After more than two decades of commitment to children with asthma, the Texas Asthma Camp for Kids has claimed its place as the oldest asthma camp in the state of Texas. Since 1985, hundreds of children have learned the skills necessary to manage their asthma while at the same time realizing that they could run, swim and have fun—just like kids at traditional camps.

Held each year in June on beautiful Lake Tyler located in Smith County, Texas, the camp is a community-wide effort of which we can be proud. The Texas Asthma Camp for Kids is organized and conducted by The University of Texas Health Science Center at Tyler, supported by Texas Chest Foundation and staffed in part by respiratory therapy students from Tyler Junior College and Angelina College in Lufkin who serve as counselors while receiving credit for the clinical experience. Our camp also serves as the only site of a federally-funded National Institutes of Health asthma research program in the United States.

The Need is Great

The need for a camp like this one has never been greater. More than half of the 17 million Americans who have asthma are children. A recent survey reported that 70 percent of all Americans either have asthma in their household or immediate family or know of someone with the disease. One in three children suffering from asthma went to an emergency room last year because of an asthma attack. Even more alarming is that over the last 15 years, the number of deaths from asthma has increased by 150 percent. With more effective treatment and better medications than ever, why are children still dying from asthma?

Asthma—The Disease

Asthma is a lung disease that affects the airways that carry air into and out of the lungs. Symptoms vary from child to child, but can include coughing, wheezing, shortness of breath and chest tightness. Recent studies have shown that untreated asthma can cause long-term and permanent damage to the lungs and other major organs. For the person without asthma, the sensation would be similar to breathing through a cocktail straw compared to breathing normally though a garden hose.

Living with asthma can sometimes by scary and lonely for a child. They may feel isolated and fear they are the only ones who have the disease. Children with asthma are sometimes the targets of other kids who make fun of them. Asthma Camp teaches asthmatic children that they are not alone and that many others suffer from the same disease. Many campers return year after year and make life-long friends through the Texas Asthma Camp for Kids.

The Importance of Education

Children don’t always recognize the signs of an oncoming asthma attack until it’s too late. Experts agree that education is the key, and the staff of the Texas Asthma Camp for Kids is committed to creating an environment at camp where children can learn about their disease while having fun at the same time. The education mission of the Texas Asthma Camp for Kids is to help children learn how to take an active role in the management of their disease. During the week, they learn what happens to the lungs before and during an asthma attack, and they are taught about the different types of medications and their effects on the disease. Most importantly, they learn the steps they can take on their own to better manage their asthma and avoid an attack.

What Parents Say

Asthma camp can be a life-changing experience for the kids who attend each year. Letters from parents bear witness to that fact. One parent wrote of her son, “You introduced him to a lot of activities, and for the first time he is starting to venture out and try new things. For the longest time, he felt like he was the only one with asthma. Now I know he will become all he can be. I would like to thank you all so very much for offering children like my son this opportunity.”

Another parent said, “I’ve noticed a dramatic change in my daughter’s asthma since camp. I don’t’ have to remind her to take her medications—now she does it on her own. We haven’t been to the emergency room once this year. The education program at camp completely changed her outlook on life.”

How You Can Help

No child who wishes to attend the Texas Asthma Camp for Kids is ever turned away because of financial reasons. The camp works closely with school nurses and physicians throughout East Texas to identify those children most in need of the social and educational experiences provided at the Texas Asthma Camp for Kids. These children miss the most days of school, they have the most under-treated asthma and they don’t always know how to manage their disease.

Each year, the trustees of the Texas Chest Foundation and friends of the Texas Asthma Camp for Kids underwrite the annual budget of $50,000. Over 80 percent of the children who attend Asthma Camp each year are in need of financial aid.

To learn more about the Texas Asthma Camp for Kids, call 903-877-7075. For information concerning funding to support the camp, call the Texas Chest Foundation at 903-561-8479 or write to P.O. Box 6554, Tyler, Texas 75711.