It was always an honor to be chosen to participate in the flag ceremonies at camp. The tradition of Reveille with the flag-raising, and Taps blown at flag lowering at the end of the night, were tradtions that remained in the memories of the women who participated.“I still remember what an honor and big […]
Month: April 2018
Close To Nature, Close To God
For many women, their experiences at the YWCA camp and Chapel Hill left lasting influences. Young girls, like Susan Ruterbusch (1947-52) and Debbie Tweedie (1965-72) felt the gorgeous views contributed to their feelings that they had never been closer to God as young girls. “I loved running down the trails and walking up Chapel Hill […]
The Spiritual View
The services, whether you believed or did not believe, were spiritual in nature because of their natural surroundings. Many of the girls had clear memories of the spot on the hill with the beautiful trees and view of the lake, and just as many reasons why they loved it. As a present-day photographer, Anne Shutt […]
Those Little Catholic Girls
“Our family was Catholic and I remember when my parents made arrangements to send my sister to camp (1962) some of their friends worried that she would be “indoctrinated”, said Sue Augustyniak . “They had not started bringing the girls into town to the Catholic Church yet, so she went to the lovely interdenominational service and loved […]
The Little Jewish Girls
The Christian influence of Camp Maqua, which was under the auspices of the Bay City YWCA, did not discourage girls from other religions from attending camp. There were many Jewish girls who attended, and for the most part, the girls felt a sense of inclusion with the services on Chapel Hill. There was also the […]
High On Chapel Hill
The beautiful spot nestled in the trees, high on a hill, became the spiritual heart of the camp in 1933, when monies donated helped to build what became known as Chapel Hill. Wooden log benches, a cross and a podium were built and became the spot for the non-denominational services on Sundays. It was dedicated […]