SNOHOMISH Eleven-year-old McKenna Dahls favorite part of camp is the water sports.
Theyre fun, she said. Swimming, kayaking, tubing.
Dahl took full advantage of the tubing opportunities, going out several times behind the boat of a Flowing Lake resident who volunteers his boat and inner tube for Camp Access. He and Dahl recognized each other right away, exchanging hugs as soon as he disembarked from the boat.
It was Dahls fifth year at the four-day camp for area kids with physical disabilities.
While many of the camp attendees form friendships at the camp, Dahl attended with one of her oldest friends, Kayla Wheeler.
Me and Kayla have known each other since Little Red Schoolhouse. She was five months, I was eight months, Dahl said.
And though theyre separated by about a half-hour drive Dahl lives in Arlington, Wheeler in Lynnwood they like to get together and do the usual things that girls their age do.
I have sleepovers and play with friends, Dahl said of her favorite activities outside of camp.
Camp Access, which is provided at no cost thanks to donations and volunteers, helps kids aged 7 to 17 with disabilities try different sports and be active.
In addition to tubing and riding around Flowing Lake in small, motorized kayaks, campers fished off the dock and played a modified game of soccer.
The ball is bigger and we can use our hands, Dahl said, using her hands to show the approximate size of their soccer ball about the size of a beach ball. I dont play soccer as a sport, but I play soccer here. Its fun.
The next day, campers were scheduled to go to a nearby school, where they had the opportunity to compete in track and basketball as well, said camp founder Ernie Butler.
For many of the kids who have spinal- or muscular-related disabilities, Camp Access is their introduction to competitive sports. Despite the high cost of adaptive equipment these athletes require to race or play basketball, Butler has found grants or partnerships to help provide the campers with athletic opportunities.
The camps kayaks came through in-kind donations and a grant from the Christopher Reeve Foundation. Handcycles and basketball chairs, which often start at about $1,500 to $2,000, are borrowed from organizations like Northwest Adaptive Sports.
A young family that has a child thats disabled has huge medical costs. They dont have the money to buy that kind of equipment, Butler said.
Butler, who was disabled in a skydiving accident, said he founded the camp because athletics are an important part of his life.
When I was first injured, I had an opportunity to coach at a camp like this in Boise, Idaho, Butler explained, adding that he asked his trainer why such a camp didnt exist in the Seattle area. He told me, tongue in cheek, because I hadnt started it yet.