Camps across the country were closing in the seventies for many reasons. Some of these camps were positioned in areas that were popular for vacations and second homes. Property taxes had risen and many families began taking family vacations together, instead of shipping their kids off the camps. Camps closed when they could not afford to operate with high bills and lower enrollment. The media was focusing on issues of pedophilia within some camps, which caused parents to tighten the reins on allowing their children to attend.
Judy Alcorn, forties camper and board member at the YWCA, wrote, “It was at the end of their time at camp when it fell upon hard times. There were four women who served on the board who decided to begin much needed repairs and painting. They, along with their husbands, were Marge and Jim Falvey, Georgie and Jim Fenton, Nancy and Bob McAlister and my husband Pat and me,”
“We put hundreds of gallons of paint on all the huts. We called ahead to the hardware store in Hale, which stocked the paint for us. They would have it all shaken and ready to pick up during the weekend. We all cleaned and generally picked up the place. Our kids came with us and we would build a fire in the lodge at the end of the day and sleep in our sleeping bags. Although we worked hard, we had a good time. We used a small fund raising campaign to pay for the paint and the material used.”
“That kept the camp going for a few more years. I am not sure about sharing with Camp Mahn-go-tah-see across the lake. Camp came to an end and we started an agreement with Camp Iroquois, the Bay City YMCA camp, for a few years. Then, that folded as well. It was a sad day when that happened. At that time many sports camps were in business and the competition was too strong.”
Judy was not on the board when it merged with Camp Iroquois, but she recalled the YWCA had turned down the offer to merge at one time, because they were afraid the men would take control. The men felt that Camp Maqua property was better suited to a camp.
When the decision was to be made in 1976 between the Bay City YMCA and the YMCA to merge Camp Maqua and Camp Iroquois (on Sand Lake), David Bass was the camp director at the boys’ camp. He was designated to be the director of the combined effort, but accepted a position in Alabama. Camp Iroquois’ decreased enrollment and the financial situation at both camps was the impetus for the merger, despite Maqua’s higher enrollment. “The plan was to merge the program, but not mess with the assets,” said Delphine Evans, director in 1976.
“Both camps were struggling financially and Maqua had the better physical facility, so the two boards merged their camps, or that was my understanding,” said Amy Falvey, whose parents were huge volunteers at Maqua.
An article in the Bay City Times on September 21, 1979 said;, “In an effort to save the camp, it was merged in 1976 with Camp Iroquois, a young mens’ camp, and renamed Camp Maquois. Camp Maquois operated for two years on a co-ed status before the decision to sell the Camp Maquois property was made. Officials of the Young Women’s Christian Association of Bay City say interest in the camp has dwindled to money-losing levels in this age of recreational campers and snowmobiles. The YWCA Board of Trustees decided to quit going deeper in debt with the facility and advertised the property for bids, which must be submitted by Nov. 1.”
