Contact:
Billy Henry, Founder & CEO – bhenry@nwaba.org
Northwest Association for Blind Athletes
703 Broadway, Ste 600 • Vancouver, Washington 98660
Local Phone: 1-360-448.7254 Toll Free: 1-800-880-9837
http://www.nwaba.org
media@nwaba.org
Northwest Association for Blind Athletes Kicks Off Camp Spark for Blind and Visually Impaired Youth
Vancouver, Washington—July 22, 2024—The Northwest Association for Blind Athletes (NWABA) is thrilled to announce the return of our Camp Spark program, and for the first time ever being held at Washington State School for the Blind (WSSB) in Vancouver, Washington. This summer camp session is dedicated to Washington youth who are blind or visually impaired. Now in its sixth year, Camp Spark has seen remarkable growth, increasing from 22 campers in 2016 to 35 campers this year. The week-long camp is tailored to meet the unique needs of each camper, offering adapted sports and activities such as tandem biking, swimming, and goalball. Campers are paired with counselors to ensure they are actively learning and developing new skills. Camp Spark also emphasizes social interaction and community, providing campers with opportunities to engage with their peers in exciting and innovative ways in a residential camp setting. This session of Camp Spark ends on Saturday, July 27, 2024.
Camp Spark is a comprehensive overnight sports camp for individuals ages 8 to 16, who are blind and visually impaired. This unique model uses sports, physical activity, and orientation and mobility as a catalyst to encourage leadership, independence, advocacy, and daily living skills that contribute to overall greater quality of life. The campers vary in socioeconomic status, ethnic background, and level of skills and abilities and NWABA offers camp free of charge to youth and their families.
NWABA will host a total of five additional week-long summer and winter camp sessions in Oregon and Washington in 2024-2025, each with different eligibility requirements, such as age and residence, and will provide different sports opportunities based on the varying seasons.
"Our Board of Directors is extremely excited to offer these truly transformational programs to children and youth with visual impairments. Camp reaches far beyond participating in sports, and acts as a catalyst to help campers gain the confidence, self-esteem, friendships, and independence they need to achieve success in all areas of life.” said Founder, President & CEO, Billy Henry.
Camp Spark is partially funded by the generosity of our individual donors, foundations, state grants and corporate partners; however, additional support is critically needed to deliver a successful camp. Donations to support Camp Spark can be made online at www.nwaba.org/donate or by mailing a check to PO BOX 61489, Vancouver, WA, 98666. For more information on Northwest Association for Blind Athletes, please contact Billy Henry, CEO & Founder, bhenry@nwaba.org or 360.448.7254.
About NWABA:
The mission of Northwest Association for Blind Athletes (NWABA) is to provide life-changing opportunities through sports and physical activity to individuals who are blind and visually impaired. A group of students who were visually impaired formed the association in 2007 to ensure that people who are blind were participating in sports and physical activity. Today, NWABA is a rapidly expanding 501(c)(3) charitable organization that delivers more than 5,000 program and service interactions annually to children, youth, adults and military veterans with visual impairments tailored programming which improves self-confidence and self-esteem, promotes independence, creates an inclusive community of supporters, and builds the skills necessary to succeed in all areas of life including school and employment.
For information: http://www.nwaba.org or
Contact: Billy Henry, Founder & CEO, bhenry@nwaba.org
Phone: 1-360-448-7254
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