Camp Abilities at SUNY Brockport

Posted at: 06/30/2010 4:28 PM | Updated at: 06/30/2010 4:30 PM

They are blind and visually impaired kids but that doesn't mean they can't have fun and play sports. Fifty-six children are enjoying camp this week at SUNY Brockport.

It's called Camp Abilities and it started 15 years ago. Some of the kids are blind and some have limited vision. So they all wear blindfolds when batting, for example, to even the playing field. How do they know where to run? The big base emits a beeping sound and most of the kids are able to find it.

Dr. Lauren Lieberman of Camp Abilities said, “For example, they might not know how to play soccer or baseball or basketball. And we teach them how to modify the activities and how to excel in the sports they've been shunned from often in their neighborhoods or in physical education.”

Raven Crouse is 12 and visually impaired. She said, “I like it because in normal school, I think it's not fair that I have a disability and nobody else does. Everybody else can see perfectly fine and I think it's awesome that everybody here has blindfolds on so it's fair for everybody else.”

Other blind sports include gymnastics, judo, rock climbing and horseback riding. Some of the kids actually enter international competition in blind sports.

For more Rochester, N.Y. news go to our website www.whec.com.

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