As Chloe Clancy, 7, jumped into the ball pit at the Saville Community Sports Centre in Edmonton, she squealed in excitement. This was her first year participating in the Starlight Performance Camp, designed for sick and disabled children.
“Right now I'm playing in the ball pit with a friend,” she said excitedly, looking over at the pit.
Throughout the day on Saturday the high-energy girl played with ribbons, learned a cheer, practised dancing and decorated her bright shirt with sparkling sequins.
At the end Clancy, who has autism, joined other children to show off what they had learned in front of their families.
It was a heartwarming moment for St. Albert mother Jana Clancy as she sat watching her daughter perform.
“We thought it was awesome,” she said. “Everybody is kind of doing their own thing and that’s totally the norm there. It felt inclusive.”
University of Alberta medical student Andree Vincent is the organizer behind the camp. This is the second year it’s running.
“It’s a day that’s all about them, the kids are the big star of the day,” she said.
The one-day event connects children with the world of performing arts through sessions of gymnastics, dance, cheerleading and fashion.
Vincent started the camp with a friend after a candid conversation on how they grew up. The two met on a cheerleading squad and noticed how dance and gymnastics had lifted their self-esteem when they were younger.
Discussions quickly turned to creating a space for children who are sick and who have disabilities to learn skills that would build their confidence.
“We thought, if there’s a group that doesn’t get to do that a lot it's either kids who are in and out of the hospital who can’t quite register for classes, or kids with disabilities and can’t quite follow the pace of other groups,” she explained.
To get into the camp parents need to submit an application. As Vincent read through the paperwork, she said most parents reported having put their children in a formal class, but it didn’t end up working.
“They gave up because they couldn’t keep up, or there was always a point where they realized they weren’t like the others.”
At the camp each participant is free to learn at their own speed. There’s no pressure or expectation on how the youth perform.
Jana said the different pace was the main motivator of signing up her daughter for the camp. She said Chloe needs specialized attention in the tasks she performs.
“She’s not on par with her peers, so that’s quite a barrier for us to do mainstream things,” she explained. “She won’t really be at the same level as other seven-year-olds in a mainstream dance class or gymnastics class.”
This year's event ran smoother than the one in 2017, Vincent said. After the first camp wrapped up, there were some wrinkles to smooth out.
That included increasing the amount of volunteers needed in each session. Last year, they only had one person, which became a challenge in controlling each group of 10 excited children.
This past Saturday struck a better chord. As over 35 kids were split into groups of 10, two volunteers were waiting at each session. Vincent said she was surprised to find that along with volunteers corralling wandering children, participants also gave a helping hand.
“The kids actually help each other. That’s probably the most beautiful thing about the camp is watching the kids help each other,” she said. “If one child goes off the side and doesn’t want to participate, the other kids are actually quite good at encouraging them to come back.”
Even though Vincent is heading towards graduation, she said she plans to “pass the baton” on to other students to keep the camp going.
The camp is open for youth between the ages five to 14 years old. For more information, visit: http://starlightperforman.wixsite.com/oursite.
