Pebble Parties Début With a Splash

First Pebble Event Honors Paddy Rossbach and Raises More Than $45,000 for the
Amputee Coalition's Youth Camp

October 8 marked the debut of the Amputee Coalition of America’s (Amputee Coalition’s) Pebble Party program in support of its amputee youth camp. The inaugural Pebble Party, hosted by Marshall Cohen at the Harvard Club in New York City, not only raised more than $45,000 for this worthy program, but provided the platform for the announcement that the youth camp has been renamed in honor of Patricia “Paddy” Rossbach, the former Amputee Coalition president & CEO.

“Paddy was the driving force behind the creation of the youth camp,” said David McGill, chairman of the Amputee Coalition Board of Directors. “The camp would not be where it is today without her tireless dedication and enthusiasm for the kids. We are proud to recognize Paddy’s contribution and leadership by naming the camp in her honor.”

The Amputee Coalition’s Paddy Rossbach Youth Camp is a 5-day traditional summer camp experience for children ages 10-17 who have lost arms and/or legs or who were born with limb differences. The camp offers challenging activities that build campers’ confidence regardless of skill level. Since its beginning in 2000, the camp has hosted more than 450 campers with limb loss or limb difference from 42 states and three countries. The Amputee Coalition provides the camp at no charge to the campers, including travel to and from camp.

“Paddy’s defining characteristic is her passion for whatever she touches, be it programming for kids with limb loss or limb difference or amputee peer visitation,” said Marshall Cohen, chair of the Amputee Coalition Development Committee. “I personally experienced her impact when she reached out to me in a peer visit before my amputation to explore this difficult choice – she was sensitive, clear-headed and inspiring in guiding me to make the right decision for myself.”

Born in England in the days leading up to World War II, Paddy lost her lower left leg at the age of 6 after being struck by a military truck. Her passion for working with kids began when she worked in an orphanage while waiting to attend nursing school. After completing nursing school in 1966, Paddy moved to the U.S. As a nurse at Memorial Sloan-Kettering, she counseled kids undergoing amputation. Paddy co-founded Adolescent Sarcoma Patients’ Intense Rehabilitation with Exercise (ASPIRE) to encourage an active lifestyle for young amputees through sports and recreational activities. Paddy served as president & CEO of the Amputee Coalition from 2002-2008.

“I have great respect and admiration for Paddy and the impact she has had on the Amputee Coalition and the limb loss community,” said Kendra Calhoun, who became president & CEO of the Amputee Coalition last year. “I can’t think of a better way to launch our Pebble Party program than to have the first one announce the naming of the camp in Paddy’s honor.”

Pebble Parties originated from the idea of symbolically making an impact for amputee youth – like tossing a pebble into a pond and creating ripples, according to Calhoun. Friends of the Amputee Coalition will be hosting Pebble Parties, like the one hosted by Cohen, across the country next year to raise awareness, raise funds and develop friendships to benefit the Amputee Coalition’s Paddy Rossbach Youth Camp. The goal is to bring 100 kids to camp, which is double the number who were able to participate this year.

“I was truly excited to be the first host of an Amputee Coalition Pebble Party and to do the honor of announcing the naming of the camp after Paddy,” said Cohen. “This camp is something special. On a personal level, this past summer I had the opportunity to witness the enthusiastic spirit of these campers, with varying degrees of limb loss, supporting one another as they faced challenges that many of them probably could not have imagined before they arrived for the first time; it was inspiring and energizing. The 50 campers this summer hailed from 21 different states, plus one from Australia, and from extremely diverse communities and backgrounds. I met with both first-timers and ‘old-timers’ who were back for their third and fourth summers. The importance of their being together and experiencing the incredible emotional support from this peer group was for them – and for me – clearly a life-altering experience.” The Amputee Coalition’s youth camp began in 2000 as the Youth Initiative. The Youth Initiative was originally a satellite program offered at the Amputee Coalition Educational Conference & Exposition.

Realizing the need to have specific programming for its younger members, the Amputee Coalition developed the Youth Initiative to help provide a support group for youths with limb loss or limb difference. The Youth Initiative was held in conjunction with the conference from 2000 until 2002, when it became known as the Amputee Coalition Youth Camp.

In 2003 and 2004, the camp was held in conjunction with the Amputee Coalition Annual Conference, but at a separate location. In 2005, 2006 and 2007, the camp was held at Camp Dream, located at the Roosevelt Warm Springs Institute for Rehabilitation in Georgia. Recognizing that Camp Dream could not accommodate more campers, the Amputee Coalition moved the 2008 camp to a larger facility at the Joy Outdoor Education Center in Clarksville, Ohio.

If you would like to support this incredible program and see to it that the camp will impact the lives of youth for years to come, you can make a tax-deductible donation today.