Please send us to gluten free camp!

Hi! We are the Petersen girls, Rachel, Emily, and Grace. We all have Celiac disease. Rachel is 12, Emily is 7 (almost 8), and Grace is almost 7. In late 2006, Rachel and Emily were both diagnosed with Celiac disease, along with our mom. In 2007, Grace was diagnosed.

For the last 4 years, Rachel has had the opportunity to attend the Great Gluten Escape Camp in Gilmont, Tx. This was made possible through scholarships granted by the Celiac Foundation. Sadly, the Celiac Foundation has had to discontinue giving out scholarships due to lack of funds.

This year, Emily and Grace are finally old enough to attend camp, and they are both very anxious to go along with their big sister. This camp offers us a week of not having to worry about food or being judged by our peers for having "weird" food. We get to socialize with other children that have the same daily trials that we do. It is a week of freedom for us. We get to have smores, pancakes, spaghetti, waffles, pretzels (that we make ourselves), chicken nuggets and french fries, cookies and cake, and all kinds of wonderful treats that we normally don't get to have at home. And the best part? No other child will ask us "why are you eating different food than us?"

The cost for camp this year is $450 per child. That's $1,350 for all three of us to go. Plus the gas money it takes to get us up to camp and home. Our parents just lost our home to foreclosure and they don't have the money to send us to this camp. Our dad works 2 jobs but is sick and our mom is trying to get a business up and running to support us in case our dad has to go on disability.

Please help us reach our goal of $1,500 to go to camp this summer. It would mean the world to us if we could go.