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Camp Virginia Jaycee is a Summer time outdoor recreational and educational
facility for children and adults with intellectual and developmental
disabilities. The Camp is a 501 (c) 3 organization. Originally sponsored
jointly by The Virginia Jaycees and the Virginia ARC, an association
for developmentally disabled, the Camp now functions as an independent
non-profit corporation.
The idea of establishing a camp
for children with special needs first originated in 1969 when Bill
Robertson, a young Jaycee from Roanoke, identified the need for
a special needs recreational camp, and convinced The Virginia Jaycees
to sell apple jelly in order to fund and build Camp Virginia Jaycee.
Since that time, the Jaycees of
Virginia have raised funds for land acquisition, buildings, facility
maintenance, and camperships. Today many other organizations and
individuals partner with Camp Virginia Jaycee to bring services
to people with special needs.
Children and adults with special
needs can be helped physically, mentally, and emotionally by an
outdoor education and recreation experience. Yet the National ARC
organization has pointed out that only a small percentage of the
citizens with special needs have actually been involved in existing
tax supported public recreational facilities and programs. Camp
Virginia Jaycee brings these special people such an experience.
Camp Virginia Jaycee, Inc.
P.O. Box 648
Blue Ridge, VA 24064
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