CORBETT Ore. (KPTV) - Camp Howard in Corbett is the new place to be for year 30 of the Chris Dudley Basketball Camp.
Kids are offered the space to connect, build confidence and learn how to thrive at a one-of-a-kind week-long overnight camp with a former Trail Blazer who spent six professional seasons in two stints with Portland as the first player with type 1 diabetes in the NBA.
“I made a commitment years ago that we’re going to keep camp going as long until there is a cure and then we’re going to have a big celebration,” Chris Dudley said.
Basketball is global and so too is T1D.
“We get boys and girls ages 10 to 17 from all over the country and all over the world,” Dudley said.
It’s a trail-blazing time together in the shade of the pines and the shadow of Mt. Hood.
“Diabetes can be a lonely disease because people don’t know what you’re going through and for all of these kids, especially a teenager, they can feel all alone at their school. They might not know anybody at their school who has diabetes as well and here they all connect,” Dudley said. “They all like basketball, all have diabetes and it’s a fun group.”
The now-60-year-old Ivy Leaguer from Yale was diagnosed with the autoimmune disease as a high school sophomore in San Diego.
“I wanted to never miss a game because of diabetes, and I was able to play 16 years and I never did miss a game because of diabetes, but I would tell them, it wasn’t easy,” Dudley said.
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“We say you can do whatever it is you want to do in life provided that, and it’s a big provision, you take care of yourself,” Dudley said. “You can’t ignore it. You’ve got to take care of it, you’ve got to embrace it, and if you do so, don’t let it stop you from doing whatever it is. Whether it’s playing in the NBA or be a doctor or whatever. Don’t let it stop you.”
Chris Dudley, his wife Chris Love Dudley, and their three grown kids have been happy campers from Vernonia to Corbett since 1996.
“Almost all of our entire staff has been a previous camper or some in some capacity,” Love Dudley said.
Camp capacity is 75 kids and it’s always fully booked.
“When they come here, this is their normal, right?” Love Dudley said. “They all have something in common and we come here, and we don’t understand but they have each other.”
They are the lucky few. Mr. and Mrs. Dudley are too.
“It recharges me to see these kids and just the connections that are out here and I think anybody who is dealing with any issue, it’s helpful to be able to talk about it with somebody else,” Dudley said.
Love Dudley said, “We have a family motto that if something is not working, you have no right to complain about it unless you are willing to step up and do something about it.”
While the core values of the camp remain the same, current diabetes management technology has been a game changer for the campers and Chris. The Omnipod, a continuous glucose monitor he wears, replaces multiple daily injections of insulin.
“It’s made life so much easier,” Dudley said. “Hopefully, some day we won’t have to do any of it, but we’re so thankful for the technological breakthroughs that we’ve had in helping us deal with it.”
What a way to spend a week in the woods for teamwork, bonding and building relationships with other kids just like themselves across the country and even the world.
#### [**Visit the Chris Dudley Foundation website to learn more and donate**](https://www.chrisdudley.org/)
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