By Tom Smart
Deseret News photo editor

      DESOLATION CANYON, Green River — Her tiny voice can barely be heard over the roar of the Green River.
      Jessica shares a story about playing with empty shotgun shells and gasoline that somehow ignited into a ball of fire. There is no embellishment. The terrifying story is told as simply as recalling yesterday's events.

Young burn survivors share their stories alongside the Green River during the University of Utah's Intermountain Burn Center's Adolescent Burn Camp. Tom Smart, Deseret News

      Sixteen other adolescent burn survivors sit in a circle with her under the full moon and give their full attention. There is no sign of pity, just understanding and curiosity.
      On the edge of the circle are six river guides who have been rowing all day, taking the youngsters through rapids that could be disastrous if negotiated by someone less capable. There are quiet gasps and streams of tears as the guides struggle to contain their emotions.
      Jorel tells about looking for something to do with his friend and finding cans of gas in an old building. "We tried to put out the fire but couldn't. I remember being paranoid and then being home and seeing my mother faint, then my grandmother fainted. The next thing I knew, I woke up a month later in the hospital with something stuck in my throat."
      "My burns were the best thing that ever happened to me," relates one survivor. He continues to tell a Kafkaesque story of sniffing gas and someone throwing a match on him . . . at the age of 12. He fervently believes being burned caused him to change the course of his life from a dead end to one with a bright future.
      "I've got a question. How many of you remembered to stop, drop and roll?" he asks. About half raise their hand, and a discussion follows about what goes through your mind when you are engulfed in flames.
      Two years ago, Andy was with his family in Yellowstone National Park when they found an elk lying on the ground. No one realized the animal was electrocuted by a downed power line until Andy touched the line. He survived but lost his right arm and part of his foot. This is Andy's second year on the river, and his wisdom reaches far beyond his 12 years of age.
      "I just stare back at people who stare at me and say, 'Do you want to keep staring, or do you want to hear my story?' " he tells the others during a discussion about what to do when people stare.

'I can do anything'
      The river has special meaning for Andy. Last year he read the diaries of one of his heroes, John Wesley Powell, whose right arm was blown off by a cannonball while raising it in retreat during the Civil War. Andy read Powell's account of captaining the boats during the first navigation of the Green and Colorado rivers.

Kate Sewell guides an excited boatload of youngsters through Green River rapids. Tom Smart, Deseret News

      "It gave me the confidence to know that I can do anything," says Andy, who is now the star of his football team. No one doubts him.
      "What do you do when people tell you that your tights don't match?" asks Heather, referring to her "jobst" (pressure garments most burn patients wear to help minimize scarring).
      "I was in line at the store and this lady stared at them," relates Jessica. "Then I saw her stare and she looked away. I guess that was pretty nice, I'm not sure."
      "Did anyone else feel as though someone was watching over you?" Sherri asks. She then explains that her grandmother was closer to her than anyone in the world and Sherri felt her grandmother was her guardian angel.
      "I felt the spirit of my grandfather," adds Jorel. "He helped me get through the pain."
      David was 11 when he was hit by a van while crossing the street on his bike. He was pinned under the axle, and it ripped off most of his back — but he survived. He believes his cousin, who had died two years before, was watching over him.
      One survivor talks about how stupid he was for playing with explosives. He shares his feelings of guilt that his scars have healed, while so many others were left with horrific scars from circumstances they had no part in starting.
      It is clear, however, that all are innocent. Simply children who have experienced the unimaginable while learning about fire, matches, gasoline and propane.
      The stories were shared each night as campers circled up during the University of Utah's Intermountain Burn Center's Adolescent Burn Camp. Last week, 17 survivors between 11 and 16 returned from a six-day expedition in Desolation Canyon on the Green River.

