Camp WACK Comes Back To Milford
MILFORD — Sun’s out, fun’s out.
Camp WACK held its annual water ski event at Camelot Lake in Milford Saturday, and campers of all ages turned out for the good times.
WACK, which stands for Water Adventure Camp for Kids, is a an adaptive water ski camp that gives young people with disabilities the chance to participate in water skiing via the use of specialized equipment. Campers aged five — although they have to meet a weight minimum — through young adulthood were seated in chairs mounted on boards with outrigger-style skis projecting off the sides. Some campers held their own tow ropes, while those unable to do so had the ropes bolted to their equipment and were pulled along behind motor boats.
It was the chance of a lifetime for some campers, who would otherwise be unable to participate in such an event.
“This is one of only two programs like this in the state. This isn’t something that they can typically do because they have gross motor issues, fine motor issues, their bellies aren’t as strong as some others,” explained camp co-director Christyn Connolly. “So we give them a seated position with a bigger ski base and some wings that are called outriggers that allow them to just enjoy the ride. They don’t have to be able to hold on to ski. We have a ball and socket joint so they can just kind of hook on and go for a ride.”
A total of 19 campers were registered for Saturday’s Camp WACK, the fifth annual iteration of the event in Milford. At any given time, up to 12 campers waited their turn for a ride as volunteers helped them into their equipment and pulled them around the lake multiple times. After they were finished, the next camper in line was given a turn, then rotated back through for the chance to go around again.
“It’s fun,” said camper Nathan Eby, who participated in Camp WACK for the third time Saturday. “I liked it.”
While Saturday represented Eby’s third go-round at the camp, it was camper Joe Burke’s second time at the event.
Burke explained he was nervous at last year’s event but gave himself a pep talk Saturday morning to conquer his fears and really let loose this year.
“I think this year I finally opened up and let myself go. I finally just enjoyed it,” he said. “I finally was just like putting my arms up.”
Burke encouraged would-be campers who might also feel afraid to just give it a try anyway.
“I would say to just do it afraid. Even though you’re scared, you’re going to enjoy yourself,” he said. “You’ve got to get over hurdles and just go for it.”
The camp included a lunch and a prize giveaway in addition to the aquatic activities and was staffed by volunteers.
“We are 100 percent staffed by volunteers. The majority up north, I think Goshen Health has close to 10 volunteers today, but obviously we bring a lot of our Lafayette people up here,” said Connolly. “Today we probably have close to 35 volunteers, and they dedicate their time. Most of them are therapists or in special education so you have speech therapists, physical therapists, occupational therapists. That’s kind of unique about this program: It’s actually people who understand the musculature and the communication aspect so we can support them in that way instead of just being kind of someone off the street. That makes us kind of different.”
Camp WACK is based out of Lafayette. For more information about the organization, go to www.campwack.org or email [email protected].