At Camp Kesem, kids with parents battling cancer get to be themselves

A Minnesota camp is giving children facing a parent's cancer diagnosis a place just to be kids.

At Camp Kesem in Paynesville, Minnesota, the smiles come quickly. Kids running, dancing and diving into a week that feels at first glance like any other summer camp. 

For 13-year-old Daniel Hindes, this summer will be his third year at Camp Kesem. 

"My fear was just like, being away from her," explained Hindes. "She was in the hospital for a while and I was with my grandparents during that time. I barely got to see her and at that time I realized that I maybe had to step it up a little bit."

At camp, those fears are understood.

"It's kind of hard finding other people with the same experience and in a group of people you can share some honest things," he said.

His mother, Kate-Madonna Quast, says that connection is everything.

"The best part of Kesem is the way that it allows kids to talk about really hard things," Quast said. "We forget that cancer doesn't just affect the person who has cancer, it actually affects the people around them, more than it even affects me."

And for one week, she says kids get a break from that reality.

"This little guy has had to carry a burden that no kid should have to carry, and Kesem gives him a week to put that down and feel just like a regular kid," Quast said.

Brenna Rubasky attended Camp Kesem as a child while her mother went through cancer. She now helps run the University of Minnesota chapter.

"I think the Kesem magic is really in the small moments," Quast said. "You just get to be a kid. You don't have to worry about life."

She says it's a chance to get something everyone needs: community.