Gay, transgender teens bond at Cape program
Bella English, The Boston Globe, AUGUST 05, 2013
http://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2013/08/04/camp-lightbulb-provides-support-and-community-for-lgbt-teens/126BK5qXEo0TcTzoXFqijI/story.htmlIt's a camp, a home, a sense of belonging
Camp Lightbulb is the only camp for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) teenagers in the United States that is set in a gay-oriented community, and the only such summer camp in Massachusetts, says founder and director Puck Markham...
"I'd read about the high rates of depression and suicide among gay youth, and I thought, 'I should do something, and how cool would it be to have a camp in Provincetown?' " says Markham, who is 43 and gay, and who divides his time between London and Provincetown. He set up a nonprofit, raised money, and last year launched Camp Lightbulb for a one-week session in early August. Markham underwrote much of the cost himself...
During the first week, which ended Saturday, half of the campers were gay or lesbian, half were transgender. The counselors and junior counselors were a similarly mixed group, and ranged from teenagers to senior citizens. The camp cost $650 a week, but 60 percent of the campers were on full or partial scholarship.
