Special Session of Alabama
- The mission of Special Session is to know Christ in all people, through ministry to and with people of all abilities. Our vision is a vibrant, loving community where all God’s children are celebrated.
- Special session started in 1998 and we celebrating 25 years of love last summer, and we look forward to the next 25 year!
This year we have been able to allow all campers of Special Session to come to camp for free, this has been a goal of our program and we are incredibly thankful for this.
Thank you to our main Donors - Tennessee Vally Authority, Youth Leadership Walker County, and , many Parishes from the Episcopal Diocese of Alabama. You and others have brought this goal to reality! If you would like to make a donation so other camper buddies, staff, or summer campers in general can come to camp, please visit Camp McDowell's donation page here note what you would like this generous donation to go to.
Why should you be a camper at Special Session?
"Special Session is a community where people can be seen for who they are, without their disabilities being first in full view. It is a place where individuals, disabled or not, can discover who we are on the inside. It is a place of formation for the campers and for the staff (both teenagers and adults alike), it is a place of unconditional love, and not only acceptance but affirmation. While we do offer typical camp programs during our sessions, like swimming, arts/crafts, canoeing, fishing, etc, we are so much more than that. The Special Session community is a family. We love and support each other while we are at camp, and after we leave." - Previous Special Session Camper
Why should you be a counselor or an adult staff at Special Session?
“When I first got to Special Session I thought, ‘I’m just a 15-year-old and I’m supposed to be taking care of these 40 and 50 year olds? How in the world am I going to do this?’ And soon the lines of the ages got blurred, and the roles got blurred, and who was supposed to be helping who got blurred. All of those lines that I made up in my mind, in the first couple of days, just completely went away. I felt like I got more help from my campers than I ever could have given to them. I will go back over and over again!” - Special Session Counselor 2022 and 2023
Contact Information
Email: summercampdirector@campmcdowell.org
Call: 205-387-1806 extension 102