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Camp Envy–Traditions

Published on by Kathy Baker

 

 

 

 

 

The evolution of the new Maqua traditions began with the previous owners, Bob and Luanne Sukenik. Their hot dog and champagne cook-outs, with a Native Indian theme, hosted many friends and family members with water relay races and games. (One year they invited us, long before we bought the lodge and property. Bob started talking to me in the grocery line and invited my husband and me out to their “camp”.  (This photo was of that very day in 1984 on the shores of Camp Maqua with my husband Bill and Uncle Aaron Starks.) For years our association meetings, held in September, continued the hot dog and champagne tradition on the lodge porch following our meeting.

What is summer without a campfire, and we have had many! The fire-bowl or campfire pit, rimmed in huge boulders, appears to be in the same spot as decades ago. Our pile of wood is artistically stacked by one of our wood-chopping residents and we have never run out of logs for our fires. The usual activities take place under the stars overlooking the lake—adult beverages, hot-dog roasting late at night on long pronged forks and the traditional S’Mores for little and big kids alike. We sit in comfy chairs instead of sitting on logs, but the ambiance is traditional and ageless.

The Independence Day traditions include our annual potluck at the beach with our residents, and if it is raining we gather on the east roadside screened porch at the lodge. (We expanded the porch years ago to accommodate five vintage camp dining tables and the original bootstrap benches.) Other traditions in the past have included naming the baby Loon contest at our festivities and decorating the beachfront.

The most fun in recent years has been the boat parades, usually on the Saturday closest to the 4th. The Loon Lake Association purchases a boat flag with a loon and the date to be given as the prize for the best-decorated boat. Some years the weather has prevented many from participating, but each year a handful of families go all out to get into the spirit. Last year our family boat won with the Teddy Bear’s Picnic theme, so we were the judges this year. My eight-year-old granddaughter was so sad not to be here for the judging, so she was number twelve with the decision by viewing photos taken and sent via phone.

One boat was filled with cousins dressed as firecrackers and a patriotic theme, complete with music. One double-decker was the movie theme “Frozen” and nine kids were dressed in costumes as the characters. It was such a difficult decision, but the winner was a bubble bath theme boat, decorated with white balloons and friends taking showers. We hated to see the disappointed faces of the losers, but there is always next year!

Walking the trails in the autumn or cross-country skiing in the winter is a favorite with all the residents. The trails are usually mowed after the mosquitoes are no longer a problem, and residents have named their trails with wooden signs. We walk the roadside with family and friends to the main gate and pick flowers with our grandchildren during the summer, but when the black flies and deer flies appear, we have to cover up to avoid the bites or run!

Sunset cruises never get old and we all have so many photos of the spectacular skies over Loon Lake. One neighbor races out to the cove at the far end of the lake and parks his double-decker boat, expressing his amazement as if he had never seen a sunset before, but we all love the slow cruises and try to spot the family of loons or the resident eagles. Sunrises are a specialty for one of our early-bird residents, who tries to compete with a friend’s photos.

One of the most fun summer traditions happens with the adults and kids when we hook our boats together.  Each boat has appetizers to share. If the gates are opened, it makes it easy to walk from boat to boat to boat, catching up with our friends and sharing food. The night parties sometimes include adult beverages, music, and dancing on top of the Mother Ship–the  doubledecker!

 

 

 

Camp Envy–Opening Up

Published on by Kathy Baker

THE ROADSIDE PORCH ON THE EAST SIDE OF THE LODGE

I wish for the magic of an energetic crew to appear to help me dust the cobwebs, tear down the screen tarps that protect our wood floors from winter snow and mop the winter dirt off the porches of the lodge. The pollen from the pine trees coat the porches and furniture in pale yellow dust 1/4′ thick.  I tip the bootstrap benches over and vacuum the spider webs and laugh as I see wads of chewing gum older than me clinging to the old wood. It takes hours to clean the screens, furniture, and floors.

In days of old, there was a volunteer crew. Either the YWCA committee members, staff or volunteers from different organizations assisted the caretakers with the opening of camp. It had to be a huge undertaking to open a camp for the season, with so many outbuildings and acres of property.  My offspring will discover how much work is involved when they start taking over from their aging parents, (As they have grown into adulthood, they have taken on a  new sense of ownership and offer to help when in residence. This summer, they labored at the beach with the weeds, raking, gardening, and general repairs.)

