Its summer and summer means time for camp. Camp is a time for children to play, make friends and have new experiences. However, when a child is suffering from a serious illness camp takes on an even bigger purpose. Camp becomes a place to be a kid with others who are facing the same challenges.  Camp becomes a place of hope and healing. That is exactly why Camp Soaring Eagle was created.  This special place  provides the healing power of laughter to thousands of seriously ill children by giving them the opportunity to go to a medically supervised camp at no cost to the campers and their families.  The camp was founded by entrepreneur Max F. James.

Max began his life as a Tennessee farm boy where his father was a share cropper.  A life of hard work and dedication lead him to the Air Force Academy, Vietnam and then Stanford Business School, where he received his MBA. Max said in an interview recently, “My two children and my wife, Linda, helped me build the business, so we set up a family foundation, wanting to start giving back to the community. Over the years we wrote a lot of little checks, but then my son sent me to Orlando, Fl, to Camp Boggy Creek, one of Paul Newman’s Hole In the Wall camps, where seriously ill kids can attend a medically supervised camping program. We decided we could also do something like that. ”

Since 2009, Camp Soaring Eagle has sent hundreds of seriously ill children to camp and continues to keep growing and expanding. Providing campers and families a happy slice of summer fun and memories to last a lifetime. As Max F. James said, “I have been tremendously blessed and strongly believe that when one gives it comes back tenfold.”

Charity Matters.

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