Genia Voitsekhovskaya is a native of St. Petersburg, Russia but resides in Minneapolis Minnesota. She is a recent graduate of Augsburg College with a degree in Mass Communications and a minor in Creative Writing. Currently, She holds two part time jobs as an usher at Orchestra Hall and the Children's Theatre Company. Although she enjoys these positions, she is currently looking for a full time position related to writing. In the near future, she plans to obtain her MFA in Creative Writing and would like to become an Arts & Entertainment critic.
Genia has been coming to Camp Courage since she was a young child. She values the experiences that camp has given her and reflects on them in a recent article on her website http://russiangal-genia.blogspot.com/. An excerpt from her article entitled Foundation of Camp Courageis featured below. It provides great insight on the unique impact that time spent at Camp Courage can have on a person’s life.
I have Cerebral Palsy which mostly affects my lower extremities, but also my fine motor skills. My right side is weaker than my left, but it's really hard to tell unless people know me. I don't like to make little things obvious. My biggest message to people who live or are associated with individuals who have physical and/or developmental challenges is to think outside the chair, ask questions, show your interest, and get to know them at the core.
Camp Courage is a true blue example of the meaning of this message. Once you enter, it's like you're in a different world. Here, you are not viewed as just another person in a wheelchair, but a real individual with a mind, body, and soul. Staff embraces your talents and brag of your individual uniqueness.
When I think about Camp Courage the word that comes to mind is Freedom. Freedom means the ability to be around people that are not all the same as you. My favorite part of camp is being able to take the focus off of my challenges and put it on people who are not so much physically different from me but culturally. I strive to learn something new pertaining to culture every year at camp, (e.g., sign language)
Courage Center is a place where "abilities and disabilities become possibilities." Camp Courage focuses on what we are able to do despite our disabilities rather than what we are not able to do because of them. By the end of camp, a surrogate type of family is created. This "family" is made up of staff and/or campers whose exemplary personality, constant encouragement, and words of wisdom carries us through the rough and tough moments as well as the good and bad moments of the year until we return the following summer for more things to put in our memory bags. This self-created group of supporters, which is different but yet so similar for each individual, creates the foundation of Camp Courage.
To view the full article please visit http://russiangal-genia.blogspot.com/