Many years I paid to have the place opened up and cleaned before our arrival. With four young kids and slivers of a break that fit into the time slot between the end of the school year and the beginning of the next one, summers seemed to fly. By the time our family of six arrived, I just wanted to unpack, be on vacation and relax. Other years I have just done the work myself, especially when we have had construction and I knew cleaning was a lost cause.

The perennial garden has to be weeded, and if I get up in June instead of May, the weeds have taken root and the acorns have sprouted into baby trees that are difficult to uproot.  It is a rock garden of sorts, with Michigan stones and pieces of the old sidewalk that trailed to the door by the kitchen between both porches. Irises, peonies, lilies and other summer flowers grow under the two planter boxes that house red geraniums. They appear happy from my tall paned kitchen windows, and it is a garden that needs only a modicum of care to keep it lovely.

The bunkhouse next to the lodge, which is in use all summer with relatives and friends, needs the spiders and ants eliminated, so our guests don’t get a fright in the night. I even turn over the mattresses to make sure no nests or webs are hiding. The boathouse and craft hut get a good sweep and thorough cleaning to ready for guests who enjoy the rustic camping style. Since the new stairway went up to hut nine, it is now a favorite spot to camp, but needs all new screens. The lower boathouse, catch-all for anything beachfront, gets its yearly organization and sweeping, too. The craft hut still contains a few cots with the original mattresses, but most of the campers have their favorite inflatable beds. Usually, the chipmunks and mice have dragged in pieces of nesting material that we sweep out, which has also included pieces of our mattresses.

Our association of residents takes the maintenance of the Maqua property very seriously, plowing the roads in the winter and grading them in the summer. When the potholes jar our senses, fill dirt and stone are brought in. When tree limbs look precarious on our trails, the men get their chainsaws out and make our world safer. When the corral fence planks rot, new ones are nailed up. When the biffy needs new plumbing or cleaning, someone volunteers. If the dock is dipping and splintering, the crew goes into action for repairs or replacement. The beach sand is refurbished when needed, the campfire pit is cleaned out periodically and one resident is appreciated for his Paul Bunyon skills by keeping our firewood piled high for campfires.

It took a village when the camp was a real camp and it takes a village now! Thankfully, the next generation, with their happy memories of this magical place so ingrained in their childhood, return with grandchildren for all of us to love and create new memories. And, they are young and strong and able and we don’t mind watching the babies in the water while they take over some of the maintenance and repairs and heavy lifting, and they do! The circle of life at Maqua continues in familiar traditions.

 

THE ROADSIDE PORCH ON THE WEST SIDE UNDER RENOVATION

 

 

 

Camp Envy-Bunk Houses and Outbuildings

Published on by Kathy Baker

Those musty wooden huts had to be a little frightening for little girls who had never left their homes. Bunking in with seven others, sometimes all strangers and accompanied by mosquitoes and spiders, had to leave lasting memories. Many of those little bunkhouses are still standing, but a few were removed from the property before the subdivision was developed by the previous owner. They are scattered around Hale as outbuildings for whoever purchased them.

Our hut was number one next to the lodge. It has been since transformed into a cozy little guest house that sleeps five. The original wood floors gleam golden honey and the walls are painted white. (Had I known how sentimental ex-campers and staffers were about their names on the wall, I would have preserved at least one wall.) The windows with the pull ropes and damaged screens were replaced with vintage sash windows from the same era, and they let the breezes blow through on hot and humid summer days. A ceiling fan was installed and window shades for privacy, but the porch screen door still slams shut and the original wooden front door remains.

The Brownie at the dip in the hill by the trail to the lake still stands. It is constantly used, as it still contains a portable shower on one side with the boy’s commode and a girl’s commode on the other with sinks on both sides. It is convenient to the lake and kept up in repair and cleanliness for our family and guests.

Further up the trail, another hut tilts at an angle that is precariously dangerous when the skewed door is opened. The names are still plastered in lipstick and toothpaste and the floors are rotting. There are plans to take it down and I have asked for boards with names I recognize from interviewing campers when that day happens. Housed in there for years was a cubby that graced one of the huts and it was gifted to me. On the same property, the owners preserved the hut that stood tall and proud by the lake as their own bunkhouse before building their log cabin. The names still remain on their walls and the sliding glass door at the front gives a great view of Loon Lake.

On the property where the senior Brownie stood is a magnificent log home with a garage attached. It was the senior Brownie, transformed by turning the roof around and installing a garage door. This family also owns one of the huts that was utilized for years as their weekend cabin until they built their home. They also moved the cook’s cabin to their property, high on a hill where “Scold Trail” is used for their cross country skiing in the winter.

