JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Abigail Fixel wants to share her love of theatre and the arts with the less fortunate. This week's 12 Who Care recipient is a college freshman who spent summers in high school helping kids in Jacksonville put on plays and musicals.
Even off the stage, her mind focuses on the stage.
"I love theater, it brought me my voice, helped with reading skills, leadership, public speaking," said Fixel.
Fixel just started her freshman year at Barnard College, but for the past 4 summers the Jacksonville teenager hosted and was the put on plays and musicals
"I wanted to bring that to people who didn't necessarily have it," said Fixel.
Camp Fixel started as a Bat-Mitzvah project for Abigail but has grown into a 2 week camp that's held every summer.
"By the end it's not just that they memorized their lines or can perform a memorized dance, but it's that they found part of themselves that has that confidence," said Fixel.
Recently Camp Fixel became a 501c(3) and the campers get 2 meals per day along with the lessons needed to perform their own play at the end of camp. It takes about $5,000 to run Camp Fixel every year. And while donations are welcome, Fixel says that the kids are her true reward.
"The best day for me every year is show day," said Fixel, "it's the smiles from the kids when they come down from the stage and they go up to the people who love them and get congratulated. So being able to bring that piece of joy, teaching them to have that inner confidence that they can be whoever they want to be, there's nothing comparable."
Abigail Fixel is double-majoring in Urban Studies and Theatre in college. When she's back in the summer the curtain will once again rise on Camp Fixel.
To learn more about Camp Fixel visit this website: https://campfixel.wixsite.com/website
Abigail is already raising money for next year's camp, click here for the GoFundMe link.