Music/Activity Camp 2002

The second annual Williams Syndrome Music/Activity camp was held in the Share Holiday Village in Lisnaskea, Co Fermanagh from Sunday 21st July to Sunday 28th July 2002. This was the same venue that we used in 2001 and the structure of the week was very similar to last year. We had our scheduled music classes and group musical theatre in the mornings with the Share Centre activities taking part in the afternoons. There was also entertainment of a varied nature in the evenings. Everyone participated to the fullest and it was so much fun!

This year's camp was a truly international event with a camper from The Netherlands and a teacher from Oklahoma, USA. We had another amazing year with many new dimensions that surprised all of us. We had more adult WS campers this year and that gave the whole week a different perspective.

The fact that the camp was held at the same location this year helped everyone enormously. Familiarity with the Share Centre and its staff gave the return campers, in particular, a great sense of "home". That feeling was quickly passed on to the new members of our group. Chalet 13 was again our centre of operations and provided a location for all to meet, chat, eat, make posters, play cards, make props and scenery for the final night's show, etc., etc. It was a hectic week and made huge demands on stamina reserves from everyone.

What a week! It was wonderful! Inspiring, uplifting, energising, thought provoking, emotional, fun are all words I would use to describe it and I would still fall short of really giving you all a proper feel for what went on during that week. You really need to be there to fully appreciate what it is all about. I had thought that it was mainly about the musicality of our WS people and, I suppose, it is. But it is about so much more as well - helping others, camaraderie, making friends, allowing space for development, providing a safe environment for our WS people to interact, allowing them the opportunity to be independent. I could go on and on! The fact that the camp runs for a whole week gives everyone a great opportunity to develop friendships and relationships that can be continued after camp is over. I am not talking just about the WS campers here. I am talking about the teachers and helpers as well. Most of the teachers and helpers we had this year were the same people that we had in 2001. This provides continuity for the WS campers and helped me greatly in the organisation of the camp.

The camp also provides a learning experience for the teachers and helpers that they may not otherwise get. Living and dealing with a person with a learning disability is something all parents of WS people know about. However, it is something very new to some of the people that work at our camp. I sometimes think that they learn more from the campers than the campers do from them! This is a vital part of what our camp offers it’s participants and, I feel, a very important part.

As this was our second year of camp, I found it very interesting to watch the changes in the WS campers from last year. The growth and development that was apparent in each of them was a delight to see and I hope it continues. I really believe that the camp gives them a unique opportunity to showcase all their individual talents – some musical, some not.

The Share Holiday Village is an absolutely wonderful location for the purposes of the camp. It is a well-run centre with a unique selection of activities on offer to its guests. Again, familiarity with the layout of the centre, and its staff was a major factor in the success of this year's camp. I believe it provides an ideal safe and secure environment for our campers.

Each year the camp is a little different and we see new opportunities to develop it. We already have some new ideas for next year’s camp that we hope to implement. These include the provision of some time for the WS campers to exchange thoughts and views on their various teen-adult concerns. We are looking at the possibility of providing a forum for individual creative arts therapy including art, drama, dance or music. We have also been asked to provide an art class and we may be able to combine this with a scheduled time for sets/costumes/prop preparation for the final night’s show. Lots of ideas!

This year’s camp was amazing! I look forward to an even more amazing camp next year.

Ann Breen - Camp Organiser

Music/Activity Camp 2002

Last modified: November 17, 2007