Camp Shine Inspires Campers to Reach Their Full Potential

When you're the parent of a child with special needs, it can be difficult to find a summer camp that has the support and individualized attention that your child needs. 

This is the problem Violet Kyong, owner of Behavior Bricks, was aiming to solve when she partnered with Shine School to create Camp Shine. 

Behavior Bricks, funded by the Children's Trust,  provides Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) therapy and Registered Behavioral Technicians (RBT's) to the campers that attend Camp Shine. 

Camp Shine was designed to serve the unique needs of children with special needs, especially autism, down syndrome, and other related disabilities. Their low camper-to adult ratios ensure that each child can be monitored and receive the support they need with no more than 10 campers to one adult. 

Upon entering Camp Shine, campers and their families are greeted with a large daily schedule that details what each group of campers is doing at any given time. The groups are organized by age. Camp Shine serves children with special needs from rising Kindergartners to rising 12th graders, ensuring that older children are still able to attend, unlike many general population camps. 

This activity schedule has groups rotating every 45 minutes to ensure continued engagement and structure for the campers. Activities at Camp Shine span a wide range of option such as dance, sensory play, arts and crafts, and outside time. 

Smiling faces and squeals of excitement fill every activity room but by far the most popular activity has to be the dance room. 

The dance room teaches campers choreography to songs and many campers stated that this is their favorite part of camp. 

Kyong shared that the dance room seemed to impact campers in a different way than the other activities, encouraging even the most reserved campers to let loose and bust a move. 

A few campers had been especially unenthusiastic for the first few weeks of camp, disinterested in other activities, but when brought to the dance room were happy to participate and some even memorized the choreography. 

These are the kinds of leaps and success stories that Camp Shine aims to create: a nurturing environment for children with special needs to thrive.

ABOUT THE CHILDREN’S TRUST OF ALACHUA COUNTY

The Children’s Trust of Alachua County funds and supports a coordinated system of community services that allows all children, youth and their families to thrive. Its funded programs and partnerships address three main goals: that all children and youth are healthy and have nurturing caregivers, can learn what they need to be successful, and live in a safe community.

ChildrensTrustOfAlachuaCounty.us  |  @ChildrenAlachua

Written by Amalie Bethune, Program Specialist