Visiting India, China, Japan, Norway, Africa and Mexico for the Labor Day holiday sounds exciting—yet impossible to do in just three days.
This past Labor Day weekend, 17 families from across Colorado and neighboring states did just that—at least culturally—when they attended the 14th annual Camp Ray-Ray. Held at St. Malo Retreat Center in Allenspark the families enjoyed a weekend of fun and unforgettable memories enjoying outdoor activities and traveling the world through cultural stations doing crafts.

More than 100 people, most of them infected or affected by AIDS, gathered at Camp Ray-Ray to leave behind their stressful daily routines and look to the future with hope.

“Our mission is to strengthen family bonds,” said camp coordinator and co-founder Kristen Klaassen. “We laugh, we cry, we talk, we play, we pray and we eat together.”

Activities included horseback riding, canoeing, hiking, putt-putt golf and swimming. Entertainer Jimmie Viles performed a comedy routine.

Camp Ray-Ray has become an inexpensive vacation destination for many families facing HIV/AIDS, Klaassen said. Children and their parents spend quality time together enjoying the mountain environment and socializing with other families sharing the same hardships.

“Eight-year-old Kyler’s outdoor adventure included two hours of fishing to catch a little fish he nicknamed Seaweed, because that is what he originally thought he caught,” said camp co-founder Kathy Nuanes.

“After freeing Seaweed, he canoed, climbed rocks and fed a chipmunk.”
Camp Ray-Ray was founded in 1995 to commemorate the life of Raymond Peña who died from AIDS at the age of 4. Barb Johnson was Peña’s foster mother.

“She had taken Raymond to St. Malo several times to show him the beauty of the mountains and open his eyes to faith and God,” Klaassen said. “Raymond thought angels lived there and he could talk to God easier there. His eyes opened to the faith and he welcomed Christianity at the age of 4.”

Shortly after Peña’s death, Johnson asked Klaassen to help her start a camp where other children would experience the outdoor wonders Raymond had.

“I thought Barbara had lost her marbles,” Klaassen recalled.
But she did help. Today, Klaassen is a camp coordinator and co-president of Angels Unaware, a non-profit organization providing support to groups working with children and families affected by HIV/AIDS.
The Denver Archdiocese’s Social Ministry Office is a co-sponsor of Camp Ray-Ray with Angels Unaware.

“Families with children that are affected by HIV/AIDS face many challenges,” said Al Hooper, Social Ministry Office director. “In addition to the mounting medical expenses and frequent visits to specialized clinics, the families also often feel isolated and very vulnerable.”
Klaassen said that despite the heavy burdens they bear, the families have much to give.

“They teach us so much,” she said. “People facing life-threatening illnesses have a unique outlook on life and this outlook gives us hope.”
Father Bob Fisher pastor of All Souls Church in Englewood led the annual remembrance ceremony with Johnson.

“Each of us is a connection with God’s love,” he told the interdenominational assembly.

The families expressed deep gratitude, Klaassen said, for the welcoming and kindly atmosphere found at St. Malo.

“They see a place of total acceptance,” she said.

Camp Ray-Ray is a free family program. To learn more about Angels Unaware, Camp Ray-Ray and upcoming events visit AngelsUnaware.net.