Okizu strong: A summer of fun as camp wraps up in Petaluma

PETALUMA, Calif. (KGO) -- ABC7 Eyewitness News is a proud media sponsor of Okizu - and the Northern California nonprofit just wrapped up its summer camp season, providing a safe space for children and families facing cancer.

Walker Creek Ranch in Petaluma is one of three locations across the Bay Area hosting Okizu summer camp. Around 300 campers came out this summer to experience what we call the "magic of Okizu."

It might look like a typical summer camp. Kids playing ball outside. Arts and crafts. Water carnivals.

But the reality of what happens here goes far beyond that.

Surrounded by nature, the real beauty is "Okizu."

"So I started coming as a young kid, and it was the best week of the year," camp counselor Evan Vieira said.

"It was a place to belong, a second family," Vieira said. "Getting to talk and meet people who are going through the same thing as me."

Okizu means unity, to come together and to heal.

Vieira lost his brother, Noah, in 2015 to a rare brain cancer.

It started with seizures when he was 5 years old.

Noah's nurse recommended Okizu.

"I found a community of other bereaved siblings, and they really helped me deal with the loss of my brother and made me into the person I am today," Vieira said.

For the past 20 years, Vieira has come back in order to give back as a counselor, just like Ashley Barth.

"Camp Okizu very quickly became a great support system for my family," Barth said.

About a month before Barth's third birthday, she was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, a fast-growing blood cancer.

"I underwent treatment for the next two years," Barth said.

Each day fighting to survive.

Now in remission for 15 years.

And she's back at camp to help other kids like her.

"It's been very eye-opening," Barth said.

"I think growing up in a hospital, a lot of the adults I was around were doctors, nurses, and child life specialists. I want to be that influential adult in someone else's life," Barth said.

Okizu's Berry Creek campus burned down in the 2020 wildfires and has since been renting at various locations in Livermore, Modesto and Petaluma.

"Back at Berry Creek, we were able to host 120 to 130 kiddos. This year, our largest site is around 86. That number alone is a big difference," Barth said.

The nonprofit offers five types of camps ranging from oncology camp to sibling camp that help families know they're not alone.

One of the siblings attending this year is Oakland native Sybil Gottesman.

"I just really like coming here, and I look forward to it," Gottesman said. "When my brother first got cancer, it was really close to my fifth birthday."

Camp Okizu became her second home.

"It's really nice to be around people that I know had rough times too," Gottesman said.

For Sybil and hundreds of other kids like her, camp is an escape from reality. Embracing fun activities... and new friendships.

"Here at camp, in the mornings, the kiddos get to choose not one but two different activities that they are interested in," Okizu Camp Director Alex Grimm said.

From nature walks to bereavement counseling, to all the talk at "Tadger Times."

"Tadger Times is typically when we have a group of campers come in. They'll have a little notebook where they can write down anything they want," Nathaniel Muños said.

Tadger is Okizu's mascot.

"Nobody actually knows what he looks like," Muños said.

But that's part of the fun.

The campers all convene here at the amphitheater several times a day between activities to meet up with their camp counselors.

For these kids, it's all about building trust and strength with the power of community.

That's why these campers don't even share their real names.

They come up with nicknames. Like Bubbles, Kuma, and...

"Snow Cone!" announced one child.

A sweet treat to celebrate summer.

"It's really inspiring and in the moments where there's chaos... laughing... remembering that we're just here to offer them the opportunity to be a child when there's so much else going on at home... is honestly the best experience I've ever had," said Gilina Voon, camp counselor and student nurse.

"You came to camp as a camper... and here you are back as a nurse... what does that mean to you?" asked Stephanie Sierra.

"I have been going to camp for 9 years as a camper... it was the best week of my life... and the counselors are the reason I am who I am today..." Voon said.

It's what's called "Okizu strong."

Learn how to get involved with Okizu on their website or how to help the non-profit's campaign to rebuild their new home in Calaveras County on their donation page.