Kayak camp a haven for cancer-stricken youth

It's not uncommon to see a group of kayakers making their way down the North Fork, but the 30 or so kayakers paddling last Thursday weren't just any group. They were First Descents campers and volunteers.

This is the ninth year that Brad Ludden, a Kalispell native, has hosted a kayak camp for young adults with cancer. Ludden, who lives in Colorado, is a world class kayaker and founder of First Descents. A non-profit organization, First Descents, started as just one camp in Kalispell for the most underserved demographic with cancer, young adults.

"I think each one of them walks away with something different," Ludden said. "But if I generalized it, I'd say they get a network of people that understand them as much as family. They also get to redefine themselves as something other than a cancer patient. They are a kayaker, or an adventure athlete. Also, they learn that they aren't fragile just because they have had cancer."

Since its inception, the camp has already served nearly 500 people and has grown to host camps in six states.

"We have a really strong board that has helped me see the forest through the trees," Ludden said. "From day one, when I first decided to do this, I just put my head down and started chipping away. The board has helped me see the clearing ahead and helped me see how big this thing can be and how to get there. Nine years ago I didn't know if the camp would last through the week and now here we are nine years and nearly 500 campers later."

One of those campers is Cory Munro from Charlotte, N.C. who participated in last week's camp in West Glacier. Her cousin, Melissa Hage, went to the kayak camp last year and recommended it to Munro and both ladies shared the experience this year.

"It's awesome," Munro said. "I'm having a blast."

She was a little less enthusiastic about her first kayaking lesson though.

"I was terrified," she said. "I was nervous today again (the fourth day). The staff is great, though. They get us through it and back to having fun."

Munro was particularly impressed with the staff's teaching style, which has the campers progress through different skills on small sections of the river throughout the week. Not only was she learning to kayak, but she also learned that she is not alone in her medical condition.

"I think having the opportunity to be surrounded by people that have been through the same thing as you have is nice," Munro said. "You can talk about it with each other without having to explain all the medical terms or anything. Then you go do this other thing — kayaking — and none of you have done that either so you're all learning to do something for the first time together, but you already have that common bond. Sometimes you feel like you're out there by yourself and you come here and you realize that you aren't."

Fellow camp participant Gordon Blanchard of Boston said he also appreciated the not alone in her medical condition.

"I think having the opportunity to be surrounded by people that have been through the same thing as you have is nice," Munro said. "You can talk about it with each other without having to explain all the medical terms or anything. Then you go do this other thing — kayaking — and none of you have done that either so you're all learning to do something for the first time together, but you already have that common bond. Sometimes you feel like you're out there by yourself and you come here and you realize that you aren't."

Fellow camp participant Gordon Blanchard of Boston said he also appreciated the people he met at camp.

"I think there's been a real genuine bond," he said. "You get people from all over the country and almost right out of the gate there is a real sense of trust among each other. It takes away whatever stress you have. Throughout the week you can just feel yourself decompressing. This is the best medicine out there."

Blanchard and Munro are an example of the popularity of the program among east coast residents, which is pushing First Descents to start looking at setting up camps in that region.

"We are looking at a lot of expansion over the next couple of years to meet a demand that we aren't getting to right now," Ludden said. "We are on track to expand adventure therapy to more cancer survivors in the near future."

One way that Ludden and his team are expanding is via the internet. The foundation is setting up an online group to facilitate outdoor activities for those dealing with cancer to participate in. The site will allow both former campers and those who have never participated in First Descents to post activities they are planning on partaking in so other young adults with cancer can join them, and will also be a social network to connect with one another.

"It's our way of recognizing that we can't reach everyone, but we want to help them get together," Ludden said.

For the first time First Descents had to turn away applicants — about 100 — due to a lack of space.

They have nine five-day camps that can have up to 15 participants each, a number that Ludden said won't be increasing to preserve safety and the quality of the experience.

"We could put on hundreds of camps right now," Ludden said. "We just need the money to do it."

There is no cost for the participants to attend the camp, but the organization figures it costs about $1,000 per camper, plus operating costs, for the organization. The majority of funding comes from annual giving campaigns, grassroots events and an annual gala in Vail, Colo. Even in poor economic times, First Descents is still seeing a steady stream of donations.

The Montana camps, which are held in Glacier Park, get a great deal of their funding from local donors. This year the Kalispell Daybreak Rotary and the Flathead Valley Community College Foundation each gave First Descents about $5,000 to use for their Montana camps. Also, Glacier Raft Company partners with the camp providing discounted rates for outfitting, and Columbia Mountain Cabins and the Glacier Institute gives First Descents reduced priced lodging.

While expanding their camps, First Descents has also come up with some creative ways to expand their fund-raising. They started a new program called Team FD, which allows people to compete in any outdoor event to raise money for the organization. In turn, athletes get to compete under the Team FD name, and they receive fund-raising assistance from the organization.

"We get so many participants that come and say 'how can I give back,'" Ludden said. "So we thought it would be great for them to get back outdoors and be active and challenge themselves."

Additionally, First Descents and Ludden have two documentaries that will be distributed this fall with proceeds going to First Descents. One of them trails Ludden and three other professional kayakers on a first descent of their own down a river in Madagascar. Originally that documentary and another about the camp itself were going to be blended as one film, but it was later decided they would be separate. The film about the camps First Descents offers and how they help young adults with cancer follows four participants at camp last summer.

"We didn't tell them what to think, feel or say and the result is pretty shocking," Ludden said. "You get a feel for not only how scarring cancer is at this age, but how important First Descents is to these people's recovery."

After nine years of leading these camps Ludden has watched both volunteers and participants gain a great deal from First Descents.

"It gives everyone a lot of perspective," he said. "Even among the patients. They get perspective about their own cancer. It gives the staff perspective about our lives too. We see that if we are healthy, then we are very lucky just to have that."

While the participants talk about how lucky they feel to get to spend the week at camp, and how much they appreciate the opportunity that Ludden and his organization provides them, he is equally appreciative of what the campers leave with him.

"I jokingly say I've never had cancer but I get all the upsides without the down," Ludden said. "I get all the perspective and realize what's really important. I almost feel like I'm cheating because I didn't have to have cancer to get that."