Two summer camps near Metro Vancouver offer children with special needs a place they can have fun and feel accepted: one for kids with chronic, life-threatening illnesses and one for kids who are deaf
or hard of hearing.
Zajac Ranch for Children was built after its founder, Mel Zajac, met the late Paul Newman. Newman’s camps for kids with debilitating conditions inspired Zajac to build one in Canada, said his daughter, Carmen Zajac. She described it as a camp for kids who don’t usually get the chance to go to camp.
“It gives kids who don’t fit into the typical camp setting the opportunity to go to camp and have that experience. It’s so beneficial for children,” said Zajac, also the camp’s president.
The ranch at Stave Lake, Mission, B.C. accepts over 700 kids aged seven to 17 across the country with all kinds of medical conditions, including kids with Down syndrome, epilepsy, muscular dystrophy and Crohn’s disease.
“It’s a real, real mixed bag,” said Zajac. The camp has a medical facility on site and nurses and doctors volunteer to make sure the kids get the care they need. Parents don’t have to worry about huge camp costs because 50 per cent is subsidized by Zajac through donations. Partnering health organizations, like CNIB, also help out.
Zajac Ranch helps foster the kids’ independence, confidence and ability to make friends with children who are like them. The experience is powerful.
“We always hear from families or campers that, ‘This is the first time people aren’t staring at me or looking at me odd because I have a disability,’” Zajac said.
Kids at camp can take part in activities like horseback riding, swimming, climbing and archery. All facilities are wheelchair-accessible.
Zajac said the kids don’t have to feel isolated in their disease and they can take what they’ve learned at camp into adulthood.
“They’re going to have to survive in the big, mean world,” she said. “We try to give them the skills to be able to do that.”
Kids who are deaf or hard of hearing can feel welcome at Deaf Youth Today’s summer day programs in Burnaby and one week on Hornby Island.
Most of the camp leaders are also deaf and took the programs when they were kids. Cecelia Klassen, executive director of Family Network for Deaf Children, said one of the goals of the camp is to give work experience, training and employment to people who are deaf and hard of hearing.
Children aged five to 17 can get involved in traditional summer camp activities like campfires, high ropes, as well as storytelling and acting in sign language.
One week focuses on a sign language immersion program, where families can enjoy the camp experience with their kids. “It’s a pretty big week for us,” Klassen said.
All announcements at camp are made in sign language, so kids can feel brave enough to speak up, Klassen said.
“The kids have the opportunity to become mini leaders,” she said. “It empowers them.”
Klassen said sign language might be some children’s first language, and having leaders who are fluent is beneficial in many ways. Like Zajac Ranch, there’s acceptance at DYT’s summer camps.
“Kids can have a sense of belonging and pride in who they are,” said Klassen. “They aren’t less than [other kids] — they feel the same as.”
The summer camps at Zajac Ranch for Children run for 10 weeks from the end of June until the end of August.
Deaf Youth Today’s summer programs run for seven weeks from July 5 to Aug. 20.
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