Autism Society, Youngstown Y offer special needs day camp

By DENISE DICK

denise_dick@vindy.com

YOUNGSTOWN

The 42 participants in Camp F.R.I.E.N.D. learn friendship skills, teamwork and community integration.

Camp F.R.I.E.N.D.: Finding Rewards In Every New Day is a collaboration between the Autism Society of Ohio and the Youngstown YMCA. It’s the camp’s second year for participants age 3 to 22.

Aundrea Cika, director of the Mahoning Valley office of the Autism Society of Ohio, said the camp provides all of the activities of any other day camp: swimming, art classes, special activities and outings.

“What’s typical for us is what our families crave,” she said.

The camp groups special-needs children and neurotypical kids together.

For Friday’s Safety Day, Chief Vince D’Egidio of New Middletown police talked about police work and showed older students his cruiser and its equipment.

“What kind of shotgun is that?” one camper asked.

“It’s a big shotgun,” D’Egidio answered.

This year’s camp was expanded to two weeks to accommodate more participants. It continues next week.

Volunteers and paid interns help with the camp. One volunteer and one paid intern are on the autism spectrum. That’s new this year, too.

Activities are geared to participants’ ages.

“The oldest go on outings,” said Jen Gonda, camp director. “We went to Friends Roastery, the Butler, the Golf Dome and Avalon Pizza.”

That exposes campers to everyday activities they might not otherwise get.

“Some of them had never tipped before,” Cika said.

After playing golf, campers went for ice cream. One of the campers asked staffers to order for her.

“We said, ‘Hey, if you want ice cream, you have to order it,’” Gonda said.

Besides age, organizers also separate campers based on where they fall on the autism spectrum and staff the sections accordingly.

A group of younger students focused on playing games.

Matthew Marciano, 6, busies himself with Legos, stacking the blocks together. He waves as visitors enter the classroom.

Gonda said the camp focuses on fun, but staff members also offer help with behavioral issues.

Ashley Krznar of Brookfield, who is preparing for her tests to become a board-certified behavior analyst, developed a behavior plan for one of the young campers.

She spent the first day of the camp watching the boy who displayed at least 20 aggressive behaviors and couldn’t sit still in a chair. Aggressive behavior includes kicking, hitting or pulling hair.

At his school, Gonda explained, a harness is used to keep the boy seated.

“We started out sitting for one minute, and we’re increasing that,” Krznar said.

On Friday, the boy showed only six aggressive behaviors.

It’s gratifying to see the changes, she said.

Gonda said the plan that Krznar developed will be shared with the boy’s father, who may share it with the boy’s school.

Gonda is a board-certified behavior analyst, and besides Krznar, two other camp staffers are preparing for the test.

“There are only 230 behavior analysts in the state,” Gonda said.