The last two huts face the lake by the boathouse. One was moved off the property next to the firepit to make room for a log cabin for the family and sits behind the craft hut and used for storage of lake toys. The other hut has had a renovation, complete with a bathroom, deck, new windows and siding painted to match the owner’s house, which was the cabin by the fence. Their grandchildren have full use for sleeping and activities and the renovations from the lake make the property appear like a resort or a family compound, which it is!

Along with the lodge, the campcraft (left) hut on the front lawn and the boathouse and craft hut still stand and are in great shape, since the historical committee of our association sets aside funds to keep up with repairs and renovations. Every building that survived is utilized and treasured as a piece of history from the camp and enjoyed by our family and friends. The craft hut and boathouse, especially hut nine above, has had floors repaired and exteriors shored up and painted and are in constant use with residents for their reunions and overflow company.

Gone is the gazebo, which was consumed by age, the elements and the chipmunks. The infirmary is now a part of a guest house, and the trading post (or camp store) did not withstand the test of time. Dutton stood for years, but from the very beginning, repairs were constant. It was taken down to make room for a family cabin and they saved the doors covered in graffiti.  There are photos and memories and traces of what was—including the concrete of the tennis courts, the campfire pit area and horse trails that serve as hiking trails.

 

 

Camp Extension As Adults–

Published on by Kathy Baker

Sheryl Beisman left bottom row, (1973-78) still has a family lake house on Lake Lobdell in Fenton, which was a huge part of her life and a natural extension of camp. Marsha Garber still owns a place on a lake in Glen Arbor, and developed a love for campfires and singing at camp in 1964. Pam Wintermute only attended two summers in 1955 and 1956 because her family owned a cottage on the Tittabawassee River. Minette Jacques(1955-57) still loves to go barefoot at her home on Mullet Lake. Marcia Michelson (1963-70)  loves to visit her in-law’s summer home in Maine. “I just sit there and read a book and just the land around there reminds me of Maqua.”

“I always liked the outdoors and camp was a wonderful experience for me. I always felt sorry for the ones who were there all summer, thinking maybe they got dumped off by their parents, but on the other hand I was envious that they got to be up there all summer. We own a cottage up north on Intermediate Lake near Shanty Creek and I still walk, swim, boat and we water and snow ski as a family. I sent my daughter to Girl Scout camp and she hated it and was homesick, but my son went to Indian Guide camp and loved it, “ said Beverley Schlatter, who said Maqua made her more of a leader in the forties.

“At school, I was on the student council, was the editor of the yearbook and co-chaired the prom. I don’t think I would have done that without the leadership and training that headed me in that direction. I think the counselors pushed me forward. Camp Maqua was the groundwork. I majored in retail at college and did not work long in my field, but worked for the telephone company, the Michigan School for the Blind, had my family and ended up in the insurance industry.”

“We have a cabin in Tawas with a stone fireplace,” said Muriel Richert, who only camped one summer in the fifties. “It must have been tucked back into my subconscious somewhere in those Camp Maqua days that the fireplace was wonderful since the memories are remembrances,” said Muriel, who just retired from thirty-four years of teaching the same age child as the year she camped.

As a WMU grad in physical education, Tricia Sautter (1968-70) still remains active today and said exercise is still very important to her. After getting her Masters, she transferred her love of people into gerontology with a career in the Department of Aging, where she works with programming and activities for Jackson County. Her love for the outdoors stayed with her while she raised her family of four on a renovated farm and still has a cabin in the Michigan woods.

“I think camp taught me to get along with people and I also really learned to make square corners on my bed. Like the Army,” laughed Margot Homburger (1946-1952). “And no dust bunnies in our cabins. The cabins had to be spotless every day. I was shy as a child, but I loved being at camp. I didn’t learn any particular skill, but when I look back the skills were everyday skills and they left a mark.  I loved camp and my brothers did not. I never had a problem going off to school after being at camp.”

She later became a counselor at a private co-ed camp, which she felt was not as strict. Her continuation of camp happened when she and her husband bought property on Walloon Lake in the early seventies. “It is the closest thing to Maqua. We go up every New Year and in the fall. I loved all those years at Maqua.”

 

Camp Influenced Many Lifestyles–

Published on by Kathy Baker

Many of the girls who camped at Maqua already had  family cabins on lakes, rivers or in the woods. For those who did not, many later in life chose that summer or winter cabin lifestyle, which was reminiscent of their early years at camp in the fifties. It was a wonderful way to grow up and they shared that experience with their families and friends.