Camp Director Brad Wiggins helps "Kool-Aid," with jobst on his legs, find the river. Tom Smart, Deseret News

      Eight counselors were on the trip, mostly personnel from the Burn Unit, two adult burn survivors, a firefighter and a paramedic.
      The camp is in its eighth year. It was started by staff at the Burn Unit and spearheaded by Peter Mills, a physical therapist and river guide.
      There are more than 50 burn camps in North America, but Utah's is the only one to take kids camping in the wilderness for days. Staff members at the University of Utah Burn Center wanted their own camp, and Mills approached a friend, Skip Bell — owner of Adventure River Expeditions — about taking a group of burn survivors down the river.
      "I remember when Peter first talked to me about it," recalls Bell. "I thought, 'Wait a minute, you want to take a bunch of kids who have been severely burned into a hot desert in the sun and sand?'
      "I thought it sounded crazy."

A new view of the world
      Still, Bell agreed to give it a try, and his company took the first six trips. After Bell sold his company, Holiday River Expeditions continued the tradition.
      Bell helped organize the first trips, but he has been able to guide only the last two. "I would have these guides coming back glowing, saying, 'Skip, you wouldn't believe the strength of these kids.' They would come off the river and talk about things they learned about themselves from these 12- and 13-year-olds. It made them look at themselves and the world differently."
      Bell says that the kids are even more amazing in person than the stories he has been told. "They fill you up with strength and love. My first thought after coming off the river was to go home and hug my boy, Sam. Then I was going to have a good talk about playing with matches and gasoline. I would love to have him come experience this."
      Brad Wiggins works as a nurse on the Burn Unit and has been the camp director and the project's driving force the past seven years. Wiggins first volunteered as a 20-year-old aide and has been running the camp ever since.

The University of Utah's Intermountain Burn Center's Adolescent Burn Camp's class of 2000, above. Although they come from a wide spectrum of social and economic backgrounds, the burn survivors are not afraid to roll in the mud, left. There are more than 50 burn camps in North America, but Utah's is the only one to take kids camping in the wilderness for days. Tom Smart, Deseret News

      "When you work on the Burn Unit, people are in constant pain; it is the hardest part of their life," Wiggins says. "I took care of a lot of the kids here, and I know their stories, but what gives me satisfaction is seeing people enjoy life after going through such a difficult time."
      Matt Harringer, another nurse and burn camp counselor, echoes Wiggins.
      "What families go through isn't pleasant," he says. "The pain these kids go through is more than most people can imagine. We work our butts off changing dressings and whatever we can for these guys. When they leave, they are still in a lot of pain and they aren't even close to healed. To see them out here having fun really makes me realize that our work has paid off."
      Except for a $25 fee per camper, Burn Camp is paid for entirely by private donations. The largest single donation comes from Salt Lake City and County firefighters.
      Wayne Edgington is a paramedic who has flown with AirMed for 15 years and has been a camp counselor for four years. Many of the survivors Edgington sees each year at camp were first taken care of by him under some of the most traumatic circumstances imaginable. Edgington didn't know what to expect on his first burn trip but soon realized they were just kids.
      "You just bond with certain kids," he says. "They come from completely different social and economic backgrounds, and yet they all share this common bond. To be able to spend time with them after they have gone through so much is really amazing. I think I come off the river with a lot more than the kids."
      Ron Fife is a Salt Lake City firefighter who has been a counselor for the past seven years. The camp experience has been so phenomenal for him that he and Edgington, along with Wiggins and other Burn Camp volunteers, are helping put together a burn survivor camp at Camp Tracy in Millcreek Canyon. The camp will enable 6- to 12-year-old survivors to stay in cabins for three days and share with other survivors while enjoying crafts and games.
      This year's camp is scheduled for Sept. 14-16.

