\n
Robert will enter his senior year at Northwestern Lehigh High School this fall. Maddy will begin her sophomore year.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s fun,\u201d said 15-year-old Sarabeth Mesko. Diagnosed with thyroid cancer in 2023, the Lower Macungie Township resident has attended Camp Smile since 2024, along with her sisters, Sophia, 14, and Sidney, 13. Sophia and Sarabeth attend Emmaus High School, while Sidney attends Lower Macungie Middle School.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis camp is what made me want to go into nursing,\u201d said Samantha Turner, the sisters\u2019 counselor. Turner, a Parkland High School graduate, volunteered at Camp Smile 10 years ago, later became an oncology nurse and returned to volunteer. Her mother is Stephanie Buck, PCFLV\u2019s programming and fundraising coordinator.<\/p>\n
Funding for Camp Smile is provided through corporate sponsors, grants and donations.<\/p>\n
The Pediatric Cancer Foundation of the Lehigh Valley provides free programs and services to local children with cancer and their families.<\/p>\n
The organization is located at 4501 Crackersport Rd. in South Whitehall Township. For information, call 484-221-9294 or visit www.pcflv.org.<\/p>\n
Volunteering for their second year are camp counselors Maddy and Robert DiGiacomo, Jr. The siblings attend Northwestern Lehigh High School. Maddy is entering her sophomore year and Robert his senior.<\/p>\n
Mae Marzen from Hanover Township adjusts her foam hairdo at the PCFLV Camp Smile June 24. The 11-year-old\u2019s sibling is a cancer warrior.<\/p>\n
PCFLV staff keeping the \u201cUnder the Sea\u201d theme going along swimmingly are, from left, Programming & Fundraising Coordinator Stephanie Buck, Executive Director Michelle Zenie Rounds, Fundraising Manager Tracy Stauffer, Camp Smile Director Kristine Buss and Marketing and Communications Coordinator Caley Bittner.<\/p>\n
Thirteen-year-old buddies, from left, Maddie Nass from Easton and Caitlin Cleffi from Hellertown have fun with foam. Cancer free now, Nass was diagnosed at age 5. Cleffi attends camp as a sibling of her twin sister Mackenzie who successfully battled leukemia.<\/p>\n
Press photos by Ed CourrierFlanking counselor Samantha Turner are 15-year-old cancer warrior Sarabeth Mesko, left, and her sisters, 14-year-old Sophia and 13-year-old Sidney, right. The siblings reside in Lower Macungie Township. Turner graduated from Parkland High School and is now an oncology nurse.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Camp Smile brought a week of joy to campers during the annual event hosted by the Pediatric Cancer…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":251107,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[119,121,120],"class_list":["post-251106","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-allentown","tag-allentown","tag-allentown-headlines","tag-allentown-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/251106","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=251106"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/251106\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/251107"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=251106"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=251106"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=251106"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}