Kaitlyn Schmidt, who works for the iCan Shine Camp, gives Lauren Jones, 18, of Howland, who has Down syndrome, a few instructions about bike riding Friday during the Down Syndrome Association of the Valley’s seventh annual Adaptive Bike Camp at Boardman Glenwood Junior High School. The five-day event wrapped up Friday.

BOARDMAN – Lauren Jones has been in several high school play ensembles that required her to use her voice for singing and legs for dancing, though she has become increasingly adept at using her legs for a different, perhaps more inclusionary, purpose.

“I like riding a bike,” said Lauren, 18, of Howland, who has Down syndrome.

She had plenty of opportunities to develop the additional skill and talent, courtesy of the seventh annual Adaptive Bicycle Camp at Boardman Glenwood Junior High School.

Hosting the five-day event, which wrapped up Friday, was the Down Syndrome Association of the Valley.

The nonprofit DSAV, which was established in 2007, lists as its five-pronged mission statement providing support, community awareness, education, advocacy and resources for those with the condition and their families in eastern Ohio and western Pennsylvania.

Lauren, who also loves soccer, swimming, tennis and her high school’s drama club, was part of choir ensembles for plays that included “Mama Mia” and “The Little Mermaid.” She hopes her next major achievement will be freely riding her bicycle with her family, she added.

Twenty-five children and adults with Down syndrome, autism and other conditions – five each day – took part in several daily 75-minute sessions. Some of them began in the gym on bicycles with various sized rollers to assist with their coordination and balance before riding more freely outdoors in a parking lot, with DSAV volunteers providing support, Debbie Williams, the agency’s operations director, explained.

“We try to pair them with two volunteers for their safety,” she said.

Many parents have tried for years to teach their children with Down syndrome to ride a bicycle, but fear, anxiety and a lack of muscle tone and balance often have acted as barriers to their progress. The camp is valuable because it helps them overcome such hurdles and feel more included – especially as they see parents, siblings and friends riding their bicycles, Williams noted.

“It’s literally a milestone for them,” she added.

Also confidently working to accomplish a milestone of his own Friday was Seth Baker, 12, of Boardman, who has Down syndrome.

“He really progressed this week,” said Seth’s mother, Christine Baker, a DSAV member, who added that this also was her son’s second time participating in the camp.

Seth, whom she described as outgoing, social and observant, rode several times around the parking lot with only a safety bar at the rear of his bicycle as an adaptive device. Providing added assistance were DSAV volunteer Ava Houy of Hermitage, Pa., a 2022 Hickory High School graduate, and Kaitlyn Schmidt, who works for iCan Shine, a national organization that offers bicycling, dancing, swimming and other programs to impact and enrich the lives of people with challenges.

Under iCan Shine’s umbrella is iCan Bike, which runs more than 100 such camps, including the local event, in about 36 states and parts of Canada, Schmidt noted.

“Rick has autism, but did amazingly in this camp,” Alecia Henderson of Streetsboro said, referring to her son, 8, who is on the spectrum.

Henderson recalled having entered the Adaptive Bicycle Camp with some trepidation, unsure if her son could ride. After several days, however, he proved her wrong, and he will have another way to feel included, she added.

“He can fit in a little more with the kids in our neighborhood,” Henderson continued.

At the end of the ride for Rick, Seth, Lauren and the others were certificates of achievement for having successfully completed the camp.

DSAV also provides a series of fitness programs that include yoga, tennis and swimming, along with a variety of social events, education series and fundraisers such as the annual Buddy Walk. Also offered annually are two academic scholarships, Williams noted.

This year’s recipients were Houy and Kira Vasko, a 2022 Boardman High grad who plans to attend The Ohio State University.

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