DOVER, TN (CLARKSVILLE NOW) – Camp Rainbow, a weeklong summer camp for children with medical conditions, has returned this week with outdoor adventures and fun for all.

Held each June at the Brandon Springs Group Camp in Dover, the program has been running since 1983 and continues to provide a camp experience in a fully supported medical environment.

Camp Rainbow allows children who might not otherwise be able to attend camp due to their health to enjoy activities and make friends. The week features a long list of activities for campers including swimming, arts and crafts, fishing, a carnival, inflatables and much more.

This year’s Beaver 100.3 Camp Rainbow Radiothon raised over $91,000 to support the camp, pushing the event’s total contributions past the $1 million milestone.

Camp that shapes lives

One of the camp’s long-time volunteers, Teren Yarbrough, serves as the head nurse and helps lead clinic operations throughout the week. Yarbrough, who began volunteering during college, said Camp Rainbow has shaped her life. “Camp Rainbow is really what let me know what path I needed to go on and really equipped me to be a pediatric nurse,” she said. Yarbrough has now worked as a pediatric nurse at Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital for more than 20 years.

Camp Rainbow fishing tournament at Brandon Springs at Land Between the Lakes on June 11, 2025. (Wesley Irvin)
Camp Rainbow pool party at Brandon Springs at Land Between the Lakes on June 11, 2025. (Wesley Irvin)
Christopher Lanier, presents Clarksville Camp Rainbow with a check on behalf of The Montgomery County Antique Tractor and Engine Club on June 11, 2025. (Jamie Peltz)
Camp Rainbow fishing tournament at Brandon Springs at Land Between the Lakes on June 11, 2025. (Wesley Irvin)
Camp Rainbow fishing tournament at Brandon Springs at Land Between the Lakes on June 11, 2025. (Wesley Irvin)
Camp Rainbow pool party at Brandon Springs at Land Between the Lakes on June 11, 2025. (Wesley Irvin)
Camp Rainbow fishing tournament at Brandon Springs at Land Between the Lakes on June 11, 2025. (Wesley Irvin)
Camp Rainbow pool party at Brandon Springs at Land Between the Lakes on June 11, 2025. (Wesley Irvin)
Camp Rainbow fishing tournament at Brandon Springs at Land Between the Lakes on June 11, 2025. (Wesley Irvin)
Camp Rainbow pool party at Brandon Springs at Land Between the Lakes on June 11, 2025. (Wesley Irvin)
Camp Rainbow fishing tournament at Brandon Springs at Land Between the Lakes on June 11, 2025. (Wesley Irvin)
Camp Rainbow pool party at Brandon Springs at Land Between the Lakes on June 11, 2025. (Wesley Irvin)
Camp Rainbow fishing tournament at Brandon Springs at Land Between the Lakes on June 11, 2025. (Wesley Irvin)
Camp Rainbow pool party at Brandon Springs at Land Between the Lakes on June 11, 2025. (Wesley Irvin)
Camp Rainbow fishing tournament at Brandon Springs at Land Between the Lakes on June 11, 2025. (Wesley Irvin)
Camp Rainbow pool party at Brandon Springs at Land Between the Lakes on June 11, 2025. (Wesley Irvin)
Camp Rainbow fishing tournament at Brandon Springs at Land Between the Lakes on June 11, 2025. (Wesley Irvin)
Camp Rainbow pool party at Brandon Springs at Land Between the Lakes on June 11, 2025. (Wesley Irvin)
Camp Rainbow pool party at Brandon Springs at Land Between the Lakes on June 11, 2025. (Wesley Irvin)
Camp Rainbow fishing tournament at Brandon Springs at Land Between the Lakes on June 11, 2025. (Wesley Irvin)
Camp Rainbow pool party at Brandon Springs at Land Between the Lakes on June 11, 2025. (Wesley Irvin)
Camp Rainbow fishing tournament at Brandon Springs at Land Between the Lakes on June 11, 2025. (Wesley Irvin)
Camp Rainbow pool party at Brandon Springs at Land Between the Lakes on June 11, 2025. (Wesley Irvin)
Camp Rainbow fishing tournament at Brandon Springs at Land Between the Lakes on June 11, 2025. (Wesley Irvin)
Camp Rainbow pool party at Brandon Springs at Land Between the Lakes on June 11, 2025. (Wesley Irvin)
Camp Rainbow fishing tournament at Brandon Springs at Land Between the Lakes on June 11, 2025. (Wesley Irvin)
Camp Rainbow pool party at Brandon Springs at Land Between the Lakes on June 11, 2025. (Wesley Irvin)
Camp Rainbow fishing tournament at Brandon Springs at Land Between the Lakes on June 11, 2025. (Wesley Irvin)

Her role at Camp Rainbow includes coordinating medical care, gathering information from families and physicians, and ensuring the camp is prepared to meet each child’s needs. Each camper is paired with a dedicated counselor, and these relationships often last for years.

Yarbrough recalled one camper she met while working at the children’s hospital. When he arrived at Camp Rainbow, she already knew who would be the perfect counselor for him. The pair have been matched every summer since and have built a strong bond over the past five years.

Camp Rainbow is more than just a camp for her. “An enormous amount of blessings have come from serving Camp Rainbow. I met my husband here. I get to see so many of the patients I’ve cared for in the children’s hospital come experience Camp Rainbow,” Yarbrough said. “You get to see their true personality come out in a way you just don’t see when they’re at their worst in a hospital bed.”

For more on Clarksville Camp Rainbow, to apply to be a camper, counselor or volunteer, visit clarksvillecamprainbow.org.

| MORE: Beaver 100.3 Camp Rainbow Radiothon meets $1 million milestone with over $91,000 raised in 2025 | VIDEO