| SB Summer Camp
Program
“The
Camp That Love Built” is a program developed in
1978 as a weekend camp to help children with SB enjoy the same
life experiences as their peers while fostering independence.
It was soon expanded to a weeklong camping program involving high
school and college aged “buddies” who work one-to-one
with the campers to achieve something approaching independence
from parents and caregivers.
It
now provides a more enriching experience and meets the growing
enthusiasm of the campers and their families. The Camp That Love
Built is the only camp in the state of Texas that provides this
service to children with SB. It boasts a fully staffed medical
facility complete with nurses and a pharmacist to assist in the
everyday care needed by the campers, as well as a full week of
programs meant to help each child take charge of his own destiny.
Children
and young adults with SB are limited on the social and economic
choices available to them. Camp provides the chance for them to
challenge themselves to become independent of their disability
beyond their normal routine. Their lives are dominated by clinic
visits, hospital stays and mobility problems; making all “normal
activities” of daily living a challenge. By association
with peers as well as able-bodied assistants, they can experience
the choices available to them through activities meant to foster
independence.
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For
many of the children and even the teenagers, this is the first
chance for them to spend a night away from home. They need to
be encouraged to become active participants in their own care
as well as their continued development. It is important to show
every child with SB that, even though they have a disability,
they can be anything that they want to be. Some children have
a great fear of heights and therefore will not leave the confines
of a wheelchair. At camp they can see that not only do others
have the same fear, many have overcome that obstacle. They are
provided with an environment where they can feel adequate and
successful. |
Camp
helps to relieve pressure on parents who are struggling to get
their child to try new things at home. This is of course only
one example of the problems facing persons with SB. If you can’t
transfer from your chair for fear of falling how can you bathe,
dress, leave home and be independent?
S.P.I.N.E.S (Special
People's Independant Niche Every Summer)
The
new publication for summer camp is SPINES. Download a copy to
see what took place in the summer of 2006.
View More Camp Photos
The
summer camp photos are large for easy viewing, but may be slow
to load depending on your internet connection. When you click
VIEW PHOTOS, a pop-up browser will appear with no apparrent control
box. Just hit the space bar or left-click your mouse anywhere
on the page to move to the next slide. When the slide show has
ended, you will be prompted to close the window.
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