Gay, lesbian teen camp planned

By PHOEBE MITCHELL, Staff Writer

EASTHAMPTON - A camp for gay and lesbian teen-agers planned for this summer in Hawley is believed to be the first of its kind in the country.

The camp, to be called Tapestry of Life, will provide a range of camping and cultural experiences, said Shea E. Hearsum, camp public relations director.

The camp will be at the Stump Sprouts ski resort and will be open to youngsters aged 13 to 17 who identify themselves as gay, lesbian or bisexual, Hearsum said. Heterosexual teens are also welcome.

Although they have not encountered any opposition to the camp so far, organizers expect they will.

"This is a charged subject for some people," Hearsum said.

The camp's founders, Kay Willbanks and Elizabeth Brooke, both moved to Easthampton from Ohio last year after spending three years looking for a location for the camp, Hearsum said.

They chose this area because the state has laws prohibiting discrimination against gay and lesbian youth, because the area seems more accepting of gay people and because of its scenic beauty, Hearsum said.

Willbanks and Brooke are both active members of the American Camping Association and have presented workshops at association conferences aimed at helping camping organizations provide programs for gay, lesbian and bisexual teen-agers, Hearsum said.

Brooke has a bachelor's degree in recreational administration from Eastern Kentucky University and has worked as a camp professional for the Girl Scouts of America for many years. Willbanks, with 20 years experience in camping, was camp director at the Buckeye Girl Scout Trails Council in southern Ohio before coming to western Massachusetts.

Willbanks and Brooke decided on the 13-to-17 age group, Hearsum said, because statistics show that youngsters are beginning to identify themselves as gay at that age.

Ritch Savin Williams, a professor of human development at Cornell University and the author of four books on gay youth, said his research shows that boys are aware they are attracted to members of the same sex, on average, by the age of 12 and girls slightly later.

Williams said his statistics are based on interviews with 100 gay and bisexual boys between the age of 14 and 25.

The camp, which will offer overnight camping for two, two-week sessions at a cost of $1,200 each, is registered in Massachusetts as a tax-exempt organization and must be approved as a residential facility by the Hawley Board of Health, Hearsum said. She said the facility has been approved, but the camping application is being reviewed and a permit won't be issued until health officials can inspect the camp when it is in session.

Willbanks and Brooke also want to obtain accreditation from the American Camping Association at some point, although that is not necessary, Hearum said.

Speaking from the camping association's headquarters in Wheeling, Ind., spokesman Robert Schultz said that although some camps have programs for gay youth, he believes Tapestry of Life is the first residential camp in the country that is dedicated to lesbian, gay and bi-sexual youth.

"The ACA believes every child should have a camp experience and (the Hawley camp) seems to fall right in line with providing that," said Schultz. While the assocation takes no stand on the homosexual aspect of the camp, Schultz added, "we applaud an organization that would seek to provide an experience where a child can feel safe - and that seems to be the case here."

Robert Brower, of Wheeling, Ind., a member of the assocation and a camp owner for 45 years, said he knows Willbanks and Brooke from association conferences and believes that the Hawley camp will fill a significant need for youngsters.

Brower said there are camps for children with all sorts of emotional and physical needs, but few, if any, camps designed to help children deal with sexual-orientation issues.

Patricia Jenkins, a Northampton psychotherapist who has run a support group for gay teens, said a program that allows youngsters to express themselves in a safe environment is important. She said the camp will benefit youngsters as long as it includes heterosexuals, so that gays and lesbians are not segregated.

Hearsum said she plans to visit schools with gay/straight alliance groups as well as parent organizations, such as Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (P-FLAG), to explain the camp program. She said brochures have been sent out throughout the New England area.

"Our biggest goal is to provide opportunities for these kids to have fun, instead of experiencing the awfulness they experience in school and in their lives from harassment and discrimination," Brooke said.

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