Todd Tibeault has never sat around the campfire with Victory Lane Camp (VLC), and yet he still feels a deep connection with the people in the VLC community. The past few years have been challenging for the Tibeaults. Todd’s wife, Brandi, has struggled with health issues and his son, Mason, has special needs. VLC volunteers built a ramp for the family’s home to help make their lives easier. He felt the love and support of a community designed to surround families with children who have special needs, and the Tibeault family plans to continue to be part of the VLC community by attending the year-round connection events and a camp session this summer.

“It takes special people to take care of the special people that take care of a child with special needs,” he expressed.

Tibeault was one of four speakers who shared “Campfire Conversations” during the recent VLC annual banquet. This year’s theme was “S’more than a Camp” and highlighted the organization’s year-round impact. Additional conversations featured Jadyn Youngquist, Dusti Dobbs, and Cindy Cook.

Jadyn Youngquist, age 12, talked about how serving with Victory Lane Camp has helped her gain confidence. She is helping to develop a program for teens and pre-teens, called Teens In Mission or “TIMs,” that will give students a chance to build life-changing relationships with children who have special needs.

Dusti Dobbs sees first-hand the benefits of the TIM program. During her work as a therapist, the TIMs helped in the therapy sessions and provided enthusiasm and encouragement to the “Victory Kids,” children with special needs.

Cindy Cook of the Richmond area has watched her son Aaron, who is a “Victory Kid,” become part of the Victory Lane Camp community. Before this, Aaron didn’t have other kids to play with, but he has made many friends through Victory Lane camp.

More than 120 people attended the banquet, which was catered by Paula Howe Catering. Jessica Tomlinson decorated cupcakes for the event. Jerry Ingalls served as Master of Ceremonies for the evening’s activities.

The banquet was made possible through the generous donations of corporate sponsors which included ASI, Trilogy, Just Mulch, and the Sears Hometown Store of New Castle, Indiana.

“I loved hearing stories from all of our speakers. We had Victory Families in attendance, which was a nice addition to the evening,” noted Tiffanny Youngquist, Assistant Director. “I appreciate the hard work of the Events ‘Pit Crew’ who put the event together.”