Victory Lane is celebrating 10 years of connecting families by focusing on key aspects of our Victory Lane community. We begin by focusing on Victory Families, families who have a child with special needs.

When Dustin and Whitney Davies decided to attend their first Victory Lane summer camp session last year, it felt scary. They had heard about camp through 321Go Kids where their child receives therapy and decided it was something they needed to do for their family. It wasn’t long before the fear began to melt away.

“My favorite memory is campfire,” Whitney recalled. “I felt like my family could be there in the moment, laugh and have fun with others. It really was a breath of fresh air.”

Dustin noticed that his wife and children felt empowered at camp and saw them with renewed confidence.

“My wife now has people to help support her and the kids have new friends and people they can trust,” he shared.

The family connected with Eric and Karen Haler, who served as a Partner Family. In addition to attending Victory Lane events, the Davies also began attending church with some of their new Victory Lane friends.

Whitney expanded on what these connections meant to their family: “The relationships we found at Victory Lane allowed us to be people and feel like we didn’t need to perform for anyone.”

Shelly Hanson knows first-hand the power of relationships formed at Victory Lane. Shelly and her family were part of the original discussions about Victory Lane before the first camp started, and they attended camp in 2017.

“In the moment of my first camp, I was processing my life as a special needs parent and at that moment I was feeling like I was drowning,” she expressed. “One of my first memories was driving up to camp and the moment everyone accepted our son Truman and worked as a team to make camp work for him.”

The Hansons have now been to four summer camp sessions and attend many of the events hosted through the year. Shelly served as a parent session teacher and as a TIMS leader (Teens in Mission who partner with Victory kids during camp sessions and events). She formed close friendships with Dara Upchurch, Tiffanny Youngquist, Sara Urwin, and Janis Muncy.

“I didn’t know I needed the connections I found through Victory Lane until I had them. Now I understand that I’m not alone, and it’s ok to ask questions,” she said.

When you give to Victory Lane, you make it possible for families like the Davies and Hansons to discover the power of connections. Find out how you can get involved by visiting www.VictoryLaneCamp.org.