The Past is Calling...Pick up the Phone
We didn’t recognize the number, but because she’s always quicker on the draw, Cheryl answered the phone. You never know what a call might bring in the off-season at Camp. Ninety percent of the time it’s a cold sales call pushing their clothing brand, camp management software or promises of front page Google results. Once in a while it’s a bonafide camper lead, and those are the fun calls! Even though the odds are against us, it’s always worth the gamble to pick up the phone and have the chance to talk to a parent interested in providing a Camp Mishawaka experience for their child. This call was nothing like any of those.
Cheryl recounts that the conversation began with the caller identifying her location, along with a bit of a jumble as to the “why” she was there, but the conversation soon turned to the topic of a Mishawaka 5-Year Blanket. After 40 weeks of being a camper, (historically 5 years of 8 week sessions) one is awarded a Hudson Bay blanket with the Mishawaka logo stitched in. They are coveted mementos, as you might imagine. The woman’s father, a camper for 6 years in the 1940’s (and a recipient of a 5-year blanket) lay dying, and he had been sharing his memories of Camp, regretting that somehow he had let his blanket get away. Could she possibly get another one, she asked?
It just so happened that we had one on hand, and when Cheryl offered to send it to her, I could almost hear the tears of joy.
That sent Cheryl and me on a dig into the archives. Cheryl found some photos from the 1940’s, and I combed the old Totem newsletters for mentions of his name. We found lots of both. We were able to track this camper’s progress all the way from Belding- 3rd place in the 1941 track meet, to his ascension to chief of his tribe in 1946. Three times he was voted the most polite camper. Originally from Tulsa, OK, he was part of a group of campers that were recruited by Ted Tenny- who was responsible for recruiting many Tulsans over the years. We learned that he was 92 years old, and just a month shy of 93.
Later that day I had the opportunity to talk with him. His voice frail, and memory drifting, he was able to recall the names of many of his campmates, the train trip to Camp, and thank his daughter for her efforts to connect him with this important part of his past. There may be older living campers out there, but the pool of campers who were here during that time is very shallow. It may well be the last time we talk.
I knew I recognized his name from somewhere, and it dawned on me that he was part of a 1946 canoe trip that Kent Curtis led, the map of which is displayed outside my office. It is signed by all the participants. I don’t think I will ever look at it again without thinking of him, the stories of the others, their memories, and the lives they built beyond Camp.
We both felt good at the end of that day’s work, knowing that we were able to offer some small comfort to this kind, gentle man, and his family- even if it wasn’t on our “to do” list for the day. It reminded us both of the lasting impact of a Camp experience, the history Mishawaka has, and the promise of the future. Not a bad day’s work at all.
