[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 98 (Friday, July 11, 1997)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7296-S7297]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
WISHES DO COME TRUE FOR KIDS
Mr. BYRD. Mr. President, a newspaper article entitled ``Wishes do
come true for Kids'' appeared in the Saturday, June 21, 1997, edition
of the Washington Times. The article relates the story of a charitable
foundation--Kids, Inc.--which was established in 1982. The foundation
has helped gravely ill youngsters in 17 states find some measure of
happiness in their last days by financing a special vacation with their
family members, or meeting a celebrity, or attending a circus, or
participating in a group outing such as a VIP tour of the U.S. Capitol.
The article also tells about the moving force behind this very
worthwhile volunteer organization--retired Army Colonel John G.
Campbell of Burke, Virginia.
I am not surprised to read of Colonel Campbell's efforts to help some
of our most vulnerable citizens. I have known Colonel Campbell for many
years. He accompanied me on a congressional delegation to China and on
several trips to dedicate military facilities in the state of West
Virginia. He has served the country in uniform and as a staff member of
the U.S. Senate. I have always found Colonel Campbell to be a man of
competence, compassion, and Christian conscience. I thank and commend
him for his efforts on behalf of the children who have benefited from
Kids, Inc., and wish him and his wife, Jan, well.
Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the article about Colonel
Campbell and his work on behalf of seriously ill children be printed in
the Record at this point.
There being no objection, the article was ordered to be printed in
the Record, as follows:
[From the Washington Times, June 21, 1997]
Wishes Do Come True for Kids
(By Patrick Butters)
To be perfectly callous, most people wonder whether giving
cash and precious time to charity actually goes to the poor
folks who need it most--or whether it just sinks into the
black hole of ``administrative costs.''
With Kids Inc., a good answer would be to look around its
small office in Burke. Ensconced behind a heavy, nondescript
door in an office complex on Old Keene Mill Road, the
nonprofit group's results can be seen on its walls.
Photos show smiling and sometimes laughing children, most
of them gravely ill. Since 1982, Kids has helped such
unfortunate youngsters in 17 states find a few moments or a
few days of happiness through special requests, such as
visiting Disney World or meeting wrestler Hulk Hogan, actor
Michael J. Fox or a member of the Washington Redskins.
Children have gone on such group outings as VIP tours of the
U.S. Capitol.
``There are no fancy ads, no fancy offices, no glossy
publications and no fund-raising firms. It is small and has
direct impact,''
[[Page S7297]]
says Frank Norton, who volunteers with his wife, Carol.
``This is neighborhood. These are folks you may not know
but you could know. They may be your nextdoor neighbor or
your cousin.''
The head neighbor of all this is retired Army Col. John G.
Campbell, president of the nonprofit group. Not surprisingly,
his consulting firm has donated office space to Kids.
He's a tall, handsome Texan with an endearing drawl, a
killer grin and a disarming demeanor. At Kids events, he's
everywhere at once, announcing the next guest or simply
rounding up metal folding chairs for the artist he's enlisted
to draw pictures of the children. Col. Campbell's stunning
wife, Jan, who is Kids secretary/treasurer, and the rest of
the volunteer army work the huge crowd.
``A brilliant, brave soldier with a touch of bravado,''
says Sen. John Warner, Virginia Republican, of Col Campbell,
with whom he has worked for many years on Capitol Hill.
Yet Col. Campbell takes great pains to point out that this
is an all-volunteer organization. What little overhead there
is pays for a certified public accountant and for operating
licenses. Kids could not survive on just John Campbell, and
he knows it.
``While most of the news you read is bad news, there are a
great deal of good things going on,'' he says. ``People are
willing--and eager--to help if they know it's going directly
to a worthy cause.''
The first child Kids helped was 8-year-old Andrew Bley, who
suffered from a brain tumor. The boy went to the same church
as Col. Campbell, a Burke resident, who at the time was a
well-connected Army liaison officer to the U.S. Senate. He
and several others met with then-Rep. Earl Hutto, Florida
Democrat, and Frank Borman, then-chairman of Eastern
Airlines, whom Col. Campbell knew while on the faculty of
West Point. They pooled their resources and sent Andrew and
his family to Walt Disney World ``for what was really their
first real, great family vacation.''
``The family's resources were exhausted--which, by the way,
is frequently the case in all of these things,'' Col.
