Seeking Love and Community
Seeking love and community is at the heart of the two camps I participated in last month which raises the bar for healing for those who participate and those who facilitate. Camp has been a part of my entire life. My dad was a YMCA Program Direction with the Armed services, YMCA.
I attended Easter Seals in 1988 and 1989 and for decades have been traveling to Southern California every year to participate as a guide, helping people with disabilities, ages 14 and higher.
I started working with burn camp in 2006. It's a camp hosted at the University of Utah and every year I attend and teach yoga.
I count on participating in these camps every year. Every year they are a LOT of work but always worth it. I always come home feeling lighter in my spirit and grateful for the new friendships I made during camp.
Head rubs during Savasana. Final resting pose, closing out our yoga session of the day with the University of Utah Burn Camp Nah Nah Mah.
The core benefits of burn camp for participants are the natural growth of friendships and the deepening of one’s authentic self.
Many young burn survivors feel they are allowed to make friends and grow self-confidence in a positive and uplifting atmosphere at burn camp. The key to this growth is the immersion in a supportive community of other burn survivors and persons who understand burns. The opportunity to try new activities and face challenges is also important for campers’ growth.
Easter Seals, Southern California, at YMCA Camp Oakes
A teenager smiling in front of a pond
Benefits of Easterseals’ Camps for People with Disabilities
Easterseals residential and day camping programs provide an opportunity for children and adults to participate in extracurricular, educational and personal development activities.
Outcomes include easier adjustment to new environments, a greater sense of personal satisfaction, and personal habits that lead to a healthy lifestyle.
In the context of everyday life, children and adults with disabilities don’t always have the same opportunities to test their abilities. Inadequate resources, accessibility issues, or anticipated failure on the part of a caregiver or the child himself, can significantly stifle progress.
All of that changes at camp.
The only requirement in summer camps is to believe in the power of summer camps.
Could it be the miracle of creating a carnival environment or a magical mystery tour from a rustic camp environment? Or could it be the playful camaraderie between adult and camper, a feeling that seems to reside quietly in a past memory and which somehow gets released while up at camp?
Could it be because we are guided by our campers? Could it be that we are recapturing childhood imagination with the permission to expand it and play with it? All I know is that camp can provide healing opportunities that may take years if offered in other formats. This is not to say that a more formal approach should be discounted as to its effectiveness, but the magical camp opportunities should never be dismissed, especially in areas of camaraderie, community, acceptance, and joy.
Like I said, I’ve been participating as a facilitator and guide for decades and it’s hard to say who benefits more from these many days together at camp, the participants or the guides.
What I can say is that love and community is what makes all the magic.
