Frequently-Asked Questions

Campers and their families come to CCK at no cost.

Please go to our Camp Virtual Tour page to get a complete inside look at our campus.

Applying for camp is electronic and easy. You can apply online or scan this QR code with your phone camera and find the application page immediately.

Yes! CCK provides 24/7 medical coverage for the diagnosed child while they attend camp. Our medical staff operate from an on-site care center including a pharmacy and helipad. Additionally, CCK is located less than a mile away from the nearest Emergency Room.

CCK offers a great mix of indoor and outdoor activity options for every child to choose something they will enjoy doing. There are many opportunities to freely choose activities within the planned program schedule so that every child can try something new!

Along with the medical staff attending to your child’s medical and physical needs, CCK employs dedicated and caring program staff to engage and participate with your child while caring for their social and emotional health.

For many reasons, CCK requires that children leave their phones and tablets at home. Guardians are encouraged to bring mail or care packages to camp for their children to open throughout the week. You can also contact our Camp Director or Camp Physician for regular updates on your child’s experience.

CCK operates camp sessions year-round. In the spring and fall, we offer Family Weekend Retreats in which anyone living in the home with your diagnosed child is invited to join! If summer camp is not the right option for your child yet, please consider applying for a Family Weekend Retreat.

Please reach out by calling CCK: 270-618-2900 or email info@courageouskids.org

Please contact CCK and we will direct you to the staff member who can answer your questions. You can email info@courageouskids.org

Please go to the “camp schedule” link on the homepage or apply here.

• Your child will learn how to be a teammate and work with others towards common goals
• New activities, dancing, trying new foods and interacting with people of different backgrounds
• Opportunities to perform in front of groups
• Opportunities to express their opinions
• Learning to share resources with fellow campers and compromising
• Practicing “supervised” independence away from relatives
• Being away from television, radios, IPods, cell phones and other multimedia
• Opportunities to lead

Our campers get the choice to participate in a lot of activities throughout their week or weekend.  Those activities include:

• Horseback riding
• Boating and Fishing
• Arts & Crafts
• Music and Art Therapy
• Woodworking
• Swimming (indoor pool)
• Outdoor learning in the Adventure Lodge Tree House
• Miniature Golf (all inclusive handicap accessible 9 hole golf course)
• Archery
• Bowling
• Theater

The safety and health of campers is our top priority. To protect the health of all campers and staff, we ask that campers who are displaying symptoms such as fever, cough, sore throat, body aches, nausea/vomiting, diarrhea or chills remain at home. For specific questions about illness prevention or management at camp, please contact our Camp Nurse at campnurse@courageouskids.org.

For the safety and health of your camper, we need to be aware of any recent health issues that may have occurred since you completed the online health application. Please contact our Camp Nurse at campnurse@courageouskids.org to discuss any recent changes in your camper’s condition. If your child has been hospitalized within 4 weeks of camp, we will need to ensure that they are still medically capable of attending camp.

Our CCK medical staff will treat campers who are sick or injured on camp. In the case of an emergency, the camper will be taken by emergency services to the hospital. Parents will be contacted if the following happen:
⦁ We have a concern about your child’s health or physical wellbeing
⦁ Your child needs to stay in the medical center overnight
⦁ We have questions about your child’s medications
⦁ Your child needs off-camp medical attention
⦁ There are behavioral concerns with your child

CCK medical staff are onsite 24/7 anytime there are campers present. There is always a designated on-call medical provider to care for emergent needs.

Yes, all camp counselors have been trained in aiding with feeding, showering and toileting.

Yes, CCK medical staff can manage these camper medical needs throughout the week. If you have any specific questions about your camper’s needs, please contact our Camp Nurse at campnurse@courageouskids.org.

Yes, CCK medical staff can provide care needed during the night.

Any prescription medications or supplements should be brought from home with the camper in the original packaging labeled with the camper’s name and current dosage. Specialized medical supplies such as catheters, ostomy supplies, diabetic supplies or tube feeding supplies should also be brought with the camper. CCK does provide first aid supplies and common over-the-counter medications such as ibuprofen, Tylenol and Benadryl.

Yes, we provide meal options during our summer sessions for those with specific dietary restrictions including vegetarian and gluten free. We also have a fruit and salad bar that are options for each meal as well.

To help prevent continued homesickness and promote an independent growing experience, we do not allow children to call or email home. However, we do encourage campers and parents to write letters. To help prevent homesickness, parents can send letters for the camper or have the camper bring a keepsake from home such as a stuffed animal.

CCK understands that a healthy, nutritional, and kid friendly menu is an important part of the camp experience. Each summer, we strive to meet our campers’ dietary needs and restrictions.

