Rooster Booster speakers to discuss efforts of helping those with disabilities have fulfilling lives
Stephen and Elizabeth Wampler are the founders of the The Stephen J. Wampler Foundation and “Camp Wamp,” which pushes children to discover how capable they really are. Steve has Cerebral Palsy (CP) but has learned to thrive in life with his condition, and the foundation tries to help others with disabilities do the same.
The couple will be the featured guest speakers at Thursday’s Rooster Booster event. The program begins at 7:30 a.m. at the Owensboro Convention Center (501 West Second Street) and is sponsored by Wendell Foster. Register to attend here or call the Chamber office at 270-926-1860.
The cost to attend Rooster Booster is $15 for Chamber members with reservations, $20 for members with no reservations, and $25 for non-members. Reservations include breakfast, which will be served buffet style at the beginning of the event.
According to the foundation website:
Steve Wampler discovered the benefits of the great outdoors when he was a young child. Coming to understand that it was an important stepping stone in his life, he attended a wilderness summer camp for children with disabilities, returning every summer between the ages of 9 and 18. He went on to graduate from college, and with his wife, Elizabeth, have two children, Charlotte and Joseph. Having been forever changed by his own experiences at camp, he understood that these benefits were not unique to him. Steve’s dream was “to be able to own his own camp”. In 2002, Steve and Elizabeth founded The Stephen J. Wampler Foundation, and “Camp Wamp” was opened in 2004. With the wilderness as the backdrop, kids enjoy the fun and camaraderie of camp life. With Steve as their inspiration, their experiences push each one to discover how capable they really are.
In 2010, Steve became the first person with Cerebral Palsy to climb El Capitan in Yosemite National Park, a vertical slab of rock twice the height of the Empire State Building. Wampler’s climb, which took 6 days and 20,000 pull-ups to complete, was featured in the award-winning documentary Wampler’s Ascent.
The Owensboro Times