Kidney Kids Camp 2024: Ngāruawāhia to host special programme for kids with kidney issues

Kidney Kids will run their annual camps in Ngaruawahia this weekend. Photo / Kidney Kids

New Zealand charity Kidney Kids will invite a group of 70 special kids to Ngāruawāhia this weekend.

Kidney Kids is a not-for-profit organisation that supports children and their whānau with kidney disease. Every year, the charity runs two camps in north Waikato.

Kids from all over the country will get together to go rock climbing and kayaking and doing things other kids without health challenges do, too.

One camp, Camp KeeWee, is for kids aged 8 to 15, and the other, YAK Camp, is for rangatahi aged between 16 and 19 years.

The three days of Camp Keewee are filled with activities aimed to improve social skills, promote support between peers, build trust, self-esteem and confidence.

YAK Camp gives these young adults a chance to develop life-long friendships, exchange personal experiences, gain autonomy and encourage them to participate within their community, despite their kidney condition.

Jill, a mother of one of the kids who participated in a previous camp, said her daughter Issy had a fantastic time.

“Over the years, [Issy] has missed every school camp because of so much time spent in the hospital. She can’t help but feel different from the other kids at school, and she struggles with missing out.

“But at Kidney Kids camp, Issy didn’t miss out and didn’t have to hide her condition around other kids – kids who understand. She has come home from... Kidney Kids camp with a new view on her world – she feels special, not different.”

This year’s Kidney Kids camps take place at Ngāruawāhia Christian Youth Camp, from April 12 to 14.

Kidney Kids was founded in 1990 to provide emotional support and to help parents of children with kidney disorders. They also run regional events to connect families to create local support networks.

Families with a child who has kidney or urinary tract challenges are invited to call Kidney Kids’ national support line at 0800 215 437 to talk or register your child as a Kidney kid.

People interested in donating can find information online at www.kidneykids.org.nz, the Kidney Kids givealittle page, or by emailing admin@kidneykids.org.nz.