Flooding cancels Camp Heartland

WILLOW RIVER, Minn. (KMSP) - One Heartland calls itself the camp for kids who need it the most.

But some of those children aren't happy campers, thanks to mother nature.

"I don't think there's anything good about having to cancel a camp when we were expecting 70 campers to come through the doors that we only get to see once a year," One Heartland Camp Director Jill Rudolph said.

One Heartland Center in Willow River hosts one week camps for everyone from kids who identify was LGBTQ to homeless teens.

But the nearby Kettle River has flooded the only road in and out of the campus, stranding 35 staffers along with members of a church group that had rented the facility who were supposed to go home a couple of days ago.

"The bridge is closed. Water is still sitting on it. Waiting for it go go down. They are landlocked. Everyone is safe. Plenty of food, but they are stuck there until the river goes down," One Heartland  Executive Director Patrick Kindler said.

Because of the flooding, the group had to cancel Camp Heartland, a week long getaway for kids with HIV and AIDS that was supposed to start Thursday, because there's no way to get them to the campsite.

More than half of the campers fly in from around the country and most look forward to camp all year long.

"There was disappointment. A lot of 'We've got our bags packed. We've been ready for awhile. Now I can't go see my friends',"' One Heartland registration & travel manager Stefanie Tywater-Christiansen said.

Organizers are trying to re-schedule Camp Heartland for August but they'll need to raise $25,000 dollars to do it.

if you'd like to donate to help them reschedule, follow this link to their website.