Kids with visual impairments find community and competition at Fredonia summer camp
Posted In Categories: Advocacy, Events, In the News, Programs & Services
By:Alex Gaul
FREDONIA, Wis. — A day camp in Fredonia is giving children with visual impairments something many of their peers take for granted — the chance to play organized sports.
This is the fifth year of this camp, a collaboration between Fredonia’s Albert and Ann Deshur Jewish Community Center Rainbow Day Camp and nonprofit Vision Forward. The camp offers adaptive sports and activities designed specifically for kids who are blind or visually impaired.
One of those sports is goalball — a game similar to soccer, but played blindfolded, in which participants roll a rattling ball with their hands rather than kick it.
Nine-year-old Jack Beinemann is a participant in this year’s camp. Jack has achromatopsia, a condition that makes his eyes extremely sensitive to light and affects his far vision and ability to see color.
“I like soccer because the ball kind of rattles,” Beinemann said. “It is fun… Because we have activities and sports that we can do.”
For some participants, the camp represents their first opportunity to compete in organized sports alongside others who share similar experiences.
One of those sports is goalball — a game similar to soccer, but played blindfolded, in which participants roll a rattling ball with their hands rather than kick it.
Nine-year-old Jack Beinemann is a participant in this year’s camp. Jack has achromatopsia, a condition that makes his eyes extremely sensitive to light and affects his far vision and ability to see color.
“I like soccer because the ball kind of rattles,” Beinemann said. “It is fun… Because we have activities and sports that we can do.”
For some participants, the camp represents their first opportunity to compete in organized sports alongside others who share similar experiences.
Watch: Kids with visual impairments find community and competition at Fredonia summer camp
Havah Fleisner, a camp volunteer and Miss Teen Wisconsin Volunteer 2026, has Stargardt’s disease, a condition that affects her central vision. She said the environment the camp creates is unlike anything she experienced growing up.
“I forget about my eye condition because everyone here is like me, and I’m not alone in this journey,” Fleisner said. “When I was 14, I wish I knew Rainbow Camp was a thing, so I could have been a kid for the week.”
Jaclyn Borchardt, CEO of Vision Forward, said the shared experience among campers is what makes the program so meaningful. Borchardt herself lives with a visual impairment — she said reading and seeing text is blurry and difficult for her.
“Sometimes, people might not know anyone else that is blind or visually impaired. So to be surrounded by several individuals who have that shared experience is really powerful,” Borchardt said.
Lenny Kass, executive director of JCC Rainbow Day Camp, said inclusion is at the heart of what the camp offers.
While this year’s camp has since concluded, organizers are already looking ahead to next summer. For Beinemann, the experience reinforced something he wants others to know.
“I can do everything mostly other people can,” he said.