Our Purpose

100% of the proceeds from Wonder Duck go to Children's Skin Disease Foundation to improve the lives of children living with chronic and life-threatening skin diseases. Your donation from the purchase of a Wonder Duck will go to supporting Camp Wonder and Wonder Wish.

About CSDF, Camp Wonder and Wonder Wish.

Francesca Tenconi was diagnosed with a rare skin disease called pemphigus foliaceus at 11 years old. On the day of her diagnosis, she had lost over 85% of her skin and was placed in isolation for 11 weeks to prevent infection. During her treatment she met other children with skin disease and learned they shared a sadness at the lack of support for children with skin disease and their families. Francesca decided an organization was necessary to focus on the unique problems of children and teenagers who suffer from skin disease. For her Sweet Sixteen, she asked family and friends to donate money to start a non-profit instead of getting her gift. One week after her 16th birthday, Childern's Skin Disease Foundation was created. The next step was to create a place where this orphaned community could come together. While Francesca was in isolation, she missed her favorite summer activity: summer camp! In 2001, Camp Wonder held it's first session in Livermore, CA and continues to grow.

Every summer, Camp Wonder give kids the chance to be normal for a week, to take a break from being a patient to focus on just being a kid. Camp Wonder is a special place free of judgement and stares. At Camp Wonder, campers play sports, ride horses, go swimming, go to Prom, all activities they might never otherwise get the opportunity to do. We create an environment of acceptance and support to empower the children to be themselves and give them an experience of Childhood Without Limits.

In 2017, CSDF launched Wonder Wish, the latest program to expand the mission of helping children with skin disease and their families. Wonder Wish grants wishes to campers and former campers.

About Wonder Duck

One year, at Camp Wonder, a camper said "I wish I was a duck so no one could see my skin". Wonder Duck immedietaely became our mascott because at Camp Wonder we don't see skin, we see character.

Amy Delmege and her son, Marky, (pictured right) began attending Camp Wonder it's first year in 2001 when Marky was 9 years old. Marky has Epidermolysis Bullosa, a disease characterized by blister formation after minor trauma to the skin. For some children with EB, riding a bike, skating, or participating in sports is difficult because normal activities cause chronic sores. Wounds may cover up to 75 percent of the body, including in the mouth and esophagus. Scarring also causes the fingers and toes to fuse, leaving deformities which severely limit function. Imagine a life tied to hospitals for wound treatment, blood transfusions, biopsies and surgeries. The eyes often blister preventing sight for days.

Amy began making Wonder Duck for all the campers to have a piece of Camp Wonder to take home with them, to remind them that their Camp Wonder family supports them through everything. Wonder Duck is a soft, cuddly friend who is our most popular guest at camp! Now, Wonder Duck can be everyone's friend and teach kids to be themselves!

TEACH YOUR KIDS TO TAKE CARE OF THEIR SKIN

Fun Skin Facts for Kids:

Skin is the human body’s largest organ (an organ is a group of tissues that work together to perform functions in your body, others include your brain, heart and lungs).
Your skin performs a range of different functions which include physically protecting your bones, muscles and internal organs, protecting your body from outside diseases, allowing you to feel and react to heat and cold and using blood to regulate your body heat.

The color of human skin depends on the amount of pigment melanin that the body produces. Small amounts of melanin result in light skin while large amounts result in dark skin.
Skin weighs about 6 pounds
Healthy skin completely regenerates ever 27 days.
Unprotected sun exposure is even more dangerous for kids with:
- moles on their skin (or whose parents have a tendency to develop moles)
- very fair skin and hair
- a family history of skin cancer, including melanoma

Tips for Skin Care and Sun Safety:

Seek shade when the sun is at its highest overhead and therefore strongest (usually from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the northern hemisphere).
If kids are in the sun during this time, be sure to apply and reapply protective sunscreen — even if they're just playing in the backyard. Most sun damage occurs as a result of incidental exposure during day-to-day activities, not from being at the beach.
Because infants have thinner skin and underdeveloped melanin, their skin burns more easily than that of older kids. The best protection for babies under 6 months of age is shade, so they should be kept out of the sun whenever possible.
Look for SPF numbers on the labels of sunscreens. Select an SPF of 30 or higher to prevent sunburn and tanning, both of which are signs of skin damage. Choose a sunscreen that protects against UVA and UVB rays (usually labeled as a "broad-spectrum" sunscreen).
One simple way to take care of your skin is to keep it clean. Keeping your hands clean is especially important because your hands can spread germs to the skin on other parts of your body.

Information about skin disease:

Skin diseases are not contagious.
There are many different forms of chronic skin disease. The most common are eczema and psoriasis.
For more information about skin disease, please visit www.csdf.org.