Humanitarian creates ranch for kids with chronic or life-threatening illnesses
Gerry Bellett
Sun
Josh Somers, 12, and mom Shelley. Josh, who was born with Alpert’s Syndrome, has an incredible time at the Zajac Ranch. Photograph by : Peter Battistoni, Vancouver Sun
Mel Zajac doesn’t want chronic or life-threatening illness to deprive any child of having fun.
So three years ago, his foundation opened Zajac Ranch on the west side of Stave Lake, a Western-style ranch supported by The Vancouver Sun Children’s Fund.
“At first I thought of creating a camp for underprivileged children but others have done that. Then I realized there wasn’t a camp for kids with real bad medical problems where they could go and have fun and just be a kid,” said Zajac.
“Other camps didn’t want them because there was no way they could handle kids with severe medical and physical problems.”
Since the ranch opened, more than 1,500 children accompanied by family members, often with nurses and doctors in attendance, have gone there to ride horses, rock climb, rope climb, learn archery, kayak, and have the kind of outdoor fun that able-bodied children take for granted.
The Zajac Foundation has raised more than $6 million to develop the ranch and this year almost $3 million will be spent on increasing the facilities, including construction of a $2.24-million indoor swimming pool in the shape of an old barn with a wheelchair ramp into the water, and an indoor riding arena measuring 30 by 61 metres (100 by 200 feet).
A petting zoo will be added along with a tree house — accessible to children regardless of their disability — and a water tower to add a more western feeling to the 16-hectare (40-acre) ranch. The ranch also has a medical centre, complete with four dialysis machines and other equipment necessary to treat children who can spend up to a week there.
“For me, this is a place of miracles,” said Zajac. “Last summer there was a kid who’d never spoken a word in his life. We put him on a horse and put a cowboy hat on his head and he got so excited he yelled out something about his cowboy hat — the first words his parents had ever heard him say. “The look on their faces is hard to describe, but it was beautiful,” he said.
“We had a kid with spina bifida who also had a tracheotomy [a tube in his throat to enable him to breathe] and three nurses looking after him. We got him up on the high rope in a special harness 40 feet in the air. Then we put him in a special bike. He’d never ridden a bike in his life.
“We have kids who have no strength but they can make a kayak move and you’ll hear them screaming with delight,” he said.
“We want them to do what other kids do. We’ll make it happen for them. The horse riding is one of my favourites. The horses sense if the kid’s an invalid and just stand there while we get the kid on. Being able to ride a horse is something some of the kids have never imagined,” said Zajac.
The Somers family has taken 12-year-old Josh to the ranch since it opened.
Josh’s mom Shelley said the experience has been incredible.
“The children do things they never thought they could ever do,” she said.
Josh was born with Apert’s Syndrome — a condition that results in the fusing of the bones in his head, hands and feet. When he was born, he had no fingers.
As a result, Josh has undergone numerous surgeries to separate his fingers and to relieve pressure on his brain.
The Somers go to the camp with other families whose children have the same condition.
“Last summer there were about nine families in our group and it’s great for these kids to see other kids like them. It’s a safe place and they are very careful with the children because these kids can’t fall and hit their heads,” said Shelley.
“The counsellors are trained to get the kids involved in all sorts of activities. They made a special harness for Josh so he could do rope walking 20 feet in the air. When he came down, he said he didn’t want to do it again but at least he tried it.
“The first year we went, they put Josh in a kayak by himself. For me it was ‘Oh my God, what are they doing?’ but Josh was all smiles.
“When the children do these things, you see such a wonderful expression of accomplishment on their faces. It’s beautiful to see.”
© The Vancouver Sun 2006