Feature Camp gives kids & counselors lesson in confidence by Laura Jacobson heelchairs, sign language, and TV handicaps are not usually associated with camping. But at the MI. Hood Klwanls Camp they are as much a part of the exper~e&e as fresh air, sunshine and lauohter. This oast summer PStI's ~;er,al Educat~onDepartmentceleb& a decade of leadership In mrdlnatlnq the operation of the camp program.. Professor of Special Education Steve Brannan has served as program cwrd~natorslnce PSU f~rststarted ~ts cooperative partnership w~t t '"- Portland metro area Klwan! PSU'S lnvolvement make camp, located between the Rhododendronand Govern1 Camp, one of the few In thc Northwest to be assocla malor unlverslty Camp I Susanne Marter 1'75 MS l ante s Clubs. s the towns of ment ~- - tho camp's d ~ pabrpose trafnmgprogram fod.r1s h gh school and m l eqe tea wlm a jirector ) described i as a ents from and for . .,",I ^" " profess~onatleachers; as ., , , camplng and educational experience for the young handicapped people Who Visit there Since 1972, nearly 8M) staff, counselors and student workers have helped glve 3.000 handicappedcampers a genuine taste of the outdoors, many of them for the first tlme. Campersfrom ages 9 through 21, male and female, regardless of handicap, share in such expertences as describing the smell and texture and beauty of a tree, and learning the orlentahon and mobility skills needed to follow a trail. If they can't Step on fallen plne needles, they can roll a wheelchair over them and hear them crunch underneath. If they can9 hear them, they can see them. There is a way for everyone to appreciate nature at the camp. Take therapeutic horsemanship,as developed by Jane Ftelding ('80. '81 MS) while she finlshed the requirementsfor her advanced degree at PSU. Hers IS one of the few programs of 11skind used in the U.S.. although il is widely practiced In Europe and elsewhere, she said. Many campers get their first chance 10 r~dea pony at this camp. Those Photos by Laura ~acobso~ 4
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