Camp History
Dr. Edward Hertko took a special interest in diabetes after growing up with a diabetic mother and brother. With his medical degree in internal medicine, Dr. Hertko moved to Iowa in 1960, and cared for many patients with diabetes. In 1963, with the help of the Iowa Dep’t of Public Health, Dr. Edward Hertko started the first diabetes support groups in Iowa which, subsequently became the Iowa Diabetes Association in 1968. In 1968, as an affiliated program of the Iowa Diabetes Association Dr. Hertko created a camp for children with diabetes. The first camp session was held that year at the 4-H Camp in Madrid, Iowa and was temporarily called Elm Camp. The campers from that first session voted to officially name the camp “Camp Hertko Hollow” in honor of Dr. Hertko, founder of the camp. After the first summer session, in 1972, Camp Hertko Hollow moved to a more suitable location at the Y Camp in Boone, Iowa where it has been held ever since. In 2003 Camp Hertko Hollow separated from The American Diabetes Association and began operating as an independent nonprofit organization.
Camp Hertko Hollow has grown significantly since its founding in 1968, when it served just 37 campers. Today, the camp supports nearly 300 children with type 1 diabetes each summer and has impacted the lives of over 18,000 youth and families across Iowa and beyond.
While summer camp remains at the heart of the mission, Camp Hertko Hollow has expanded its programming to include year-round education, outreach, and community-building initiatives—providing support not just during one week of camp, but throughout a child’s diabetes journey.
