Batesburg-Leesville, SC (WLTX) -- A week of swimming, playing and singing, is coming to an end for the campers at Camp Kemo.
Other summer camps--eat your heart out. Camp Kemo can hang, and sing, with the best of them.
"The only thing different from our camp than most summer camps is we have medicine call five or six times a day," said Jeanne Schmidt. "We bring in an entire medical staff with a physician and lots of nurses here all week."
Behind the voices and smiling faces is Director Jeanne Schmidt. She says the week has been packed full of swimming, dancing, and arts and crafts.
"We're just doing a lot of fun activities," said Schmidt.
Camp Counselor Ross Sawyer is in his fifth year as a volunteer. He lost his cousin to cancer in 2005.
"So I've been coming out to camp since then. Camp was one of his favorites. So our family has gotten real involved since then," said Sawyer.
For campers Judith Laird and Gemma Cabrera, meeting new friends at their first camp experience is what they say helps them feel more normal.
"It's really great because I just moved from Ohio. I didn't know anyone in South Carolina so it's really great to be able to meet new people," said Laird.
"I like it because here you get to be yourself and you don't feel so bad about having cancer," said Cabrera.
Tonight, campers will light candles and place them in the lake for past, present, and future campers.
"It's really great to see how people donate their time, money, and everything they got for kids like us," said Cabrera.
Camp Kemo is one of the nation's first pediatric oncology camps. The camp is fully funded through private donations and community support.