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Home News Camp Allyn a hidden treasure in Batavia
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CAMP ALLYN A HIDDEN TREASURE IN BATAVIA

July 8, 2011
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Brittany Vinson, back, pushes Jill Bockenstette, front, under a parachute at
Camp Allyn July 30. Campers, staff and volunteers participated in the activity
during their lunch break at day camp.




Brittany Vinson, back, pushes Jill Bockenstette, front, under a parachute at
Camp Allyn July 30. Campers, staff and volunteers participated in the activity
during their lunch break at day camp.Stepping Stones’ Camp Allyn is a hidden
treasure in Batavia. It is set back off the road, nestled among trees, small
ponds and trails. During the summer months, the location especially comes alive
as it is host to day camp for children with disabilities.



Peggy Kreimer, communications and grants director at Stepping Stones, said the
46-acre location, owned by the Rotary Club of Cincinnati, has been there since
the 1970s. Originally, it was used as a recreation camp for people suffering
from Polio, and now it hosts almost 40 campers a day.



The camp features fishing ponds, a swimming pool, walking trails, a playground,
an amphitheater, a maze and more, all designed to be accessible to any child,
whether they are in a wheelchair or have full mobility.

“I think recreation is great for socialization,” Kara Klepp, day camp director,
said. “And just to do activities every kid likes to do.”

It took Klepp just one summer working at a camp for disabled children for her to
change her major in college and focus on working with disabled children and
adults.

“I had so much fun,” Klepp said about her first camp. “I felt like my life had a
lot more meaning. I wanted to help people, especially those with disabilities.”



Klepp, who constantly has an eye on all the campers scurrying around, creates
schedules and organizes daily activities for the day camps. She knows every
camper’s name and can tell you about his or her disability and personality.

“They’re just like regular kids,” Klepp said. “The same orneriness and the same
arguments.”

She’s right. The campers, all mingling at lunch time trying to find something
fun to do, are all unique. Some are playing with a parachute, some are on the
swings and some are playing pretend.

The campers at Stepping Stones have a variety of disabilities including down
syndrome, autism, learning disabilities, cerebral palsy and more. Children
without disabilities are also among the campers.



Day camp sessions are nearly every week from June to August. Regardless of what
the camper’s age or challenge is, staff members find ways make sure every camper
is included and is accomplishing something each day of camp.

“Everything they take home is something they did,” Kreimer said. “You can just
feel that pride.”

Kreimer said projects at camp are broken down into steps and staff members will
have the campers contribute even if they can’t finish the whole project by
themselves.

Shane Daniel focused on completing one of these projects at camp June 30. Daniel
created a headband out of feathers and paper, and even painted some of the
feathers so he would have more colors. Daniel said he has been to camp Allyn
before.



“It gives me something to do, and it keeps me out of trouble,” Daniel said about
camp. “I have enjoyed it the past three years and I just keep coming back
because it’s fun.”

Part of what makes camp fun is the dedication and enthusiasm the camp staff and
volunteers express every day. Klepp said the goal is to have one person for
every camper, however, with the camp relying on volunteers, that number
fluctuates each day.

Kreimer and Klepp said Stepping Stones is always looking for volunteers to work
with the campers, whether it be one week or the entire summer. They especially
need people on Fridays and in August.

“It’s important to make the campers day the best as possible,” Klepp said about
having volunteers. “And it’s important for the volunteers so we can have a more
open minded community.”



Working at day camp can’t really be called work, anyway. Everyone participates
with the campers, whether it be swimming in the pool or fishing in the pond. And
the smiles on the faces of the volunteers and staff members are just as frequent
as those on the campers faces.

“I like helping kids out,” Evan Dennis, a volunteer from Amelia, said. “Whether
it’s just playing tag or swinging.”

Dennis said representatives came to his school, Immaculate Heart of Mary, and
told students about the camps. He decided to volunteer, and said he will leave
camp with more responsibility and better friendships.

“We don’t only teach them,” Dennis said about the campers. “They teach us.”



Like Dennis, Andrea Otten, of Batavia, has also learned from a child with a
disability. Her cousin Darren Shoemaker is disabled, and Otten has been around
Darren most of her life. Helping him inspired her to volunteer at Camp Allyn,
and she has since become a staff member.

Kreimer said this frequently happens with volunteers, who become a part of camp
and decide it is a place they would like to work.

While day camp is popular for both campers and volunteers, Stepping Stones has
expanded over the years into much more. The organization now has a preschool, a
Saturday kids club, adult services, an overnight respite and camp and an
alternative education program for students with autism.

In addition to the Lake Allyn Road location in Batavia, there is also a location
on Given Road in Indian Hill, which is where the organization was founded and
the first summer camp began.



Kreimer said the organization and camps have been growing year after year. And
what saddens her is that not everyone knows that there is a place where their
child can be in a fun and helpful environment, like the accommodating
surroundings of Camp Allyn.

“My favorite thing is when you’re walking by a child and he suddenly turns
around with this big grin and shows you something,” Kreimer said. “You can feel
the success from this child.”

For more information about day camp or Stepping Stones Center, visit their
website www.steppingstonescenter.org. To volunteer at day camp contact Sarah
Bosley-Woeber at (513) 965-5110.



recipe of the day
By Brandi K. in Burley, ID
Chicken Alfredo Pizza

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