Children's summer camp brings back joy to kids living with autism
After summer camps were forced to cancel in 2020, the Children’s Autism Summer camp has returned with expanded programs across Alberta's capital city.
Children’s Autism Services of Edmonton is growing its Nature Camp programs in a variety of ways.
“Each camp is very individual and we really look to the needs of the camper. For some kids, being in a big crowd is not a positive environment and for other kids, that is what they are searching for. All of the campers have one-to-one support,” said Scott Wilson, CAS family liaison
The Nature Camps are designed to help children develop a wide range of skills and soak in the benefits of outdoor learning.
Naomi Goonewardene says her son has attended the summer camp every year since he was diagnosed with autism at the age of three.
“It is a really awesome camp to come to. It is great that we have an opportunity to come here. It is a safe space where kids can be themselves and be happy. I know that I can drop him off here and come back later and he is going to be doing fine,” said the mother.
“If we didn’t have a safe space like this I don’t know what the other options would be,” she added.
While COVID-19 restrictions were in place, the mother said her son missed playing games and making friends. Without the camps, her son was no longer able to attend field trips – an important summer activity for Gabriel.
“He asks every year to come back to this camp. He wants to have dates and know exactly how long he is going to be here and he looks forward to it,” she said.
She says her son thriving in a camp brings joy to her life – a feeling shared by other parents.
Nadine Noseworthy’s daughter, Dhalia, was diagnosed with autism and has excess cerebral spinal fluid.
“It is really only the parents going through the same thing that really get it. It is really difficult explaining why you are so tired, why we have to leave, and when we are meeting our kids' needs to a parent who doesn’t understand when they don’t face those same challenges,” she said.
When the camp was announced this summer, Noseworthy said it was a “sigh of relief” for both the parents and children.
“A big part of what the kids were lacking during COVID-19 was more opportunity for pair to pair interactions and just a safe space where they can play,” said Noseworthy.
The camp has four different sites: Maier Centre West Campus, Rundle Park Outdoor Nature Exploration Camps, Kinsmen Park Outdoor Nature Exploration Camps, and Capilano Community League Camps. CAS also offers pre-teen and teen camps for those ages 11 and up.
Campers will spend the day doing activities to promote engagement with nature and building trusting relationships with peers.
The children will be supported with one-on-one staff and the camp will run five days a week for five weeks.
With files from CTV Edmonton’s Dan Grummett
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Grandparent scam: London, Ont., senior beats fraudsters not once, but twice
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
Deaths of 4 people on Sask. farm confirmed as murder-suicide
The deaths of four people on a farm near the Saskatchewan village of Neudorf have been confirmed a murder-suicide.
CRA no longer requiring 'bare trust' reporting in 2023 tax return
The Canada Revenue Agency announced Thursday it will not require 'bare trust' reporting from Canadians that it introduced for the 2024 tax season, just four days before the April 2 deadline.
Full parole granted to man convicted in notorious 'McDonald's murders' in Cape Breton
The Parole Board of Canada has granted full parole to one of three men convicted in the brutal murders of three McDonald's restaurant workers in Cape Breton more than 30 years ago.
Incident on Calgary's Reconciliation Bridge comes to safe resolution
Nearly 20 hours after a man climbed and remained perched on top of the Reconciliation Bridge in downtown Calgary, the situation came to a peaceful resolution.
Sunshine list: These were the Ontario public sector's highest earners in 2023
Ontario released its annual sunshine list Thursday afternoon, noting that the largest year-over-year increases were in hospitals, municipalities, and post-secondary sectors.
George Washington family secrets revealed by DNA from unmarked 19th century graves
Genetic analysis has shed light on a long-standing mystery surrounding the fates of U.S. President George Washington's younger brother Samuel and his kin.
'We won't forget': How some Muslims view Poilievre's stance on Israel-Hamas war
A spokesman for a regional Muslim advocacy group says Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre's stance on the Israel-Hamas war could complicate his party's relationship with Muslim Canadians.
Why some Christians are angry about Trump's 'God Bless the USA' Bible
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is officially selling a copy of the Bible themed to Lee Greenwood’s famous song, 'God Bless the USA.' But the concept of a Bible covered in the American flag has raised concern among religious circles.