Opening Doors to the Outdoors: How Pine Tree Camp Engages the Whole Family at Camp

While reviewing proposals for our latest round of grants in our Equitable Outdoor Access strategy, I was struck by how deeply the nonprofit community considers the barriers that some Mainers face to enjoying time outdoors. They work hard to address tangible things like high costs, long distances, and inaccessible gear, as well as intangible barriers like a lack of information and skills.

Many organizations also understand the fundamental need to create a sense of safety in their programming so that participants who rarely get the chance to explore the outdoors can feel confident engaging in a new experience and setting.

Exemplifying this work, Pine Tree Camp has always ensured that its campers — children and adults with developmental and physical disabilities — receive all the care and support they need to enjoy the outdoors at the camp’s fully accessible 285-acre campus.

In 2024, Susan Onion, the foundation’s co-founder, and I visited Pine Tree Camp to experience the organization’s work firsthand. We were amazed by its 3:1 camper-to-staff ratio and five on-site nurses, but what really stuck with us was the powerful way the staff built trust and connection with the campers’ caregivers.

Building a Space for the Whole Family

Caring for someone with a disability can be all-consuming to the point that a caregiver might think they’re the only one who can address their loved one’s specific needs. Add in new experiences like trail biking, water sports, or hiking through the woods, and the idea of summer camp could be a nonstarter for some parents.

The Pine Tree Camp team has worked with families for nearly 80 years, and they know caregiver discomfort can be a barrier to kids enjoying the full summer camp experience. But the organization doesn’t try to convince caregivers that their loved ones will be safe, it shows them by inviting them into the camp experience.

If they’re confident in the camp setting and activities, but have reservations about the sleepaway option, families can attend the week-long Camp Pine Cone day camp. At Camp Pine Cone, campers make friends, try new things, and gain independence through traditional summer camp activities. Every session closes with a social event for the whole family. To meet the increasing number of families interested in taking advantage of this step toward overnight camp, Pine Tree has expanded the day camp program even further. If a family isn’t ready for a full week of camp, they can attend the Adventure Day Pass to explore the campus, meet the staff, and use the adaptive equipment as a family for one day.

On some weekends, Adventure Day Pass attendees can even try out an overnight stay in a cabin. In fact, when Susan and I toured the universally accessible cabins during our site visit, we saw a remarkable modification: a cabin built to accommodate the entire family. For caregivers who don’t yet feel comfortable waving goodbye to their camper for a full week away, Pine Tree staff welcome them right into the summer camp experience.

At Camp, Everyone Belongs

During our site visit, Susan and I saw how caregiver inclusion is an essential part of how Pine Tree Camp works with campers. We witnessed several families testing out adaptive archery platforms and bows, cheering each other on, and getting a glimpse of the fun, friendship, and new experiences that a week at Pine Tree Camp offers.

Family members who stay in the family cabin during a week of overnight camp can accompany their camper in their daily activities to see how the staff care for and encourage their loved one. By the end of their experience, Camp Director Dawn Willand says, most of the parents find their own self-care and respite, relaxing by the lake or hiking on their own as their campers go on outdoor adventures with their assigned group.

When caregivers come to this camp, they witness something transformative. At Pine Tree Camp, nobody looks at their child any differently. After 80 years of running a fully accessible summer camp for people with disabilities, there’s nothing the camp staff haven’t seen and nothing they can’t handle. Nobody bats an eye at a particular disability or episode that might otherwise elicit stares in public. Caregivers don’t feel the stress of being a buffer for their children in a society that doesn’t accommodate them. At Pine Tree Camp, each child is just like everybody else.

Once the staff has established caregivers’ trust, their campers can enjoy the camp year after year. That’s why Pine Tree Camp has a 90% return rate. Campers feel the joy of new friends, the pride of trying new things, and a connection to the natural world — and caregivers enjoy great benefits, too.

Pine Tree Camp understands the full meaning of barrier-free summer camp, and the organization’s staff continue to go the extra mile so that people living with disabilities can enjoy the best of summertime in Maine.