Confidence, self-esteem, fearlessness, self-sufficient, and nurtured were other common words that campers and staff used to describe their experiences found at Maqua. Karen Selby, seventies camper and staffer said,” As a camper, I tried everything I could not do in Bay City. I rode a horse. I learned how to shoot a bow and arrow. […]
Kathy Baker
Camp As An Opportunity To Grow–
There were many life-shaping stories from the girls of Camp Maqua, from learning manners, to working as a team, to earning their first paycheck or developing confidence. Others were influenced to go to single-sex colleges based on the close friendships made while at camp. Amy Johns’ (shown above at a Maqua reunion), (1967-78) constant family […]
Camp Formed Character–
The word independence was mentioned more than any other word when talking to the women who camped and counseled at Maqua. (Besides the word happy.) Forties camper Kay Alcorn, along with many other women, was saddened by the closure of the camp, hoping that their children and grandchildren could have camped at a place that promoted […]
Camp As A Role Model–
Melissa Plambeck’s camp experiences in the seventies influenced her entire life. Her husband attended camp, so when they met they knew the same songs. When her children came along, she wanted them to enjoy the same experiences she loved at camp, so she and her husband worked for a camp and their kids went to […]
Camp As A Courage Builder–
Meeting new friends from diverse states and countries, other religions, different ethnicities plus the great canoe trips and hanging with staff members helped Sarah Smith’s (1968-70) independent formation. Sarah is the development director for the Center for Women and Families in Connecticut and works with domestic assault and crisis cases. “For me camp gave me […]
Camp Developed Independence–
Independence—we all long for that feeling that we can do it on our own. Camp was the perfect place to try out new activities, learn new skills, and to leave home and enter a safe, nurturing environment. “I wasn’t a girlie girl,” said seventies camper Helen McLogan,” and I was a rule-follower. I think going […]