News
Through the Years: From Camper to Camp Director - Monica Edgar’s Story of Inspiration
United Cerebral Palsy of Delaware, Inc. is proud to announce that Monica D. Edgar is the new director of Camp Manito. Monica, known as Moni, is the first Camp Manito director with a disability to run the summer camp designed primarily to serve children and young adults with disabilities.
Adopted from India when she was two
and one-half years old, Moni is the daughter of Dan and Mary Lou Edgar. Weighing only 15 pounds, Moni was malnourished, and had polio. Doctors told Dan and Mary Lou that Moni would probably never walk, and encouraged them to seek help at Alfred I. duPont Institute, now known as the Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children. The family
spent countless hours there.
The staff at A.I. became good friends of the Edgars and encouraged them to send Moni to UCP’s Camp Manito, which was then held on the Institute’s grounds. This excited Moni, who wanted to be like her older sisters who attended
camps. Prior to the start of the 1983 camp season, Moni’s senior counselor came to the Edgar’s
house to introduce herself and to tell the family about camp. The counselor explained the schedules,
the staff and all the fun at camp, which made Moni’s anticipation grow. The campers were put into several groups according to age. Each group was made up of one senior
counselor, two junior counselors and a volunteer for each camper. The daily schedule consisted of group time, music, art, lunch,
swimming and sports — all adapted to meet the needs of the individual campers.
Moni’s first day of camp was full
of excitement because there were so
many people at the camp. Like the
other campers, Moni met her
assigned volunteer, who would mentor
and assist her during the camp
season. Moni was never bored and did not want Camp Manito to end!
Having seven years’ experience as a
camper and attending the UCP of DE’s
Rec-n-Respite program (a Saturday respite program held at the UCP Center during the school year), Moni became a volunteer at 13. She was assigned a three-year-old
camper for the season. The camper cried for his mother during the first week, but by the second, he was communicating and joining activities.
Moni wanted more responsibility, so she became a junior counselor at Camp Manito. This position allowed her to plan activities for the group and to assist the volunteers. Her supervisors eventually felt that Moni could handle added responsibilities, so she was promoted to senior counselor, where she was responsible for everyone in her group.
Her experiences at Camp Manito influenced her to pursue a degree in early childhood/elementary education at Neumann College. Moni Edgar is currently a teacher at Wilmington Head Start. The same year she began her career as a teacher, Moni was asked to join the UCP of DE Board of Directors. As a UCP board member, Moni was actively involved with many facets of the agency and Camp Manito has always been a priority in her life. Moni was also a tremendous help in planning UCP’s 50th anniversary in 2003, by contacting past and present campers, families and staff.
Her interest in Camp Manito led
Moni to accept the camp director
position. As director, Moni wants to encourage children and young
adults with disabilities to attend
Camp Manito, be active in their
community and eventually become
camp volunteers. All applications,
including camper applications, are
available by calling the UCP Center
office at (302) 764-2400. Paid camp
staff must be 16 or older and
lifeguards must be certified.
Camp Manito is located adjacent to River Road County Park, overlooking the Delaware River. In addition
to Camp Manito, UCP’s Camp Lenape, located in Felton, Del., serves children and young adults in Kent
and Sussex counties. UCP of DE sponsors many other programs including children’s Rec-n-Respite; adult respite programs; case
management; the Client Assistance Program; the Parents and Children Together at Tech, an early learning program located at Sussex Technical High School; Making Employment A New Success for Delawareans and assisted living housing for adults with disabilities.
For more information about any of UCP’s programs, call (302) 764-2400 or e-mail llumb@ucpde.org.
View a Printer-Friendly Version
Go back to top