Bringing Out Smiles

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   Manyvone Champavannarath enthusiastically reels off a list of what she did at camp.

   Time in the pool.  Singing.  Drama.

   Champavannarath, a 27-year-old who has cerebral palsy, didn't go to just any summer camp.  She spent a week at the Lake Wales Lions Camp.

   "I loved it.  I had the best time, the Lakeland resident said.

   The camp, on the shores of Tiger Lake, offers adults and children with disabilities a chance to go to camp.

   "We take kids and adults that other camps can't.  Whether it be a matter of a feeding tube or a behavioral problem, we accept them.  We don't turn anyone down, no matter what his or her application says," camp administrator Barbara Cage said.

   Although campers' disabilities include blindness, autism and spinal problems, activities are similar to those at other camps - canoeing, swimming and arts and crafts, possible because each counselor works with no more than three campers.

   "Kids with disabilities aren't always given a chance, and I feel that we give them that chance," staff member Erica Bilsborough said.

   Randy Stephens, 35, of St. Petersburg, who uses a wheelchair, said adults also appreciate the summer camp.

   "This is my third year coming and my fourth session," said Stephens, who has cerebral palsy. "I work and save my own money so that I can come."

   Another adult camper, Steve Puskar, liked the staff members as much as he liked the camp.

   "The people there were very nice.  I liked all the people at Lake Wales," said Puskar, 43, who has a developmental disability and lives in a group home in LaBelle.

   The camp was founded in 1974 by the Lions Club of Florida, which has about 9000 members.

   Initially, the 52-acre camp about 15 miles east of Lake Wales hosted only visually impaired children.  Four years ago it was opened to children with other disabilities.  In 1999 it was opened to adults.

"I don't think people realize how great the imagination of a child can be. … They can become a superhero, an alien or whatever.  It doesn't matter if they cannot walk or are in a wheelchair."

Jamie Alcock, camp drama counselor

   This summer, 359 campers, including 120 adults, were enrolled.

Lions Club Helps Out

   It gives kids like us that don't get a chance to go out and play a lot of chance too.  It also gives us a vacation from our parents," said Ryan Peabody, 13, of Cocoa Beach.  Peabody, who has cerebral palsy and uses a wheelchair, has been coming to the camp for three years.

   Camp drama counselor Jamie Alcock said the camp does wonders, especially for children.

   "I don't think that people realize how great the imagination of a child can be," he said.   "It is much greater than anything else they have.  They see the props, and then their imaginations go wild.  They can become a superhero, an alien or whatever.  It doesn't matter if they cannot walk or are in a wheelchair."

   The last night of camp is either a carnival for children or a dinner dance for the more mature campers.

Keeping Smiles In Mind

   And on the Friday before returning home, campers participate in a talent show.  The show leaves some parents in amazement and others in tears, Cage said.

   Cage recalled one show where the campers included a little girl who could hardly move, and it was hard to understand if she could comprehend anything.  But the one thing counselors did learn was how to make her smile, and they designed a skit with her in mind.

   "Whoever could make the princess smile got to marry her.  One of the counselors dressed up as a prince knew the only way to get her to smile was to sneeze," Cage said.  "And sure enough, she smiled when he did."

Florida Lions Camp

2819 Tiger Lake Road

Lake Wales, FL 33898

863-696-1948

flc@gte.net

website managed by Kristen Frontera KFrontera@gmail.com