Victory Junction, a Randleman, N.C., camp for children with serious medical conditions, has had a recent influx of donations to its travel department.
Two bus companies have donated new buses to the camp to support the proper care and consideration of campers’ special needs.
“We make sure that every kid who comes through the gate can do every activity at Victory Junction,” said Chad Coltrane, CEO of Victory Junction. “We have had kids swim for the very first time at 10 or 12 years old. We have the equipment and the resources to allow the campers to swim, zip-line and just be kids.”
TransTech and Guardian Bus Co. learned of Victory Junction and each donated a bus to help update the camp’s current fleet.
The first bus from TransTech was to be painted Petty Blue – a BASF R-M color – so Mark Schumacher, chief development officer of Victory Junction, reached out to BASF for help to paint the second bus from Guardian red.
BASF arranged for Central Motor Parts, a BASF ColorSource distributor in New Jersey, to mix together a “Safety Red” R-M Uno color selected specially for the second bus, which has room for four wheelchairs and 12 regular seats.
Two other current buses in the fleet will be repainted green and yellow to align with the four-color groups of camp.
“BASF has been a generous donor for quite some time, so we thought they would be a great partner to ask,” said Schumacher. “And they said yes right away. They are terrific to Victory Junction.”
BASF, TransTech and Guardian connected and got the buses in top shape to be returned to Victory Junction, ready for a summer full of campers.
“Victory Junction provides its campers with an experience unlike any other, and BASF is thrilled to have the opportunity to support the camp and continue to partner with the Petty Foundation,” said Dan Bihlmeyer, BASF NA marketing director NA/Coatings Solutions.
Children with wheelchairs average about 25 percent of the campers throughout the summer, which makes proper transportation a challenge, particularly when that number is higher.
“We provide experiences these kids only dream of doing,” said Schumacher. “Every dollar we save is critical to our mission. Children come to Victory Junction at no charge, so in-kind donations like paint help offset costs and put more money we raise toward providing a week of camp to the children we serve.”
Victory Junction was founded by the Petty Family Foundation.
