The camp their son loved got cut. Now they host one for kids with visual disabilities
A 90-year-old man needed help in Sumner.
Lucky for him, a teenager from Tacoma was at the scene on Aug. 1. Lyla Duffy, 13, successfully wrapped an emergency bandage around his arm with the help of an adult.
The 90-year-old man’s name is RJ. It is short for Rescue Johnny. He is a dummy that was one of the props used at Camp Possible, a summer camp for blind and visually impaired children in Pierce County.
Sumner Deputy Police Chief Andy McCurdy helps run the camp with his wife, Demarie McCurdy. They started the camp in 2023 after a local state-funded summer program for blind and visually impaired children got its funding cut.
Their 14-year-old son, Colton McCurdy, is blind and on the autism spectrum. Demarie McCurdy said their son participated in the state-funded summer program in 2022 and loved it.
Demarie McCurdy decided to start Camp Possible so children who are blind and visually impaired have opportunities to hang out, learn new things and have fun in the summertime.
She said she first recruited her son’s teacher, Rebecca Cervantez-Foley, to see if she would be interested in helping run the camp. Cervantez-Foley works with visually impaired students.
After that, Demarie McCurdy asked on social media if anyone knew how to get funding for the camp. Puyallup Police Chief Scott Engle suggested that she apply for a Puyallup Kiwanis Foundation grant. She received $13,000.
Puyallup School District staffers helped run the camp, including Cervantez-Foley, Cheryl Buffelen, Aimee Bloom and Jacki Oaks. Demarie McCurdy’s niece, Charlotte Lewis, and daughter Norah McCurdy also helped.
“My favorite part is seeing the kids come together,” Demarie McCurdy said.
Camp Possible is a week long, and it is held at a local YMCA and Sundance Circle Hippotherapy at 16516 92nd St. E. About 10 Pierce County children around 14 years old and under participate.
Last year, the campers learned about how to have a growth mindset. This year the camp was focused on science, technology, engineering and math. The campers learned about what to do during emergencies and what lahars are. They also did some rock climbing, among other things.
Rock climbing was one of Duffy’s favorite parts of Camp Possible. She also had fun when she and the other campers built things out of marshmallows and spaghetti noodles.
“I like all the stuff we get to do,” Duffy said.
When the campers learned about lahars, they got to feel volcanic debris slide down a rain gutter. They made their volcanic debris with rocks, water, dirt and wood. Andy McCurdy said it can be challenging sometimes to describe natural phenomena to blind and visually impaired children, so giving them a tactile way to experience things was important.
On Aug. 1, the campers did emergency response training. They learned the basics of first aid and what to say when calling 911. There was also an emergency scenario that involved getting RJ the dummy to safety after an earthquake.
“All the stuff we do, we try to adapt it specifically for blind and visually impaired kids,” Andy McCurdy said.
Andy McCurdy and his wife reach out to Pierce County teachers who work with visually impaired students to try to identify those who would benefit from the camp, he said.
The campers did not have to pay to participate. The Sumner Rotary and Pacific Foundation for Blind Children funded the camp this year.
Demarie McCurdy said they plan on hosting the camp again in 2025. The plan is to fundraise early next year.
Those interested in learning more about the camp can email camppossible253@gmail.com.
Sign Up: East Pierce Pulse
Know what’s happening in Puyallup, South Hill, Sumner, Bonney Lake, Orting, Buckley and beyond. Get the latest news from the cities, towns and rural communities of East Pierce County. Click here to sign up. In your inbox every Tuesday.
