Daniel Lawrence, a senior management major at The University of Memphis, has worked with special needs children for 10 years, for a total of 2,000 volunteer hours.
Lawrence was introduced to Camp Celebration, a summer camp for special needs children, when his sister, diagnosed with autism at age 4, began attending the camp.
"I have a passion for it," he said. "It's something I hold dear to my heart."
Lawrence has helped at Camp Celebration from when it was founded in 1993 until it shut down in 2006, but after a one-year hiatus, Lawrence relaunched the weeklong summer camp under a new name: Camp Good Times.
Not only was Lawrence, Camp Good Times director, eager to bring back the camp, but so were former camp counselors.
"I definitely wanted to go back and see the kids," said Claudine Nayan, junior public relations major and a camp counselor since 2004. "It was definitely motivation to go back and see them grow up."
The nonprofit camp is specifically designed for "developmentally disabled children and adults," according to the camp's Web site.
Counselors make sure activities are planned according to what the children can handle.
"We definitely take into consideration that the children are handicapped and have a short attention span," Nayan said. "We try to make the activities to fit everyone's individual circumstance."
Activities include arts and crafts, swimming, and health and fitness.
While counselors have their own opinion on what is the favored activity, they all have the same goal in mind when organizing them.
"They want to feel normal peer interaction with normal people. I think it makes them feel more normal," Lawrence said. "It makes a difference for them."
Many counselors said the evening camp-wide dances provides an good social activity.
"Everyone is together under the same roof. I think they get a lot more out of it because they're all together," said Candysse Beal, Camp Good Times counselor and junior special education major.
While working with the campers, there are some moments of exhaustion.
"You get mad and frustrated and want to leave sometimes, but it's the satisfaction of knowing (the children) are getting a break from society," Nayan said.
During her first year as a Camp Good Times counselor, Nayan said she remembered having a difficult time and worrying about a camper she was responsible for. The other campers in her cabin referred to her as a sister and themselves as her brothers that night. Since then, that family bond she feels with the kids keeps her motivated, she said.
Beal has also had testing moments, but she said it all comes back to how she's affecting the children.
"They're so grateful for everything, and it's nice to see that you're impacting them," Beal said. "We see them during the year, and all they talk is about Camp Good Times."
In 2008, Camp Good Times had 35 children attend. For summer 2009, Lawrence said he wants to see close to 60 children register for the camp, but he said he also wants to see more volunteers.
"We want volunteers who have an eagerness to appreciate special education children," he said. "I don't want anyone there as just a requirement. If you're not there for the right reason, then I don't want you there. I want them to do it for the love of the kids."
Camp Good Times provides a unique and sometimes demanding volunteer opportunity, but it has its rewards, Beal said.
"It's definitely an interesting experience, and it's not for everyone," Beal said. "You need a lot of patience, but at the end of the week, it's the best feeling in the world."
