Posted on Sat, Jul. 21, 2007
A camp all their own
Participants, all missing a limb, enjoy a variety of activities in the company of peers
BY LARRY GIERER - lgierer@ledger-enquirer.com --
Eron Zeno has no arms but loves to bowl.
The 15-year-old from California, born short two limbs, rolls his wheelchair to the return and selects a ball. He uses both feet to scoop it up. Placing it on the floor, he gives it a spin and laughs. Zeno then rolls it toward the lane with one foot, using his other to help move the chair. As he reaches the foul line, he stops. Zeno then strikes the ball with the top of his foot sending it slowly toward the pins.
"Seven," he says, grinning. "Not bad."
He won't be as pleased with the next six attempts. All find the gutter.
"Don't know why the ball is moving like that," he says.
He doesn't get frustrated. In fact, when camp counselors come to send the bowling group to another activity, he insists on rolling a couple of more.
Asked if he's bowled much before, he says, "My father and I used to do it."
As he bowls, he gets no stares. All those participating with him are minus an arm or a leg, some as the result of a birth defect, some because of cancer or infection. A few have lost limbs in an accident.
All are among the participants at the annual Amputee Coalition of America Youth Camp. There are 61 children ranging in age from 10-16 taking part in the event at the Frank C. Ruzycki Center for Therapeutic Recreation at the Roosevelt Warm Springs Institute for Rehabilitation in Warm Springs, Ga. Campers began to arrive on Wednesday and will leave tonight. A dance will be held in Atlanta. At the camp they play a variety of sports and make crafts.
Third at campus
The first camp was in 2000. This is the third to be held on this campus. Vicki Foster, the manager of outreach and special events for the ACA, says she's not sure the camp will return to this location in the future.
"This is an unbelievable facility but we may need something larger," she says. "We're at full capacity and there are at least 25 on a waiting list. I could see as many as 200 attending."
Parents are asked to contribute to the approximately $1,500 camper cost but some 60 percent are on full scholarship and few pay the full freight.
The ACA is a national non-profit amputee consumer educational organization representing people who have experienced amputation or are born with limb differences. The purpose of the camp, she says, is to provide the children with some leadership development, deliver nutrition education, develop peer support and create positive social interaction.
As for nutrition, camp director Derrick Stowell says it's very important for the amputees to be active and to eat properly.
"Obesity is a big problem with amputees," he says. "If they get too heavy it creates problems with their prosthetics. We want them to get excited about being active."
He says the social interaction is vital. "It's really a small community," he says. "There are only about 70,000 amputees under 18 in this country," he says. "Some have never been around a young person in their situation. Here, they see they're not alone. Here, they can freely talk about how they feel. Here, they're not in the minority and for them that feels good."
Contact Larry Gierer at 706-571-8581
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