During my last two years of high school my locker was across the hall from the special education room. Every morning before I went to class two girls smiled and waved at me as I headed to class. One of those girls was Rachel. Rachel is a non-verbal individual with limited gross motor abilities, but she is one of the happiest people I know. At the end of my senior year I even became one of her respite providers. The other organization that provides respite for Rachel’s family is Camp Courageous.
Camp Courageous, in Monticello Iowa, creates a place where individuals with exceptionalities can go and experience what typical individuals do at a camp in a year round setting. In 1972 forty acres of land near Monticello were donated to create a camp …show more content…
Research suggests that many people with exceptionalities feel isolated or have not experienced disability culture (Clark & Nwokah, 2010). “Disability culture develops when children with special needs have the opportunities to play and learn with others who share identities and life experiences that are often different from those of parents and typically developing peers. Such opportunities increase the likelihood that children with special needs learn to view disability not as a negative condition but as a unique, positive, and integral part of them” (Clark & Nwokah). By providing individuals with a place where they are not the minority they are allowed to grow to embrace their differences or their …show more content…
Rachel has been attending Camp Courageous for about 12 years. She first went to the respite weekends before attending weeklong camps during the summer. Rachel is a lover of the outdoors and enjoys the time she gets to spend at Camp Courageous going on walks. Along with getting to spend time outdoors, Rachel loves the ball pit. Another favorite activity is getting to pet and feed the guinea pigs Camp Courageous has (R. Sunne, personal communication, March 23, 2017). Bill and Jack have only gone to camp once, over a respite weekend, but both want to go back for a week in the summer. Both boys say the pool is their favorite part about camp. Bill wishes there could be a waterslide or an outdoor pool added, though he enjoyed getting to swim in the indoor pool. They are looking forward to getting to ride on the train Camp Courageous has on site. Bill and Jack made many new friends while at the respite weekend and are looking forward to meeting more people in the summer (B. Wright, J. Wright, personal communication, April 2
Camp Courageous, in Monticello Iowa, creates a place where individuals with exceptionalities can go and experience what typical individuals do at a camp in a year round setting. In 1972 forty acres of land near Monticello were donated to create a camp …show more content…
Research suggests that many people with exceptionalities feel isolated or have not experienced disability culture (Clark & Nwokah, 2010). “Disability culture develops when children with special needs have the opportunities to play and learn with others who share identities and life experiences that are often different from those of parents and typically developing peers. Such opportunities increase the likelihood that children with special needs learn to view disability not as a negative condition but as a unique, positive, and integral part of them” (Clark & Nwokah). By providing individuals with a place where they are not the minority they are allowed to grow to embrace their differences or their …show more content…
Rachel has been attending Camp Courageous for about 12 years. She first went to the respite weekends before attending weeklong camps during the summer. Rachel is a lover of the outdoors and enjoys the time she gets to spend at Camp Courageous going on walks. Along with getting to spend time outdoors, Rachel loves the ball pit. Another favorite activity is getting to pet and feed the guinea pigs Camp Courageous has (R. Sunne, personal communication, March 23, 2017). Bill and Jack have only gone to camp once, over a respite weekend, but both want to go back for a week in the summer. Both boys say the pool is their favorite part about camp. Bill wishes there could be a waterslide or an outdoor pool added, though he enjoyed getting to swim in the indoor pool. They are looking forward to getting to ride on the train Camp Courageous has on site. Bill and Jack made many new friends while at the respite weekend and are looking forward to meeting more people in the summer (B. Wright, J. Wright, personal communication, April 2