This week was our second week of signature programming, Camino Belong.
We had 37 campers join us from the intellectual and developmental disability (IDD) community.
Serving this community has always been personal for us with our brother Luke having Down syndrome.
When my parents started Camino, they wanted guests to feel welcomed and discover 'their way' to belonging, beauty, and the immense love God has for them.
And from the jump, we knew this was a place we wanted to serve those with IDD.
If you'd like to read more about the plans my parents laid out in 2024, here is a great article from the Diocese of Allentown from Fall 2024.
Today, I'll be sharing the programming and recap video.
But I'll also be covering:
- the problems facing the IDD community and their families
- our plan to incorporate workforce development for those with IDD
- & our vision to make the world more comfortable around those with disabilities
Let's dive in.
Problems Facing the IDD Community
There are a lot of camp and program opportunities for kids with disabilities in their younger years.
But when secondary school ends, the opportunities for community and purpose diminish.
The National Core Indicators surveyed more than 17,000 adults with IDD receiving state-funded services:
- 17% have a paid job in the community
- 42% of those without one say they want to work
- 44% want help making and keeping friendships
- 35% want to be more involved in their community
So as these individuals get older, you begin to see the depression rates and the loneliness rates from the lack of community.
Then there are the parents, who are now caretakers.
The caretakers of these adults become incredibly lonely. Their mindset becomes: “I can't work, because I need to care for my child at home who's not in school.”
Fortunately for Luke, we have such a big family and there is always someone around. But we know that's not the case for everyone.
My parents couldn't let go of the thought that so many opportunities exist all the way through the school system, and then nothing.
Which didn’t seem fair to the world of special needs.
So giving them a sense of belonging and purpose is a big part of what we're trying to do at Camino.
Camino Companions
For programming this week, each camper was accompanied by a Camino Companion.
Most of the volunteers were 15 to 30 year olds coming from all different walks of life. We modeled it after Camp Pals, a camp Luke has gone to that's been his favorite every summer.
We had volunteers from St. Joe's Prep, Pope John Paul II, Merion Mercy, and Notre Dame. And then others just found out about us organically through our social media and word of mouth.
They came up Sunday for a full day of training on how to work with people with disabilities, then another full day Monday until 3pm, when the campers arrived.
To see the campers feel so much love and joy and happiness, to just be part of this environment and be included, has been amazing.
But then to see the volunteer transformation throughout the week, and their comfortability with people with disabilities has also been so great.
A huge part of what we want to do is change the attitude towards what people with disabilities can do.
Because if you don't grow up with somebody in your immediate family impacted by a disability, it's harder to understand.
That understanding is what we hope and dream for with all of these volunteers, and anyone else who might have never been around disability before.
Camino Belong Week
The week was full from the moment everyone arrived.
Campers rotated through stations each morning. Music class, soccer, volleyball, pickleball, basketball with coach Gary Brooks, arts and crafts, and time at our Animal Assisted Therapy Barn.
Afternoons were for the pool, cabin time, and the swings.
On Wednesday, Acting Without Boundaries came out and ran a theater workshop in the Pavilion. They teach people with disabilities to act, and watching our campers take the stage with them was incredible.
On Thursday, campers cooked their own dinners, then loaded onto the hayride wagon for a tour of the farm.
But if there was one thread throughout the whole week… music!
- Monday night we had a local musician play live, followed by an ice cream social and a dance party.
- Tuesday night was karaoke, everything from Disney classics to today’s hits.
- Wednesday night they danced for two hours straight.
The campers loved music!
Then Thursday night brought the talent show.
We were blown away by the courage, creativity, and enthusiasm our campers brought to the stage. There was singing, dancing, campers reading their own stories, and a few surprise performances.
Everyone cheered each other on!
It was such a joyful reminder that this is about so much more than activities. They were building confidence, celebrating one another, and having the freedom to simply be themselves.
Check out the weekly recap below!
Final Thoughts
This week will shape a lot of what we do going forward… continuing with our Camino Work! week next week.
Our hope is to build a workforce development program here, starting with hospitality. Adults with IDD working in the kitchen, helping run our laundry services, making up the beds, greeting and welcoming guests.
Eventually we'd like them to get more involved with our Animal Assisted Therapy program and the farm as well. Mucking stalls, crating the eggs, labeling our chickens.
Our long term goal is that every person who comes to Camino, even a group just here for a weekend, is getting that interaction with somebody with a disability. Not just on the two weeks a year that we have camp.
We want this to be a place where so many come and feel like they belong and have fun and have joy. But the longer term dream is a kinder, more compassionate, more open world.
And after seeing our volunteers this week, that feels like something we're starting to achieve.
This week felt like our vision came to life.
Until next week,
Katrina
Executive Director, Camino Farms
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