Everyone was laughing. Everyone was smiling.

They were swimming, canoeing and being launched into the air off of the huge blue and yellow "blob" in the middle of the lake.

And all 22 kids at Optimal Hospice Foundation 16th Annual Kids Camp had one thing in common - they recently lost a loved one.

For sisters Jadeyn and Mariah Woods, camp was a way to meet new friends and talk to other kids who know what they've been through.

"It's actually really fun because people know how we feel and stuff," Mariah, 10, said.

Jayden, 11, and Mariah attended camp with their brother and sister, David, 13, and Emily, 8. The siblings recently lost their father.

Kids Camp is held annually at Gergen Ranch, north of Bakersfield on Round Mountain Road. Ann Smart, Optimal Hospice Foundation executive director, said the camp has two sessions, each lasting three days.

The first session, from Sunday afternoon until Tuesday, is for kids up to 12 years old. The second session, Wednesday through Friday, is for older kids, ages 13 to 18.

Smart has been in charge of the camp for nine years and said it allows kids to do fun activities, make friends and realize they are not alone in experiencing the loss of a loved one.

"We feel like this is a time for them to get together and share with one another as they want about their loss, but come out and just have fun together," Smart said.

Haley Cranston, 11, said Kids Camp is "the best camp ever." Her favorite activity was rock climbing. As soon as her mom signed her up and told her about the activities, she couldn't wait to come. She said camp is a way to keep her mind off of the death of her stepdad.

"I thought it was going to be so much fun," Cranston said. "I was way excited - especially to get away from home where all the sadness is."

There was no sadness in the air Monday afternoon. It was a like a fantasy land - with a lake, a sandy beach, water toys, canoes, a water slide, dorm rooms with bunk beds and animals roaming around.

Christopher Lawrence, a community educator at Optimal Hospice Foundation, is a counselor at Kids Camp. He said the kids open up and talk to one another because they trust each other. They know everyone has lost a close family member, and see them having fun, so they are able to do the same thing.

"I love it, I love the kids, I love seeing them smile," Lawrence said. "I know I'm able to take their minds off of all the seriousness for a short period of time."

Space is still available for the second session. Contact Ann Smart at 716-8000 for more information.