Savannah's Story
When we received a letter from Savannah Hunter's parents we knew she needed a jump start on her weight loss journey. At just over 5 feet tall, Savannah weighs over 225 lbs and suffers as the target of her 7th grade classmates' cruelty. Savannah is an artist, girl scout and avid volunteer, who has recently started to teach art to autistic children. Loving, kind and sweet, Savannah doesn't recognize her own self-worth. Other people's opinions matter to hear, especially concerning her weight.
Her Family's Struggle
Savannah is the youngest of three older brothers. Her parents struggle financially just to benefit from the top schools in a well-to-do area, which Savannah requires because of her educational special needs. Savannah's parents are suffering not only from the financial weight of living expenses, but one of their sons has heart complications and his surgeries have capped the insurance out at over $5 milliontwice. He has endured 9 heart surgeries, 2 strokes and is on his third pacemaker.
A few years ago sub-par home repairs after terrible storms exposed her entire family to toxic mold, which increased hospital and doctor visits, and of course, medical bills. Part of Savannah's prescribed care was high doses of steroids and prednisone, which increased her weight even more. Her blood pressure and weight have continued to rise.
The expenses caused Savannah and her family to lose their home, personal belongings and most basic living necessities. With no savings and two bankruptcies on their record, Savannah's family rebuilt their life. Savannah still comes off the school bus crying because of what other students say to her. Her parents fear her weight will continue to be out of control and become life-threatening.
Both of Savannah's parents work in the medical field, but due to expenses they have a little over one hundred dollars in savings. Not only are Savannah and her brother's medical costs strapping the family budget, but her great-grandparents and her aunt are also the responsibility of her parents.
What Savannah Needs
Savannah needs a summer in the nurturing and unconditional love found at Camp Shining Stars, a non-profit teen weight loss camp in North Carolina. At Camp Shining Stars Savannah will learn:
- How to make better food choices
- Not to eat out of boredom
- To be accountable for her actions
Camp Shining Stars Where Winners LOSE is a non-profit, co-educational summer weight loss camp for teens hosted on the Barton College campus of Wilson, NC. They believe every child has inherent qualities of importance, beauty, and the capacity to enrich and be enriched by the world in which they live, regardless race, sex, ethnic heritage, income or socio-economic class. Camp Shining Stars promotes the welfare and healthy development of children and grants an environment of acceptance, discipline and affection. Unique in size, privacy and independence, Camp Shining Stars is smaller than traditional summer camps, offers a private residence life with two campers to a room, and is the only weight loss camp that allows campers to choose their own activities. Focused on teaching young adults the habits necessary for leading a healthy life, raising self esteem and losing weight, Camp Shining Stars is supported by a distinguished medical advisory board and offers a menu influenced by nutrition majors at Cornell University, University of North Carolina and East Carolina University. www.campshiningstars.org
You can also help by:
- Posting this page on your Facebook wall
- Tweeting Savannah's story
- Emailing your friends a link to this page
Camp Shining Stars' Story
My name is Ira Green and I am the founder and director for Camp Shining Stars. My North Carolina-based non profit camp is a six-week summer weight loss camp for teens ages 12 to 18
. Savannah's story is just one of many young adults who are unable to afford a life-changing summer at camp.
Not every family can afford to send their overweight kids to a camp. We hope to do that, not only for their self-esteem and immediate physical changes, but also to reduce their risks for developing chronic diseases later in life. $12,000 will send Savannah and two other underprivileged teens to camp for the summer.
Every penny counts! Even if you only have $5, please donate!
