|
|
Success Stories
Brian Riddick, age 13, has proven himself a busy teenager, starting with his participation in the YMCA of Greater Waterbury’s summer camp. Here, he spars with a classmate during an advanced karate class at the Anderson Boys Club in Waterbury.
By Dawn Caminiti
©2003 Republican-American
WATERBURY — Brian Riddick is a busy 13-year-old.
He's on a swim team, has an apprentice black belt in karate and helps teach karate to younger children at the Anderson Boys Club in Waterbury.
But, that's only during the school year.
After school let out last June, he spent his time at the YMCA of Greater Waterbury's summer camp. It was his first year at the camp, but after his experience, he said it won't be his last.
The YMCA camp operates for 10 weeks during the summer. It has about 350 daily campers 5 to 15. It offers a host of activities including archery, boating, rock climbing, fishing and field games.
"You name it, we do it," said Chris Pallatto, associate executive director at the YMCA.
The YMCA is one of 34 agencies in the Greater Waterbury area supported by the United Way. Each year the United Way collects money for the many programs and agencies it supports.
In addition to the camp, the YMCA has youth sports programs, youth in government programs, teen nights, swim lessons, childcare and after-school programs. But it was the summer camp that left an impression on Brian.
Not only did he find a number of activities to keep him busy, he also found a group of friends and a compassionate staff. Brian has a heart problem and, while he has always been active, there was one day during camp when the heat and activities were too much.
"It was really scary because I didn't know what was going to happen to me," Brian said.
When he first started to feel weak, the counselors had him rest for a while and called his parents. When he didn't seem to improve, they called an ambulance.
"When the ambulance came, there were probably 60 kids his age who were really nervous when they saw him get into the ambulance," Pallatto said.
The 70-person staff at the camp, including nurses and EMTs, are trained for incidents such as Brian's. Once the ambulance left, Pallatto sat down with the campers and calmed them down.
Brian was brought to Hartford where doctors ran some tests and found nothing wrong. He was sent home to rest in the air conditioning.
"Usually those with heart conditions have to be careful with the heat," said Brian's father, Guy Riddick.
After that day, Brian's parents thought about keeping him home for the summer. But he insisted on returning. When he returned, his fellow campers, who had made a huge banner welcoming him back to camp, greeted him.
"When I saw the banner, I actually knew who my real friends are and how they really cared for me," Brian said.
"His spirits were lifted so high, it's hard to even put into words what that did to him after everything he went through," Guy Riddick said. "After that I sat down with my wife and we knew we should start saving now for next year."
Pallatto said Brian was a role model for other campers. "He was funny and loved doing everything at camp," Pallatto said. "Some of the older kids just like to hang out, but he wanted to do everything." Many of the campers looked up to Brian, according to Pallatto. who even took on the role of counselor for a while.
"We had a counselor who had to do something, so we told Brian he could be in charge for a while, supervised by a staff member," Pallatto said.
"It was really fun. I made a lot of new friends and it was a great experience," Brian said. "It was one of the best camps."
To donate to the United Way, call 757-9855. To give to the YMCA of Greater Waterbury, call 754-2181.
Back to Success Stories
|
|