Our daily menus include the following options at each meal:

• Gluten free
• Vegetarian meals
• Milk alternatives
• Silk soy milk (vanilla and chocolate flavors)
• Vanilla rice milk
• Orange and apple juice
• A cereal bar at every breakfast

Options that CCK does not provide are the following:

• Vegan meal options (a fruit and/or salad bar will be available at every meal)
• Specialty diets such as ketogenic, paleo, etc.

CCK works with parents to ensure their child is well prepared for their meal needs. To ensure that you are able to assist us with this, we offer the following resources and options:

For Summer Sessions

• Please review the menu that will be sent to you prior to your child’s session. This will provide knowledge of what we will be serving, and what your child will enjoy.
• Guardians are allowed to provide pre-made meals. Please ensure that the containers have your child’s name on them. A member of the food service team will store and warm the food prior to each meal.
• CCK provides fruit, sun butter and jelly sandwiches as a between meal option.

Please note that CCK is a nut-free facility. The following items are not allowed on camp to ensure the safety of our guests:

• Tree nuts, peanuts, or any item containing tree nuts or peanuts
• Peanut or tree nut butters or anything containing peanut or tree nut butters.
• Nut milks (coconut milk is acceptable as it is not a nut)
• Nutella spread

All meals are served on our hot serving lines. Each lodge has its own serving line and campers are served meals by their camp counselors or CCK year round staff members. If your child requires allergen friendly foods they will be accompanied by their counselor to our kitchen service window to get the allergen free food choices provided for each meal. We also provide the following at each meal:

• Breakfast – Self-serve cereal and fruit bar
• Lunch – Self-serve fruit and salad bar and when applicable a toppings bar for burgers, sandwiches, hot dogs/brats and tacos/nachos.
• Dinner – Self-serve salad bar and when applicable a toppings bar for burgers, sandwiches, hot dogs and tacos/nachos.

To volunteer as a day volunteer you have to be at least 16 years old. To volunteer for our family weekend retreats or summer camps you have to be at least 18 years old.

There are many opportunities to volunteer at CCK:

Family Weekends: require a three-day commitment including attendance at volunteer orientation at the start of the weekend, Friday-Sunday.

Summer Sessions: require a six-day commitment. (Saturday-Thursday)

Year-Round Day: Day volunteers are needed for all weekend retreats and summer camp sessions. Overnight housing is not required or provided for these positions.

Corporate: Organize a volunteer opportunity for your team of employees to partake in the CCK experience together.

Departure will be around 2:00pm CT for weekend retreats.
Departure will be around 1:00pm CT for summer sessions.

Please contact our Volunteer Recruiter at volunteer@courageouskids.org.

You will receive a reminder email with an attachment a week out from the retreat date. You will need appropriate clothing/shoes and personal hygiene products. *An extra pillow is never a bad idea.*

Yes, we provide meals during our weekend retreats and our summer session alternative meal options are provided for those with specific dietary restrictions. We also have a fruit and salad bar that are options for each meal as well.

Yes, that’s not a problem at all. Please keep in mind that we are a nut-free facility.

Our Volunteer Recruiter will verify all service hours. She will greet you when you check-in. Please have the form available at that time. She will accept it at check-in and return it to you via e-mail or fax the week following the retreat.

It’s never a bad idea to do a little research on the retreat diagnosis before your arrival. Also, our Doctor or Nurse will provide the medical overview during orientation to ensure that you are prepared. There will be a medical presence on camp the entire weekend or week in the event that any specific questions arise.

Medical volunteers can be nurses, nurse practitioners, physicians, physician assistants, nursing students and medical students in their 3rd and 4th years.

Medical volunteers are an essential part of providing a safe camp experience. As a medical volunteer, you will do the following:
⦁ Assist with camper arrival and departure processes.
⦁ Aid in day to day medical management as well as caring for emergent medical needs.
⦁ Assist campers with medical procedures and ADLs.
⦁ Assist with medication administration.

We always welcome medical volunteers with prior experience working with the illness group served, however it is not required. We do encourage you to do research at home and you will receive some information about the diagnosis before your arrival. Additionally, the camp medical staff will provide a medical orientation prior to camper arrival. CCK medical staff will be available on camp to answer any specific questions as they arise.

Yes, licensed volunteers will be housed in our medical housing building and students will be housed in the camper lodges.

Departure will be around 1:00pm CST for summer sessions.

Please contact our Camp Nurse at campnurse@courageouskids.org.

You will receive an email with several attachments a week before the first day of the camp session. This will include a packing list. You will need appropriate clothing/shoes and personal hygiene products. *An extra pillow is never a bad idea.*

Yes, we provide meal options during our summer sessions for those with specific dietary restrictions. We also have a fruit and salad bar that are options for each meal as well.

Yes, that’s not a problem at all. Please keep in mind that we are a nut-free facility.

Our Camp Nurse will verify all clinical hours. She will greet you when you check-in. Please have the form available at that time. She will accept it at check-in and return it to you via e-mail or fax the week following the camp session.