Kids Kamp 2019, Interview with Maranda from Wood TV
Maranda: Summer camp is an awesome experience for all children and we are so excited to be here at Blandford Nature Center today where a group of kids have gathered who are here to experience summer camp at its finest. Tell me about it, Deb.
Deb: Absolutely! We are Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services. We do a youth camp every year, typically for one week, and today we are at Blandford!
Maranda: All right how old are the kids? And tell me what we’re hoping to achieve.
Deb: The ages start at 3 and then they’ll go all the way up to 12. Some have additional abilities. We try to get a peer support, we try to get accommodations, we try to get these kiddos to be around other kiddos that are just like them.
Maranda: I Love it! And, when kids come to camp, do they cherish it and love it?
Deb: Absolutely! We have a family that comes from Illinois. They’ve been coming I think easily for the last 4 or 5 years. We have kids that have grown up and aged out of the camp.
Maranda: You know, what’s that one thing you want West Michigan to understand? About the work you do every day.
Deb: That anyone with hearing loss or that is Deaf, is just like them. The only difference is they can’t hear.
Maranda: Beautiful. Why do you love the work you do?
Deb: Because you’re making a difference in somebody’s life. You see the change. You see them grow. I’ve got kiddos that I’ve seen since 6 months [old] all the way up probably till 18-19 years old. They have accommodations now, the world has opened up to them, people are treating them just like everybody else.
Maranda: Thank you for what you do for our kids and for all of us.
Deb: Absolutely, absolutely. I wouldn’t do anything else.
Nancy: [using an interpreter] It’s really good for kids to learn language and this is a great language opportunity. American Sign Language is a real language it’s very visual and it’s less stress for them to communicate through American Sign Language. It gives them access to communication to language and I enjoy that. I really enjoy seeing how much the kids learn and how they thrive and they really pick up a lot of signs here.
Maranda: Look at these beautiful campers! Mateo, do you love camp?
Mateo: Yeah!
Maranda: It is so fun! And Julian what do you love the most about camp?
Julian: [using an interpreter] I enjoyed walking down the trail, and I saw different animals. We saw some bugs and butterflies, and a snake even! And we saw an owl and I think we even saw a caterpillar! There were some birds out on the trail and some frogs too. It was so much fun looking out on the trail. And we checked them off on this paper we had too!
Maranda: Sounds like camp is pretty cool.
Austin: I’m here to help others that are Deaf. So it’s not really fair to them if they can’t hear or talk to others [be]cause they don’t have the ability. So I wanna make sure that doesn’t happen.
Mary Jo: I like their job. I like, I like what they’re doing for kids. So, it’s my way of giving back.
[light upbeat music]
Maranda: Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services is an awesome organization for kids. Are you all having a great time?!
Kids: Yay!!!! [waving applause]