POINT PLEASANT BEACH — The Point Pleasant Elks this week invited campers from Elks Camp Moore, a camp for special-needs youths, to the Jersey Shore for the camp’s annual trip to the lodge.
Thirty campers, accompanied by counselors, took the yearly field trip on Wednesday, and enjoyed boat rides, a picnic and a first responder parade in which they rode atop fire engines from several local fire companies.
Donna Pesany, a Point Pleasant Elk and head of the special needs committee that organized the day’s events, explained the itinerary for the campers, and said that feedback from both them and their counselors was highly positive.
“They’ll go on the boats, then get back to the lodge at around noon,” she said in the morning. “They have a barbecue — hamburgers, hot dogs and French fries — then the first responders come to the lodge (1698). They do a parade around the borough, and then come back for ice cream. We have dancing and prizes and singing; then, they head back up between 3 and 4 o’clock.”
“Everybody’s having such a great time,” said Pesany. “It’s an awesome day for the kids.”
Bob Hatch, exalted ruler of the Point Pleasant Elks, said that the statewide Elk project to support Camp Moore has been so successful that the camp no longer requires families to pay for campers to attend.
“It’s the Elks’ state major project,” said Hatch. “Through all the Elks in the state, we help fund the camp, which is allowing children to go for free now…We’ve actually got enough revenue now that the kids don’t have to pay anymore. We’ve been doing it for quite a while.”
Camp Director Todd Thompson told The Ocean Star that he has worked for Elks Camp Moore for nearly a decade, and explained what the trip means to both the campers as well as their counselors, many of whom come to New Jersey for the summer on a work visa from their home countries.
“Every single year we come down to this event,” he said. “It gives our campers the opportunity to experience boat rides, fire truck rides — kind of being a part of the community. It also allows the community to see the work that we actually do…Elk members can see what all their fundraising does and where all the money goes. It gives the staff members a morale boost, too — a lot of them come from overseas, so a lot of them haven’t seen this area before.”
Csenge, from outside Budapest, Hungary, and Natalie, from Liverpool, England, are two Camp Moore counselors who spoke to The Ocean Star about their experiences in New Jersey.
“This is my second year,” said Csenge, who is also a university student. “Last year, I applied from an agency; they match you up with a program and I got matched here. I study special education; I think it’s really a good fit for me to gain more experience in my studies…I feel like I really want to do this over and over again.”
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