There are few places where individuals with disabilities can spend a week joyfully focusing on their abilities. For over 85 years, Mt. Hood Kiwanis Camp (MHKC) has offered incredible outdoor recreational programming for campers with developmental, intellectual, and physical disabilities at its fully accessible 22-acre campsite in the Mt. Hood National Forest.
On any given summer day, our campers are catching fish, conquering their fear on the adventure course and zipline, splashing at the pool, riding a horse for the first time, and dancing the night away at campfire. Wheelchair accessible trails and innovations such as adaptive saddles, harnesses, and bicycles make the traditional camp experience available to all. Camp doesn't just offer outdoor activities, it offers a chance for people with disabilities to make new friends and build community in a friendly, non-judgmental environment where they can feel empowered and included.
In a typical year, the heart of MHKC's programming is eight weeks of summer camp, two winter retreats, fall adventure retreat, followed by Family Camp, during which families come up to camp with their prospective camper for a three-day program as a means of introducing the possibility of camp without family support in the future.