New seating, an accessible ramp, and other projects completed through The Ability Experience

Over the weekend, Camp was visited by Pi Kappa Phi members from the University of Alabama at Birmingham, the Georgia Institute of Technology, and Boise as a part of The Ability Experience. The Ability Experience, formerly known as Push America, is a nonprofit organization serving people with disabilities around the country. The organization’s first visit to Camp ASCCA came in 1993, and they have returned every year since. The men in attendance each year volunteer and help with new projects across the campus.

This year, 27 members made the trip to Jackson’s Gap, and Camp Director Matt Rickman had several tasks planned for them. The main project of the weekend was to build 20 wooden benches that will serve as seating locations outside the boys and girls cabins and at activities across camp. The guys also worked on the landscape outside of the cabins and even helped lay the new bricks along the pathway to the Dunn Center. One group also assisted in the development of an accessible ramp outside of the new bathrooms at the OutPost, so that all of our campers can easily access the bathrooms during our summer music events.

In order to fund these projects, the Pi Kappa Phi provided a grant of $5,000. The grant was presented to Camp Director Matt Rickman on Saturday by Hunter Stewart, the Vice President of Pi Kappa Phi at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Matt discussed with me how much he appreciates the Ability Experience each year and said, “I can literally stand anywhere on site, spin around with my eyes closed, and point to something. Odds are, the Pi Kapps helped build it.” He said that he has this conversation with each new group of Pi Kappa Phi members that visitand has not missed a Pi Kappa Phi built project yet.

We are thankful for The Ability Experience and the incredible help provided each year by the Pi Kappa Phi men to make Camp ASCCA that much better for our campers!