A broken transmission might mean a shift in plans for some special needs’ kids attending a summer camp program run by the Unique Get Together Society.
Debra Abraham, the society’s executive director, said the five-passenger 2004 Buick Rendezvous is used to transport the kids to outings all over the Lower Mainland like the Britannia Mine Museum, the Greater Vancouver Zoo and Cultus Lake. But after more than 170,000 kilometres and a previous rebuild of the transmission two years ago, the vehicle has given up the ghost. And that means the eight kids at her camp may have to give up some of the experiences other children take for granted.
“They have so many barriers up already,” Abraham said. “Some of them have never had the summer camp experience.”
Abraham said repairing the transmission will cost up to $3,500, money the small organization doesn’t readily have. And while staff members have been pitching in as volunteer drivers with their own vehicles, coordinating the logistics of all that has been a challenge.
Abraham said she’s hoping someone in the community may have a safe, functional passenger van they no longer need that could be donated to the society.
It’s especially important for kids with special needs and developmental challenges to have opportunities to grow and explore their capabilities, Abraham said, and summer camp can play a huge role.
“It gives them the experience of something different,” Abraham said. “Their brains are growing, their bodies are developing and they can learn. It gives them choice.”
• Anyone with a surplus van or any other way they can help get the Unique Get Together Society’s vehicle back on the road can contact Abraham at [email protected]
