 |
|
|
Alice discovered the history of Camp Jabberwocky
Mrs. Lamb realized there had to be a place where disabled people could participate in summer activities and their parents could receive a well-deserved rest. But during the 1950s, the America medical community thought that such camps would be detrimental to individuals with disabilities. The no nonsense English woman knew, however, this philosophy was medieval. She worked at a summer camp in France when she was young. She also thought her homeland, England, had better treatment and provided more services to the disabled compared to America. One of the reasons for this was World War II. The war left Europe with numerous casualties. So, rehabilitation facilities throughout Europe had to be established to rehabilitate the seriously wounded. As speech pathologist, Mrs. Lamb treated children who sustained shock that caused physical and mental trauma. After her husband’s untimely death from tuberculosis in 1949, Mrs. Lamb and her three children (Gillian, Janet, and John) departed England for America. Mrs. Lamb had relatives in America. Her Sister, May, for example, lived on the resort Island of Martha’s Vineyard. The family of four made Swansea, Massachusetts their new home. After settling in, Mrs. Lamb sought employment at a small clinic/school for children with disabilities in Fall River, a city across the river where she lived. Most of her clients had Cerebral Palsy. She was appalled to discover that America had so little services and programs for disabled children. When school was out for the summer, they stayed home and rarely ventured out and played with other youngsters. At the same time, Mrs. Lamb with her three children spent their summers in Martha’s Vineyard. One afternoon while relaxing on the beach, her thoughts drifted to the children in the hot and humid city of Fall River. A brainstorm erupted after several hours in deep thought to establish a camp on the Vineyard for them. Convincing the clinic’s director that this idea could work was her first major hurdle. With the idea etched on her brain, she could not wait for fall and the new school year to begin to tell her boss. Disbelieve went through his body after hearing the proposal. Mrs. Lamb had many ideas in the past, but this one was earth shattering. He probably thought sending a man to the moon was more plausible than establishing a camp for children with disabilities. And the clinic didn't have the funds for launching an exploratory expedition to determine whether this type of camp would work. Despite fierce disagreements and countless arguments against the idea, he had no impact to changing the English woman’s mind. Reluctantly, the director finally agreed to her terms. Mr. Lamb told him she didn’t need financial support from the clinic, only wanted its morel support. After winning the battle for getting her boss acceptance, Mrs. Lamb immediately went into the planning stage of her plan. A 16-year Swansa student named Ursula Dittami loved the idea and wanted to become a part of it. Mrs. The summer of 1953 quickly came and the first eight pioneers of camp Jabberwocky were prepared to go and explore the unknown. They boarded a ferry in New Bedford for a two and half-hour voyage to Martha’s Vineyard. Mrs. Lamb’s sister, May, went on vacation during that summer and rented her home called "Happy Days" for $145 to the group. Happy Days, located on a campground in Oak Bluffs, waited patiently for its guests to arrive. The gingerbread style house was a far cry of being handicapped friendly. The two women, for example, had to carry campers up and down stairs. Some wore heavy metal leg braces. Furthermore, pluming and stove problems frequently visited the cottage. A linking roof couldn’t hold back rainfall especially during severe thunderstorms. Worse, Mrs. Lamb was not Julia Child. Meals mostly consisted of beans and other sample entries. To many, these difficulties would have been too overwhelming and abandoned ship, declaring the expedition a complete failure. The first Jabberwockians, however, considered the hardships minor inconveniences and developed a "nothing-impossible" attitude. Besides they were there to have fun despite the rough living of camp life. For the first time in their lives, the children from the clinic enjoyed summer activities such as swimming, horseback riding, and boating. They also intermingled and played with non-disabled youngsters from the campground, shattering the social isolation between the disabled and non-disabled. The week on the Vineyard packed of fun and socialization flew by like a supersonic jet. Mrs. Lamb and Ursula immediately went into planning mode to plan for the following summer. A Mrs. Morris, the 4-H Agent on Martha’s Vineyard, responded to Mrs. Lamb’s plea for a bigger and more accessible place. After learning about the English woman’s work, Mrs. Morris convinced the 4—H’s trustees that its clubhouse would be ideal for the camp. William Pinney, one of the camp’s strongest supporters, helped Mrs. Lamb to move in the clubhouse. The population of campers and caring and fun loving counselors also increased. Counselors, mostly high school and college students, didn’t pitied the campers. They knew these kids were the same as non-disabled children except for their physical and mental limitations. To compensate for their limitation, counselors fashioned simple adaptive equipment for them to be able to do things such as propelling a bicycle. Islanders fell in love with camp and its philosophy. Many started donating numerous items including blankets, food, and even vehicles as well as money needed for the daily operations. Others gave, and continually giving, campers and counselors free passes to social events. Eventually, the 4-H Club became too small because the summer resort's popularity continuously grew. The Episcopal Parish probably made the largest donation in 1965 by giving 11 acres for a permanent and more spacious home for the camp. John, Mrs. Lamb's son, christened the new camp, located on Greenwood Avenue in Vineyard Haven, Camp Jabberwocky for his love of my creator, Lewis Carol. Martha’s Vineyard Cerebral Palsy Camp is the camp’s corporation’s name. All counselors have been unpaid volunteers since the beginning. They enjoy the camp’s experience as much as the campers do, and almost everyone considers Jabberwocky a second home. Mrs. Lamb never imagined that her camp would have been so successful while sitting on the beach on that summer’s day pondering its conception. Since 1974, Gillian and John have been the primary directors. Gillian directs the adult session, and John runs the Children’s camp. Living in South Georgia, Jenet still often visits Jabberwocky. Their mother, at age 85, God bless her soul, is still active raising funds and overseeing her creation. Jabberwocky's
history Katie
Johnson 's Foundation |
During
my stay at Camp Jabberwocky, I met so many wonder and caring people. One of them was Mrs.
Helen Lamb. She established the camp in 1953. Before the establishment of this place,
there were no summer resorts for individuals with disabilities on the eastern
seaboard of the United States. The disabled were mostly hidden from society. Many lived in
mental institutions. Living conditions in these places were often deplorable, and, in some
cases, animals were treated better than people having disabling conditions. Summer
activities also were even forbidden to them. Furthermore, parents who kept disabled sons
and daughters at home had no leisure time for themselves.