Sherri has a hard time leaving guide Emma Wharton. Tom Smart, Deseret News

      "The experience has been so powerful for us, as well as the kids, that we wanted to give more firefighters and paramedics the chance to volunteer and experience something like this," explains Fife.
      Kathy Edwards was running on a trail above Ogden two years ago when she touched a high-voltage power line that almost killed her. This is her first year as counselor at camp.
      "As an adult burn survivor, there are a lot of things I get from these kids that you don't get from adult survivors," she explains. "What is different is that adult survivors tend to be all-encompassed by their burns. They talk a lot about numbers and what percentage of their bodies are burned."
      For her, even more than the young people's stories was the way they were told.
      "It is refreshing to hear the straightforwardness," Edwards says. "It is truly sharing, and the innocence is truly touching. What I went through with my burns was really hard for me as an adult; it's hard to imagine going through that as a child."
      "Being burned at 14 really makes you grow up fast. Coping with the pain is where I really found out that Christ was my savior," recalls David Taylor of Orem, who was burned while working on a church farm. At 21, he is a veteran of four burn camps and is now a counselor and mentor to many of the survivors.
      He recalls being shocked about the circumstances that bring many of the patients to the Burn Unit. "I was raised by this perfect family in the middle of 'Happy Valley.' I assumed everyone was the same," says David. "My first year of camp I couldn't believe how different everyone was. It wasn't until the next year that I understood how much we share in common."

Breathtaking beauty
      It would be a mistake to think that burn camp is primarily about coping with burns. Desolation Canyon River Trip has been rated as one of the top 100 adventures in the United States by National Geographic. At one point, Desolation Canyon is deeper than the Grand Canyon, and it is centered in the largest geographic area in the United States that doesn't have a road through it.

Burn survivor wears his new sunglasses. Tom Smart, Deseret News

      The rugged beauty is breathtaking. Days are full of river-running excitement, and camp includes various games, many of which are aimed at building self-esteem. Each night, campers earn beads for various tasks like helping with dinner, paddling a kayak, doing a good turn, trying something new or — everyone's biggest challenge — cleaning the infamous "groover" (the portable bathroom).
      When you ask any of the campers about what they like most about camp, they talk about the rapids, water fights, games, getting to know each other and the river guides.
      "Many of these kids have missed years of school and haven't made the friendships they normally would," explains Kristen Quinn, a child life specialist on the Burn Unit who has been going to camp for years. "At camp they don't have to do a lot of the groundwork while building friendships. They don't need to explain the scars and bandages. There is a peer acceptance."
      Quinn explains that at their ages there are body-image issues.
      "Most kids that age freak out if they get a bad pimple, and it can be a very mean age. We see very little of that at camp, they immediately accept each other."

Andy and Sherri share a moment alongside the Green River. Tom Smart, Deseret News

      For example, on the first night Joey, nicknamed "Kool-Aid" for his bright blue hair, introduces the person he interviewed on the bus. "This is Logan. He's 14, 6-foot-1 and he likes to play basketball. He's a jock," Joey explains. "I'm a punk-rocker."
      Teenage years are a very independent stage, and many of the burn survivors have needed to be dependent on parents, therapists, doctors and nurses. Being on the river helps renew their independence.
      "There is a lot of personal responsibility on the river, and that is a very positive step for these kids," says Quinn. "Being on the river really sets it up so that it doesn't matter what car you drive, what you wear or what your hair looks like. It comes down to the core of who you are. You can't believe how often children talk in the hospital about what they used to be and how they will never be able to do that again. The river can give that back to them."
      The last night, all are "circled up" and each camper shares a wish. "I wish we all can forget about what happened in the past and look to the future," says one. Several wish the trip would never end. One camper laughs and offers advice, "Never pet a burning dog."

For information Intermountain Burn Center Burn Camp Attn: Brad Wiggins 50 N. Medical Drive Salt Lake City, UT 84132 Phone: (801) 581 2008

      Emma Wharton, a river guide with an infectious smile, has had children begging to be on her boat all week. Her wish is that everyone takes the lessons learned from the river and not just simply remembers them but uses them in daily life.
      As the expedition pulls into "Swassies" takeout point near Green River, things become chaotic. Boats need to be torn down and loaded on trailers. Others are waiting to pull out, and suddenly it is time to say goodbye.
      The burn survivors now shed a river of tears as the guides, who have shared much about life, embrace them.
      One guide, Eric Holmes, echoes the sentiments of all when talking about the relationship with the children. "I don't look at the kids as special simply because of their burns. I don't even see the burns anymore. They are just special kids. Maybe what they have been through has made them that way."
      It is difficult to tell who has been affected the most by the trip — guides, burn survivors or counselors.
      One thing is certain — all have learned lessons on the river.

E-MAIL: smart@desnews.com