{"id":231816,"date":"2026-04-14T21:26:09","date_gmt":"2026-04-14T21:26:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/231816\/"},"modified":"2026-04-14T21:26:09","modified_gmt":"2026-04-14T21:26:09","slug":"camp-thunderbird-provides-outdoor-fun-for-special-needs-community","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/231816\/","title":{"rendered":"Camp Thunderbird provides outdoor fun for special needs community"},"content":{"rendered":"

As\u00a0spring passes by, Quest\u2019s Camp Thunderbird is preparing to welcome\u00a0adults with developmental disabilities<\/a>\u00a0to its outdoor summer camp.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cOur goal is to have a safe, fun and compassionate environment for them to experience a full life in,\u201d said camp director Meghann \u201cMeggie\u201d Hall.\u00a0<\/p>\n

According to Hall,\u00a0Camp Thunderbird opened in 1969 and\u00a0sits on\u00a036 acres\u00a0of land\u00a0just west of Lake Prevatt, near the intersection of Welch and Thompson roads.\u00a0Each adult summer camp session lasts one week, in which\u00a0guests can\u00a0canoe,\u00a0swim in the pool, complete a ropes course, and more.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have one young man who used to live here in Florida that now lives in New York\u00a0\u2014\u00a0his family comes and visits relatives here, and he gets to\u00a0come from New York to come to camp,\u201d Hall said. \u201cThey come from as close as right down the street to other states away. It\u00a0kind of depends\u00a0on\u00a0who they are and what\u00a0they\u2019re\u00a0looking for.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Hall said that, although she is better at remembering faces than names, she\u00a0knows most of her guests and their favorite camp activities.One\u00a0of those guests is\u00a026-year-old John Loizos, who will return to Camp Thunderbird for his fourth year this summer.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cHe loves being outside,\u201d Hall said. \u201cThis is a great place for him to be, because he doesn\u2019t like loud noises.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Loizos\u00a0attends Camp Thunderbird each year from Palm Beach County, around three-and-a-half hours away.\u00a0Since Loizos has autism and is considered nonverbal, his mother, Emma Dyer-Loizos,\u00a0requests one-on-one care for him at Camp Thunderbird each year.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s really stimulating, and it\u2019s a really upbeat environment,\u201d\u00a0she said.\u00a0\u201cThey\u2019re\u00a0young people. They have a real positive vibe, and\u00a0I think my son\u00a0picks up on\u00a0that.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Dyer-Loizos said\u00a0she and her husband started taking their son to Camp Thunderbird after COVID-19\u00a0temporarily closed\u00a0his\u00a0previous camp.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThe camp we used to have our son at\u00a0used to offer weekends\u00a0\u2014\u00a0like one weekend a month through the year\u00a0\u2014\u00a0as well as the summer camp program, but that all changed after COVID,\u201d Dyer-Loizos said. \u201cWe noticed there\u00a0wasn\u2019t\u00a0the\u00a0staff. It was\u00a0on a much smaller\u00a0basis, and it\u00a0wasn\u2019t\u00a0a one-on-three ratio anymore\u00a0\u2014\u00a0it was one-on-five to one-on-six. My son got very neglected.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"JohnCourtesy of Quest, Incorporated John Loizos swims in the Camp Thunderbird pool.<\/p>\n

One activity\u00a0Loizos particularly enjoys\u00a0at Camp Thunderbird\u00a0is the camp pool, which Hall said\u00a0was a major improvement.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cLast year was the first year I\u2019ve ever seen him get in the pool,\u201d Hall said. \u201cHe did not get into it for the first two years. Last year, one of our counselors worked with him\u00a0and was able to get him in the pool\u00a0for the first time since\u00a0I\u2019ve\u00a0been here. Really big stuff, I thought.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

As their son\u00a0enjoys nature at camp for two weeks out of the year, his parents\u00a0visit various Florida beaches, welcoming the respite from full-time caregiving.\u00a0Dyer-Loizos said she and her husband will typically visit Sarasota during Loizos\u2019 first camp week, then visit\u00a0beaches near their home in Palm Beach County during the second camp week.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s given us breathing space as parents,\u201d Dyer-Loizos said. \u201cMy\u00a0son is extremely hands-on\u00a0\u2014\u00a0he needs bathing, he needs cleaning up\u00a0after,\u00a0he needs a constant eye.\u00a0He\u2019s\u00a0in his little sitting room now, but every so often, me and my husband\u00a0have to\u00a0go and check him out\u2014\u00a0you know, \u2018How are you, Johnny?\u2019\u00a0It\u2019s\u00a0a full-time job.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Although Loizos is at an age where he can\u00a0move to a group home, his parents\u00a0want to keep caring for him as long as\u00a0they\u00a0can, simply because he is\u00a0their\u00a0son.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019d much prefer for him to continue to live with us as long as we physically can look after him to what we feel is\u00a0the best of our ability,\u201d\u00a0Dyer-Loizos\u00a0said. \u201cWe make the best of our\u00a0life.\u00a0It\u2019s\u00a0restrictive,\u00a0sometimes it can be difficult \u2014 but we love him.\u00a0He\u2019s\u00a0our son, and\u00a0that\u2019sthat.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"CampPhoto by Sarah Merly Camp director Meghann Hall started her Camp Thunderbird career in 2023. She previously served as a special education teacher in Alabama.<\/p>\n

According to Hall, her passion for\u00a0overseeing Camp Thunderbird stems from a similar\u00a0belief in treating\u00a0those with developmental disabilities equally.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThere was a young man at my church who also had Down syndrome, and he would follow\u00a0me around\u00a0and call me his girlfriend,\u201d Hall said. \u201cNone of the other kids at church would hang out with him because they thought he was different. I treat them like everybody\u00a0else, because\u00a0they are \u2014\u00a0they\u2019re\u00a0just people. They will be treated like us, and I think that\u2019s\u00a0kind of what\u00a0solidified it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hall said her camping experience as a Girl Scout\u00a0enabled her to grow in confidence, and she\u00a0works to ensure\u00a0Camp Thunderbird will provide that same benefit to those under her care.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cCamp Meggie was outgoing,\u201d she said. \u201cShe was bubbly, she was more adventurous. I was always kind of shy and kind of reserved. Camp Meggie was more open, and I want to create\u00a0that same space for our guests, a place where they can feel\u00a0safe and loved\u00a0and open to be their true selves.\u00a0All of\u00a0our guests deserve that.\u00a0Not\u00a0all of\u00a0our guests get to go to camp as a kid, so\u00a0we\u2019re\u00a0able to create that space here for them as adults.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Those interested in learning more about Camp Thunderbird may visit\u00a0questinc.org\/camp\/<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\" <\/p>\n

Sarah Merly is an editorial assistant and reporter for The Apopka Chief. She joined the Chief in May 2025 after graduating from Patrick Henry College’s journalism program in Washington, D.C. In her spare time, Sarah loves watching rom-coms, visiting Disney, and throwing parties.<\/p>\n

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