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New York Times
5 hours ago
- New York Times
A Summertime Haven for Homeless Children
Visuals by Monique Jaques Text by Sarah Nir At the edge of Lake Kanawauke in New York's Hudson Valley, third graders splished in the shallows, giggling till they came ashore spluttering. On the portico of a bunkhouse, teenage boys raced paper boats in buckets. Under the eaves of their tent, 7-year-old girls in a bunk bed exchanged friendship bracelets. Beneath a nearby beech tree, their bunk mates held a solemn funeral for a ladybug. Daniel Velazquez, 10, first-time camper. Summer camp is always an oasis, particularly for urban children like those who splashed, played and poked sticks at beetles on a recent serene Friday. But perhaps none more so than Camp Homeward Bound, 45 miles north of New York City, which may be the longest running sleep-away camp in the country exclusively for homeless children. Shanely Green, 10, fourth-time camper. For the past four decades, the camp, which is run by the nonprofit Coalition for the Homeless, has provided refuge to thousands of the youngest residents of the city's homeless shelters. Camp Homeward Bound in 1993. Joyce Dopkeen/The New York Times On this day, campers played underwater tag in the lake, tumbled in three-legged races and waited out a passing sun shower with arts and crafts. The challenges that normally pervaded their lives seemed to slip away like the sun into the lake as the campers lined up for a taco dinner, practiced for a talent show and then hunted for the perfect sticks on which to toast their marshmallows. 'So many of these kids have been devalued and dehumanized just going through the shelter experience,' said Dave Giffen, executive director of the Coalition for the Homeless. 'So to be able to come to a place like this, where they don't have to hide it, they don't have to worry about it — it is a truly freeing experience.' About 30,000 children sleep in New York's shelter system each night, according to the city comptroller. Each summer Camp Homeward Bound takes in about 360 of those children, ages 7 to 15, for its no-cost 16-day sessions. The cost, about $4,000 per camper, Mr. Giffen said, is covered by donations. Khalil Richards, 10, fifth-time camper. Chloe Reynolds, 9, first-time camper. There can be fraught moments for campers, far out of their comfort zones, according to Bev McEntarfer, the longtime camp director. To help them cope, camp counselors receive training from social workers and mental health professionals. But equally valuable are the junior counselors, all of whom are formerly homeless campers and can offer support — and hope. One former camper, Homeward Bound's culinary arts instructor, is enrolled in culinary school. Another, the camp's art teacher, is pursing a degree in arts education.'People think of them as just these downtrodden kids that have no future,' Ms. McEntarfer said. 'They just need to have their world opened up so that they know what their future can be.' At Homeward Bound, the tough situations the campers face back home are deliberately not emphasized. Yet the undercurrent of trauma that cuts through many campers' lives still eddies between campfire singalongs and games of Uno on the bunk steps. Endrismar Sanabria, 13, from Queens, proudly showed off the blue wristband that indicated she was a strong enough swimmer to cannonball off the dock into the deepest part of the lake. When she first came to camp, two summers earlier, she could not swim, she said — a fact that had terrified her when, at age 10, she forded rivers and piled into an ocean raft as she fled Venezuela with her family. At night, there were cicadas and stars, where most campers were more used to sirens and streetlights. Seated on the grass, looking out at the glimmering lake, Diomer Ortiz, a 12-year-old from the Bronx, said his favorite part of camp — after bike riding — was the view. 'The mountains, the islands, the sky,' Diomer said. 'It feels like you're in heaven.'
Associated Press
5 hours ago
- Associated Press
Aging atomic bomb survivors in Japan push for end of nuclear weapons
The Associated Press is an independent global news organization dedicated to factual reporting. Founded in 1846, AP today remains the most trusted source of fast, accurate, unbiased news in all formats and the essential provider of the technology and services vital to the news business. More than half the world's population sees AP journalism every day.
Associated Press
6 hours ago
- Associated Press
Fireworks display goes wrong in Japan as boats catch fire
The Associated Press is an independent global news organization dedicated to factual reporting. Founded in 1846, AP today remains the most trusted source of fast, accurate, unbiased news in all formats and the essential provider of the technology and services vital to the news business. More than half the world's population sees AP journalism every day.
