Occupational Therapy & Burn Camp
Burn Camp, year ten—that’s a wrap! And what a year it was! My friend, Tanya, the Activities Coordinator, judges the stress of the week by the number of drinks consumed by camp staff at “the library” after it’s done: some years, it’s just one and everyone trickles out fairly early. Other years, the tab looks like a CVS receipt, and we close the place down. By that measure, 2023 was a cake walk, and I must concur. My Youth Girls were absolute delights, every last one of them, and I’m missing them so much already! I always miss my campers when they leave, but this year was extra special. The counselors were also such a wonderful group of women. With only four counselors in Ponderosa Pines (our home away from home!), we were short staffed (which I have just gotten used to in my life lately), but you would never have known it! Two of those four counselors were new staff, but they were total naturals; not only did the girls love them, but their work with their co-counselors was seamless from where I sat. The work between the four of them was amazing. I could barely keep track of where one room ended and the other began because all the girls were friends, and they went back and forth all the time!
Besides watching the kids make enduring friendships, one of my other favorite things about camp are the activities. It’s the Occupational Therapist in me! While I’m not on the Activities staff, I do know about the plans in advance, but when I finally see them firsthand—my OT mind explodes. I immediately start breaking down the activity, thinking of who would benefit, why they would benefit, how we could adjust the activity to make it a “just right fit”. IYKYK. One year, we had a big foam party which remains one of my favorite camp memories. Foam is such a great sensory experience! We’ve also had therapy dogs come out, and each year they come, one child connects with one dog in such a way that I end up crying (happy tears, I assure you!). Other great OT-related activities that we do at Burn Camp include:
Animal Encounters
High Ropes (multiples levels of height so that kiddos who have fears or vertigo can participate)
Swimming, water slides, Blob, kayaking, paddle boarding
Slime and Cloud Foam
Horseback riding
Fishing (so much fishing!)
To be honest, if I sat down with the schedule, I could find a way to make every activity occupational therapy related, but that’s what we do, isn’t it? That’s what we went to school for, anyway 😉 For now, I’ll savor the memories, show off my friendship bracelets, and continue to cultivate those friendships that have come about because of Burn Camp. Can’t wait for Year Eleven!