100 Children Take part in Swiss Transplant Ski Camp

More than 100 children who have received organ transplants gathered in Anzère, Switzerland to take part in the second annual Transplant Ski Camp organized by a group that calls itself the Tackers.

The ski camp, which opened with 40 children last year, was the brainchild of Liz Schick, a resident of Anzere who received a liver transplant in 1998, and Brian Fraser, a native of Sydney, Australia, who got a kidney transplant six years ago.

The object, according to a spokesperson, is to provide transplant children from around the world with "an adventure of a lifetime and an experience to remember and help sustain them through any difficult times ahead."

The week-long program included skiing, snowboarding, sledding, diving, fencing and paragliding, and concluded with a ski race.

Special guest this year was former British soccer star George Best, 56, who had a liver transplant last year.

"We're all family, really," Best told the kids and their parents. "We're all living thanks to someone else's organs. Every day is a bonus."

The word tackers is Australian slang for small children. The organization can be found on the internet at www.tackers.org.

Other sources: Tackers