Jason Meyers ’07 traveled from California to Connecticut with his wife, Danielle, and their 5-year-old daughter, Zoey, to participate in this year’s camp at his alma mater.

“It means so much to me, as an alumnus, to see the student support,” said Meyers. “I get emotional just thinking about how many people showed up and how helpful and caring they are. To be in a place like Camp No Limits on a campus that’s as special to me as Quinnipiac is so moving.”

On July 12, Zoey cavorted and competed with other campers during Afternoon Adventures at the M&T Bank Arena. The day included an adaptive bike riding clinic, a running clinic and field day activities organized and run by Quinnipiac physical therapy (PT) and occupational therapy (OT) student leaders and volunteers.

Zoey, a below-elbow congenital amputee, was born missing her right hand.

“I like that she doesn’t feel any different from anyone else when she’s at Camp No Limits,” said Danielle Meyers. “A lot of times, she’s always the one who’s a little bit different. Here, she gets to play and do cool stuff and it’s really a celebration of her difference.”

Quinnipiac partnered with M&T Bank Foundation and Hartford HealthCare to offer overnight Camp No Limits on the Mount Carmel and York Hill campuses July 11 - 14. The camp supported 20 campers ages 3 to 17 and their families.

Families and children participated in specialized activities, adaptive recreation and mentorship intended to foster campers’ confidence, independence and development of lifelong friendships. The camp is expertly guided by physical and occupational therapists, prosthetists and Quinnipiac OT/PT students and faculty, with additional support from teenage and adult Camp No Limits mentors with personal experiences with limb loss or limb differences.

Quinnipiac associate director of clinical education in physical therapy Maria Cusson is a PT faculty adviser for Camp No Limits.

“We’re extremely grateful to Hartford HealthCare and M&T Bank for their fiscal support and for sending volunteers to participate; and we’re also very grateful Quinnipiac continues to support this camp. It’s a tremendous opportunity for our OT/PT students. It’s an experience they wouldn’t have otherwise,” said Cusson.

M&T Bank Retail Strategy and Activation Specialist Alicia Dawson headed up 12 M&T Bank volunteers taking part in field day and other camp programs.

“M&T Bank has a strong corporate partnership with Quinnipiac and we're happy to support in hosting Camp No Limits for the second year in a row. The M&T Charitable Foundation is dedicated to delivering thoughtful high impact support where it's needed most in the communities we serve,” said Dawson.

In addition to supporting field day activities, M&T Bank volunteers also facilitated financial education sessions for families.

“Camp No Limits is an outstanding organization committed to educating and empowering young people with limb loss or limb difference and the best part is that they support the campers’ whole family. We are very proud to be part of the solution,” Dawson said.

Vice President of Clinical Services for the Hartford HealthCare Rehabilitation Network Cindi DeLaurentis, enjoyed observing PT/OT students leading fun, functional field day games for campers. Students designed the games to help campers focus on manual dexterity, balance, strength and other areas.

DeLaurentis said partnering with Quinnipiac to help support Camp No Limits is an opportunity for Hartford HealthCare to give back to the community, campers and their families.

“The students do such a wonderful job with their positive attitude and approach to working with these children every year,” said DeLaurentis. “We have a strong partnership with the university, so we host a lot of occupational therapy and physical therapy students. We love being here to support the camp, the students and the volunteers and do whatever we can to ensure that it’s successful for the kids.”

This year, 140 OT/PT students applied to fill about 35 camp volunteer openings, said clinical professor of occupational therapy Valerie Strange. As OT faculty camp adviser, Strange collaborates with Casson to select the camp’s student leaders. The student leaders select student volunteers and organize and facilitate student-run programming.

“It’s an opportunity for the student leaders to develop some really critical leadership skills and then they oversee another 14 volunteers,” said Strange. “As an OT, students don’t get a lot of exposure to the world of limb loss and limb difference, so this camp offers them an opportunity to really learn. We encourage them to talk to families and campers, because in this space they are all so welcoming. They want our students to understand the process.”

Now in her second year as a volunteer, PT student Hannah Brown ’25, joined Camp No Limits as a student leader this year. Brown said volunteering has enhanced her educational experience and created a lasting connection with a caring community.

“Educationally, this is huge for us, because as physical therapists, we don’t get a lot of experience with people with limb loss and limb difference with prosthetics. Seeing how the children interact with the environment and their friends is really good for us, educationally,” said Brown. “It’s also about being able to help a community that is so passionate about what they do; and helping to put this great experience together for people.”

Planning activities and events utilizing the university’s premiere facilities creates some especially exciting and unique opportunities for campers, Brown added.

“The kids don’t always get to experience wheelchair basketball and sled hockey. Those are kind of the flagship things that the Connecticut camp can offer because we have our beautiful facilities here at Quinnipiac,” said Brown. “So being able to show them all the sports that are available to them is great.”

Now in its 20th year, Camp No Limits will hold 12 camps in 10 states in 2024. As the only Connecticut location, Quinnipiac has been involved since 2015, when the program was instituted as a capstone project of OT/PT students, said David Harrell, Camp No Limits community outreach manager.

“This started from students who wanted to bring this in as their capstone and so it was very organic in its beginnings. And now, we have Quinnipiac alumni who work for Camp No Limits,” said Harrell. “We’ve grown a little bit, but this camp continues to evolve in this loving, organic way that stays with the students. For the campers and families, it’s unique to see so many student volunteers; and for the students, it’s unique because of the breadth of what they get to see and experience.”

“I think the campers and families really do value their experience with the OT and PT students,” said Casson. “The bond that they form with the students is really special.”

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