LAFAYETTE — 15-year old Joshua Allen was diagnosed with down syndrome.
With high risk factors due to COVID-19 his mother, Kathy, sought fit for him to get the vaccine as she could.
"It was a very easy decision to get the vaccine because his health history has been one where he's picked up infection just seemingly out of nowhere. He'll be well one day and suddenly sick the next day. It was time out of school and time having to readjust going back to school so I wanted him to get the vaccine the minute it was available."
Going to summer camp only half of 2021, Allen was still skeptical of sending Joshua. Now that cases have decreased, and Joshua has extra protection through the vaccine, Kathy has let her guard down.
"It's a good time for him to go back to camp because I've got to balance my concern about his physical health with the fact that he does need social and emotional health. I think associated with his peers in the summer camp is the best way to do that."
Joshua attends Generational Voices Louisiana, where safety is their priority.
"We're sure that everything is Lysol down. Every Friday we have a special group that comes in and does the bombing for the whole center in each classroom to make sure. Individually, I have all my counselors get together and then they have take turns and they actually sanitize their classrooms top to bottom", says camp director, Brittney-Smith Houston.
Camp counselor, Olivia Scott, says that welcoming kids back into camp last year was like walking on egg shells, but they've learned through the hardships and are ready to safely open the doors again.
"Because kids are a joy. So it's nice, that's the parents trust us to have a place for them to come to in the summer."
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