Camp Huntington Marks 47 Years of Service to Special Needs Children

Camp Huntington, set on forty scenic acres in the Catskill Mountains, is like most other upscale summer camps for children. Campers stay in rustic historic cabins once used by canal workers two hundred years ago. They enjoy water sports like swimming, fishing, tubing and canoeing. They often hike through the woods to a waterfall near Roundout Creek. They enjoy nature study, birthday parties, filmmaking, crafts, drama, picnics and campfires.

However, unlike most typical summer camps, Camp Huntington has a long intake process that involves a four-page questionnaire, photographs, and interviews with teachers, parents, doctors and counselors, and on-site visits by parents.

We have to be sure that each child fits our program and that our program meets the needs of each child, said Daniel Falk, executive director of Camp Huntington.

For the past 47 years, Camp Huntington has been serving children ages 6 to 21 with conditions such as Asperger Syndrome, mental developmental delays, Attention Deficit Disorder, severe learning disabilities, autism spectrum disorders, and so forth. Some campers communicate only in sign language. Some are confined to wheelchairs. Many need help with dressing, using the toilet, and other self-care tasks. Most are on medications.

Many of our campers have gentle, naïve and vulnerable personalities, Falk said. For this reason, the staff carefully screens out children who are potentially violent or who suffer from severe psychiatric problems.

Even before a child arrives for a camp session, Falk and his team tailor a plan of activities to suit each individual.

A child with Asperger Syndrome may have a high intelligence and be able to take care of himself, Falk said. However, he may need to learn how to understand other people. He may have trouble transitioning to a new activity. He'sll say 'sMy tummy hurts and I can'st do it, when he really means 'sI'sm too anxious and scared to try it.'s

On the other hand, a severely developmentally disabled camper may need help learning to dress himself and to use a fork at mealtime. Each child is different. We work with each one. We set individual specific goals for each camper.

Children with special needs, like other children, lose some of what they learn in school over the summer. However, special needs children need to retain their skills and hold their ground, even more so than other children. Camp Huntington staff helps them to do that. Dr. Bruria Bodek-Falik (Falk'ss mother) designed the original program and still serves on the board. She has a Ph.D. in Clinical Child and Family Psychology and is a licensed New York State Certified School Psychologist, Behavioral Psychotherapist and teacher. Current camp directors all hold degrees in Special Education, and they use consultants and staff trainees from Columbia University, State University of New York'ss Sunnybrook Center for Autism, Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy program at New York University, the Child Study Center at New York University Medical School, and the Drama Therapy program at State University of New York.

Falk said the idea is to create a holistic environment of adaptive therapeutic recreation. This means that every activity has an educational component. For example, hikers may practice math by counting pebbles, learn colors by noticing birds, and practice social skills by memorizing each other'ss names. Although the campers are constantly learning and reinforcing what they already know, Falk says the camp is set up to be nurturing, gentle and friendly with a structure that is not overly rigid.

It should not be like school, Falk said. Summer should be more fun.

Campers live in small groups of three campers with two counselors, to eight campers with three counselors. Some campers require one-on-one counselors. The staff plans activities for each group with input from the campers. One exceptional facility is a sensory room for campers with autism. It is an air-conditioned space, light and sound sensitive, and kept peaceful and quiet for occupational therapy. Campers also learn consumer economics, nutrition, communication skills, reading, perceptual training, computer skills, speech and language skills and behavioral counseling.

Falk said that the act of being away from home is a big step for many campers that helps develop a foundation for more independence in the teenage years. Older campers often work on vocational training, and hold jobs doing chores such as folding laundry, cleaning up the kitchen and so forth. Falk is working with vendors and storeowners in the nearby village of High Falls, New York, to employ campers on a part-time basis and provide them with real job experience.

Going away to summer camp, living without parents and family, and even holding a part-time job -- these are steps toward independent living that can have profound effects on a child'ss future.

Camp can do all that, Falk said, but we never let ourselves lose perspective. We want these campers to have a great summer outdoors - to hike, swim, make friends and toast S'sMores. We'sre all about having fun too.

For more information about Camp Huntington, see http://www.camphuntington.com/summer2007 or call 866-746-6795.

Camp Huntington Marks 47 Years of Service to Special Needs Children

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Camp Huntington Marks 47 Years of Service to Special Needs Children

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