I will be teaching Elementary Special Education after I graduate. I have known I want to teach Special Education for 6 years. This started when Camp SMILE became a part of my life. UCP's Camp SMILE is a summer camp in West Mobile for children and adults with disabilities. I started volunteering at camp when I was 16, and my life has been forever changed. Working with people who have disabilities showed me what I was meant to do with my life. I was shown how to love, be patient and have the most fun I have ever had. At camp, everyone is seen as the person they truly are, nothing less. The campers are able to engage in normal summer camp activities and it is so amazing to see them so happy. I do not volunteer at camp to make a difference in their life, I do it because they make such a difference in mine. For me, camp is not just in the summer, it is year round. I see campers and speak to them all of the time and I am able to participate in other events as well. The friends I have made at camp are lifelong. Camp SMILE has also given me many opportunities, I am now a nanny for one of the families that go to camp and I work for UCP. Camp showed me that I want to work with people with special needs for the rest of my life. Special education will give me a sense of camp everyday, and I know I will love my job.
I didn't choose special education, special education chose me.
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