The Summer of 2001 I was back in Lick Run. My campers were Marshall(a friend of Mark) and Nicholas (Nathan's brother). Jay had Michael C. and Mark. With Mark and Marshall around the cabin was always exciting.

Marshall and Mark were buddies from way back. They knew each other since pre-school. Mark brought a guitar along that him and Marshall both liked to mess around with. Marshall had an infatuation with Annie, one of the counselors. One night Marshall sat with the guitar and sang in a very loud voice over and over "Annie baby, talk to me honey". He must have gone on for half an hour. It was hilarious.

My other camper, Nicholas, was truly inspirational. He had limited control over his muscles but he was determined to do everything for himself. While it may take half an hour he would completely dress himself. It was truly inspiring to see the determination as he completed what to most of us would be an everyday task. Nicholas also never seemed to get a bad attitude. He happily went along with whatever was going on.

Joanie also came back. When she first arrived I started talking to her and she informed me that "Joanie is a princess." Shortly after that she told me that I was her King. Whenever someone would tell her what to do she would come over to me and say "My King, tell them to stop being mean to the Princess." When I would see her I would say "There is my beautiful Princess" and she would answer "Yep, that's right."

Amie, my brother's girlfriend, was Joanie's counselor. She also had Kate. Kate was a quite little girl with Down's Syndrome. She wouldn't speak a lot and then only to a small set of people. Every time I got near her she would point her finger at me and say, "You go time out." I would pretend like I was crying and say I am sorry and then she would chuckle and walk away. For the most part, that was the extent of our interactions.

Cate and her counselor Danielle shared a cabin with Amie and her campers. As soon as Cate arrived it was obvious that she remembered me. I was still "him". The first night, shortly after I had fallen asleep I saw someone wandering through our cabin. It was Amie. Cate couldn't sleep and she asked if I would come over. Danielle and I took Cate over to the porch of the main lodge and I held and rocked her until it seemed like she would fall asleep. Danielle said she got up one other time but after that slept pretty well. Campers like Cate can be the most demanding. They not only have physical needs but they also have the challenge of figuring out what they are trying to tell you. Danielle, who was only 17, did a wonderful job caring for Cate and showed maturity beyond her years. Cate was lucky to have her.

We had another new camper, Naseem. Naseem is a beautiful young lady with an adorable personality. At first she was really quite and seemed withdrawn but as she got to know people she joined in the fun. Jay told Naseem that he had tickets to the Destiny's Child concert so every time Naseem saw Jay she would go over and hold her hand out and say "Please.....". When Jay told her she couldn't have them she would tell Jay, in a joking tone, that he was mean. We all enjoyed having Naseem around and hope she comes back.

Danielle's younger sister Anissa was assigned Toby. Toby was about 12 years old and was autistic. He didn't provide much verbal feedback but his face and actions were very expresive. He carried around a rope and would constantly be playing with it or wearing it around his neck. He seemed to like interacting with people but did not like to be forced into things. I think he was like most autistic kids in that he seemed to want to interact with you but his system overloads so quickly that it is difficult for him to. Nissa did a great job taking care of Toby and his reactions reflected that.

next|home|prev