AROUND TOWN

Fulfilling Dreams

Kids with cancer benefit from
the sweetness of cookies.

he crunch of cookies on a crisp fall night filled
the Somerset Collection in Troy during a sweet
fund-raiser for a special camp that serves chil-
dren with cancer.
More than a thousand people
crowded into the first-floor atrium
on the mall's north side for
"Cookies `n Dreams" — an annual
event to raise money for Camp
Mak-A-Dream. The Montana-
based camp provides a medically
Robin Schwartz supervised, cost-free and fun expe-
Columnist

T

rience for young cancer patients. It was founded by
Sylvia and Harry Granader of Beverly Hills.
"They had the courage to start this camp when
they were in their 70s, when most people are retiring
and slowing down:' said Lauren Altman of West
Bloomfield, executive director of the Friends of Camp
Mak-A-Dream, Michigan Chapter.
"The camp is so meaningful because it gives an
opportunity for these kids to feel normal. They don't
have to worry about having cancer. It's a way for them
to feel like they belong:' she said.
The Granaders were among the hundreds of people
sampling fresh-baked cookies
from more than a dozen local bak-
eries, listening to music and min-
gling at the fund-raiser. Their
camp has served about 3,000 chil-
dren and young adults (ages 6-25)
in the last 11 years. Thirty to 40
percent of the campers come from
Michigan.
"We can't do enough," said
Harry Granader.
"Almighty God wants me to do a
lot of good things. I'm so far
behind right now, I'm going be
around for a long, long time," he
said.
The Oct. 27 event raised
$100,000 for Camp Mak-A-Dream.
It costs about $500 to sponsor one
child's weeklong camp experience,
which includes swimming, fishing,
hiking, arts and crafts and a num-
ber of other outdoor activities.
"I think its a wonderful oppor-
tunity for children to go and
escape said Jill Menuck of
Birmingham.
"Those of us who have not been
touched by this illness are very
lucky; and for those who have
been, we're doing everything we
can to help:' said Adam Cohen of
Huntington Woods. He attended
the fund-raier with his children,
Lily, 7, and Aaron, 10.
A number of private individual
donors, corporations and founda-
tions support the camp. "It takes a
lot of people working together to
accomplish what we're doing:' said
Harry Granader. "We can't thank
them enough." ❑

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Rachel Gray, 10, of Bloomfield Hills, Jessica Randolph, 10, of West
Bloomfield, Jamie Koziow, 10, of Franklin, Shayna Brickman, 9, of
West Bloomfield make an arts and crafts project

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