Wood brought to life his favorite toast quot To health and happiness quot
Health and happiness are the two main objectives of the Double H Ranch in Lake Luzerne, where the atmosphere is brimming with excitement, and the faces of students and staff members alike are adorned with bright smiles.
The ranch is part of the Association of Hole in the Wall Camps, which was started by actor Paul Newman in 1988. His first camp was the Hole in the Wall Gang Camp in Connecticut. Double H Ranch was the second camp; it opened in 1992.
The Hole in the Wall Camps have reached out to nearly 100,000 children with chronic or life-threatening illnesses throughout the United States and 31 countries. The children and their families attend the camps for free.
The Association of Hole in the Wall Camps is supported fully through charitable contributions, and from a portion of the proceeds from the sale of Newmans Own products.
"I wanted to acknowledge luck. The beneficence of it in many lives and the brutality of it in the lives of others, especially children, who might not have a lifetime to make up for it," says Newman on his Hole in the Wall Camps website.
The Double H Ranch is the only Hole in the Wall Camp that is open year-round, offering an adaptive winter sports program. The children learn how to ski and snowboard, and feel like normal kids, said volunteer ski instructor Rex Moon.
Double H history
In 1978, Charley Wood, a local businessman and philanthropist, formed the Charles R. Wood Foundation, which annually donates money to help critically ill children.
In 1991, the Wood Foundation purchased the 320-acre Hidden Valley Ranch that would become the Double H Ranch.
In 1990, Wood read an article about Paul Newmans Hole in the Wall Gang Camp in Connecticut. Wood contacted Newman, and proposed a second camp in the Adirondacks. Newman turned him down.
Wood was persistent, and, after writing Newman a second letter, Newman agreed, and the Double H Ranch was formed in 1992.
The Double H Ranch began as a summer camp for children with cancer, serious blood disorders, and neuromuscular impairments, and has since evolved into a year-round affair. The adaptive winter sports program is now in its 10th season.
In 2006, the adaptive winter sports program had five students from Connecticut, three from Massachusetts, six from New Jersey, and 100 from New York, 12 of whom were from Albany County.
A fully equipped medical center operates 24 hours a day to ensure the safety and health of the campers.
The summer program serves about 1,000 campers, and the winter program serves around 125 students. Each student in the winter sports program gets three lessons per season.
"To health and happiness," was Wood’s favorite toast, and where the "double h" in the ranch’s name comes from.
"Just think, in your lifetime if you can bring happiness to one child who isn’t as fortunate as you are that’s worth a million dollars. Those children have so much heart and so much goodness it puts us to shame," Wood said in 1993.
Wood died in 2004, at the age of 90. He has provided happiness to many children at the Double H Ranch, where his desire for health and happiness lives on.
Children who are interested can learn more and apply for Hole in the Wall programs through the ranchs website, doublehranch.org. Individuals interested in volunteering as ski instructors or camp counselors can also learn more at the website.