Campbell says. Andrew was ``a brave, cheerful kid who fought
until the end and died,'' says Col. Campbell, his voice
ebbing.
The boy, as they say, did not die in vain. The trip created
a lasting impression on the volunteers.
``It was so rewarding for those of us who participated in
it, we thought, `Gee, we ought to try and to this on some
sort of organized basis.' '' Col. Campbell says.
A framed check dated Dec. 28, 1983, on the wall of Col.
Campbell's office is signed by Mr. Warner for $250. This
marked the first actual donation, opening the bank account
the day Kids officially went into business.
The orders came in immediately. Some children wanted--and
got--events such as being onstage with Bill Cosby or trips to
Ocean City or the circus. (One child even went fishing in
Alaska.)
Others received items such as a new wheelchair, an
automatic page turner, art lessons, home computer, a canopied
bed or a pneumo-wrap, which helped a 16-year-old boy with
Duchenne's muscular dystrophy breathe more easily. One
heartbreaker wanted an Easter dress and matching bonnet.
Another just wanted a Barbie doll.
Some of the other requests weren't so simple, but were
attainable. A little boy spent a few nights on the aircraft
carrier USS Saratoga and sat in the cockpit of a jet. (``They
made him an honorary member of the squadron and gave him a
leather jacket,'' says Col. Campbell.) Kids has also taken
children on elephant rides, trips to the FBI's target range
and up in the air in a hot air balloon.
The first year, 1982, Kids helped seven children. The
numbers doubled the next year, and last year the organization
helped 60 children.
The Kids brochure stresses that the families of the
patients are involved as much as possible. ``Generally in
these situations the family is wiped out,'' Col. Campbell,
``but in the end we do what the child wants to do.''
This message pervades conversations with participants. In
the pauses, it's evident that childhood illness is very
democratic, within and without.
``It affects the entire family,'' says retired Army Col.
Frank Norton, a member of Kids' 28-member advisory board.
``It's not just the child suffering. The other children in
the family watch their parents have to put all their money,
time and energy into this one child, and they may not have
time to do other things with the other children. Kids is a
way to help the entire process, and I think they have been
successful in a wonderfully low-key way.''
While Kids' heart is in the right place, it does not--and
cannot--accept everybody. There are 10 specific requirements.
One is that children must be recommended by a social worker
or other health care professional. Another specifies that
children be 16 or younger, though Kids can be flexible on
this point.
As it is with any well-oiled charitable machine, once word
gets out about its success there seems to be more people in
need than there is money. Kids raises its funds through
events--such as the annual Kids Celebrity Tennis Party and
the Kids Hot Air Balloon Rally, golf tournaments, art
auctions, movie premieres and car shows.
Depite the complexity of such operations, the events
themselves come off pretty casually. The children, sometimes
wearing crisp, colorful Kids T-shirts and ball caps to shield
their shaved heads from the sun, show up with their parents
and brothers and sisters. The picnics are filled with games
and food, and the volunteers seem to have as much fun
laughing and playing as do the families.
``In terms of the parents, they are profiles in courage,''
says Mr. Warner. ``They want to do everything they can to
bring some happiness into that child's life. And then you see
in the child's face equal or even greater courage. They may
have some knowledge of their terminal nature and yet they
retain that youthful vigor.''
Connections are crucial for a nonprofit in this town, and
Col. Campbell makes no bones about using his to keep Kids
afloat. On the wall is a framed 1992 excerpt from the
Congressional Record, which contained Mr. Warner's remarks
about the value of Kids. He and his Senate pals Strom
Thurmond, Alfonse D'Amato, Pete Domenici and Trent Lott are
on the Kids board of advisers, as are Reps. W.G. Hefner and
Bob Livingston and former Sen. J. Bennett Johnston.
Mr. Warner has been a mainstay at many Kids events, as has
Mr. Thurmond. Former Sen. Bob Dole even took time from his
presidential race last year to show up at a Kids event at the
Capitol. There must be something going on here, because sick
children can't vote.
``I think this organization achieves its goal,'' Mr. Warner
says. ``A moment, even though fleeting, of happiness for both
parents and child.''
Kids can be reached at 703/455-KIDS, fax 703/440-9208, or
write 9300-D Old Keene Mill Rd., Burke, Va. 22015.
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