A Day in the Life of Allison

April 6, 2020

6:45AM

“Alarm goes off and I hit SNOOZE.”

6:55AM

“I carefully climb off of the top bunk and put on sweatshirt, sweats, and shoes. I walk up to the Rec Hall and start bringing my campers’ chairs down from there where they charge overnight. I line the chairs up on the edge of the grass/basketball court near the cabins so they’re ready when everyone wakes up.”

7-Something AM

“I assist counselors with any transfers, start getting my camper ready (two-person lift, bathroom chair, bathroom, two person lift, bed, pants, two person lift, wheelchair, shirt, sweatshirt, brush hair and teeth), and move as many girls outside as possible so we can all go to breakfast together.”

Whenever-the-Breakfast-Bell-Rings-AM

“We head down to the dining hall for breakfast with as many campers as possible. My camper requires assistance eating, so I sit on her right side. After determining what she wants to eat, I serve her appropriate portions and feed her as well as myself in alternating turns.”

After-Breakfast-AM

“We head back up to the cabin level, assemble the cabin on the basketball court (or near there) for a cabin meeting, discuss any activity changes, answer any questions, talk about pranks and who still needs dates to the dances (dates are a very important topic of our conversation!). After the meeting I get actually dressed in real clothes for the day.”

Morning-Activity-AM (10AM-ish I Think At This Point)

“Canoeing, beach combing, and bringing sea creatures up to the camp level for campers who can’t make it or don’t want to go down to the beach level. During canoeing I sit behind my camper on the bottom of the canoe in the middle seat to help her stay upright while someone else paddles. Other morning activities we participate in on other days include arts ‘n crafts and SOMETIMES swimming (we usually save that for the afternoon).”

When-the-Lunch-Bell-Rings-O’Clock

“I head back to the dining hall with my camper for lunch. Same routine as morning: I serve her appropriate portions of the food that she wants and then in turn feed her and myself.”

After-Lunchtime-PM

“I head back to the cabin level for Rest Hour, help my camper to the bathroom, and change for swimming if we didn’t go to the pool in the morning.”

1PM

“I go to a leadership meeting, touch base with the other unit leaders and camp directors, discuss any problems and possible solutions, address any scheduling changes and activity needs.”

When-Rest-Hour-is-Done-PM

“We go to the afternoon activities (karaoke, talent show, camp visitors) and then to the pool or arts ‘n crafts. Sometimes my camper and I make it to the snack shack, especially if we needed some sugar energy.”

When-the-Dinner-Bell-Rings-PM

“Off to the dining hall for dinner with a stop at the nurses table to pick up evening meds. We try to mix up who we sit with at dinner time, sometimes with the rest of the girls in our cabin, other times with guys from the Blue cabin (usually). All of the food at camp rocks. We have the best cooks (thanks Bridgette and company!!) I still sit on the right side of my camper and feed her as well as myself. The right side thing is so I spill less often…it’s not actually a requirement.”

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