Egg My House is a fundraiser organized by James River’s Royal Family Kids Camp, where people in Huron and the surrounding areas order candy filled Easter eggs, that are delivered and hidden the night before Easter.
“There’s a group of people we call ninjas that go out with their headlamps as soon as the sun goes down, the Saturday night before Easter, and we hide the eggs in people yards,” said organizer Kathy Van Heukelom. “It is a lot of fun and for a good cause. We all meet at the church and pray before we get everything organized. It’s really amazing, we will be done in an hour and a half with all of those places because we have so many volunteers who help with this. Last year we had approximately 40 volunteers who came and helped hide the Easter eggs.”
Deadline for ordering is Wednesday at noon. Contact Christie Brantner or Van Heukelom at RFKCJames-River@gmail.com.
Royal Family Kids Camp (RFKC) is a nationwide organization which originated in California 30 years ago and hosts 203 camps for foster children across the U.S. RFKC James River is a week long summer overnight camp for kids in foster care, ages six through 11.
“We’re finding because we’re such a rural community that we’re having to branch out, so this summer we’re actually inviting kids not only from the Huron area, but also from Brookings and Watertown,” Van Heukelom explained. “With all those areas we have approximately 23 kids, the majority being from Huron. We’re hoping to increase that to 32 children.”
The James River Camp specifically serves foster children who have come from abusive homes, or children who have been abandoned, to give them the opportunity of fun and meaningful experiences.  
“So many of these kids already have a much bigger understanding of the world than many of us, because of the negative things they have witnessed or experienced. This week gives them a chance to actually be kids,” explained Van Heukelom. “The funds that are raised from the Easter Egg Hunt will help pay for all of the extra things that camp entails, such as renting the facility and food. There is no cost to the state of South Dakota; this is a completely fundraised activity and it costs about $32,000 to put on a camp like this.”

Many volunteers and organizations give to James River’s RFKC, in support of the cause. Donations come in many forms, including financial help, physical items to give to the children and a person’s time can make a world of difference.
“We received $250 from the Thrivant Financial Action Team to help pay for the eggs and candy, which we are very grateful for,” said Van Heukelom. “There are also a lot of volunteers that give items to us. Each kid gets to take home a blanket, and this year’s theme is “Following New Blueprints,” so these churches came together and made “quillows,” which is a quilt that folds into a pillow, to follow the construction theme. The ladies of Prairie Bible Church near Carpenter and the Mount Olivet Church here in town went together and made 25 of these blankets on Thursday.”
There are many fun activities for the children to enjoy at the camp, including boating, tubing, chapel time, plus much more, with the intention of creating hope and life-changing moments for children that have been victims of abuse and neglect.
“This week of camp really is a great week of respite care for those foster families because the kids come with us for a week and they know they’re in a safe environment having a good time,” Van Heukelom explained. “One of the biggest events is ‘everyone’s birthday party,’ which is a great night to celebrate each child for who God created them to be, because the stark reality that so many of us take for granted is that they may have never had a birthday party before.”
The safety and protection of the children is, of course, a major priority. The adult guides that are employed to attend the camp go through processes to ensure they are a suitable candidate before they are accepted.
“All of our staff have to go through a background check, an interview process and then training. We take it very seriously who is allowed to work with the kids for their protection,” said Van Heukelom. “Something that’s unique about our camp is that it’s a 2-to-1 ratio, so it’s two campers for every adult guide, which gives kids a lot of one-on-one attention.”
Adult guides are there to help the youth attending camp understand that the future is hopeful, that positivity and self-worth are important to embrace in life, especially after being in abusive situations.  
James River’s RFKC are always looking to recruit new volunteers. To become a volunteer, make a donation, or find out more information, contact RFKCJamesRiver@
gmail.com or visit the Facebook page Facebook.com/pg/RoyalFamilyKidsJamesRiver.
“We have been very blessed by this community, being able to have this camp and the outpouring of love and support that we get from individuals, organizations and businesses,” Van Heukelom explained. “We truly believe that this camp and organization will have a positive impact for the future of our community.”

ANGELINA DELLA ROCCO/PLAINSMAN

Members of the James River’s Royal Family Kids Camp stand in the Assembly of God Church, displaying Easter eggs to be filled with candy and hidden in people’s yards. From left, Amy Mattke, Will Mattke, Kathy Van Heukelom and Pastor Tom Brantner.