“I feel like camp had multiple impacts on me. When I heard my Dad talk about the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps.) under Roosevelt, where people went to camps to plant trees and built bridges, I think of how it put people to work with a minimum wage and it was a coming together to do good things, “ said Caryl Sue Abendroth, who camped in the fifties.

“I compared my experiences of his to Maqua. I learned to experience and create and it nurtured my spirit .We need more of the gentle camp experiences today where children are encouraged to sit in quiet, read, walk and write. Instead of the viciousness I see now, we helped and cooperated. Camp pulled people together and we could just be one for awhile.”

“My father bought a cottage on Loon Lake and it was a long walk from the camp. It was the greatest little cottage and it was to the right of the camp. I went to camp before they had the cottage, but I do believe they only had that cottage for two summers and had to sell, since it was too expensive to keep up two homes.  I think I was thirteen as a camper and fourteen as a C.I.T. and I am seventy now and I have this longing to own a place back on Loon Lake.”

Caryl Sue has been involved with and created programs for schools for gifted and talented children and continues her leadership in her community. Her background is in education and writing.

“I know I was always on the outside looking in, but in general I loved going to camp,” said Gretchen Jacques, who camped in the fifties.  “I couldn’t relate to the homesick girls. I loved the woods. My Mom would never camp and so maybe that is why it was so great for me. I got to be out. Sleeping outside. And when I got older, I tent camped. It was a chance for me to have an outdoor experience day after day at camp, even when it was raining. (I learned to play poker on those rainy days.)”

“We used to rent places on Mullet Lake when we were growing up and now my two sisters have places on Mullet Lake, and I think maybe I should buy a little piece of land and then I think—no—I don’t want to do Michigan winters. But, when we get together, we have so much fun! As a kid, I hated to leave those places, too. My whole family felt like that, too. I loved it and hated to leave, just like camp. I call it “Reverse Homesick”.

Sally Harris(1950) experienced camping in the late forties and fifties.She was a pre-school teacher, married young and had a boy and a girl. Her husband was from Charlevoix, so they had a cabin up there and her daughter went to Camp Daggett. Her son didn’t go, but she and her husband enjoyed camping all over the country.

Barb Hale (1950) recalled,“My sister and I coaxed and coaxed to go to camp and we had experience with camping with our parents, who loved to vacation with tents and a trailer. Our cabin, which was built in 1945 is still standing near Cooke Dam Rd. and our family still goes up there. When we were young, there was no electricity and we used kerosene lamps. My parents would go up every two weeks during deer season and we would get our two weeks of homework and did our lessons faithfully and it was so much fun! My daughter even wrote a book about the cabin.”

“When I look back at my camping times, I can still smell that cabin smell at Camp Maqua and I liked the odor. I loved the lodge on the hill and it seemed so big at the time, but when I drove back for a look years later it looked so much smaller as an adult.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

Camp’s Influential Memories–

Published on by Kathy Baker

Long after the young girls left camp, the smells of the lodge and cabins, the fresh smell of the piney woods, the sound of the Loons and the lap of the waves on the lake left an indelible mark in their minds. So much so that the great outdoors called to them in many ways.

Judy Sherman felt like camp was all about enjoying the outdoors and it still gives her good memories to this day, even though she camped in the forties.  Sixties camper/ staffer Karen Magidisohn continues to camp and kayak to this day.

Nurse Kathleen Clements said, “I learned to love the outdoors and it rounded me out. I had experiences I would never have had and I still love to fish and be on the water. If given the chance, I head to a lake before I will go anywhere else. I have such a respect for nature, animals and the environment. I had to watch out for critters at camp.  I would rather be outside than anywhere and I have this thing for animals and wolves—maybe because I heard wolves howling at camp.”

“I first went to Camp Maqua in 1925 as an almost-thirteen-year-old for two weeks, and I went back for five consecutive years—mostly for two weeks”, wrote Harriet Crumb. “The one year I hired out as a Kitchen Aid when my two weeks was up and stayed for two more. You can see how I loved it. In 1929 I went for one week—to take and pass the tests for my American Red Cross Life Saving Badge. I was a big girl then, of course, and the next summer when I couldn’t go at all, I thought the world had come to an end. Other girls seem to be able to take or leave it, but from the first, I was hooked and in some form have enjoyed camping ever since.”

“I ended up at MSU with a degree in Environmental Science and then my master’s degree and at thirty-one, I got my law degree and practiced family law with spousal, domestic and child abuse. I think the thing that helped me with the diversity of people in my profession was the caring and acceptance I found at Maqua, “ said Chris Lambert. “That stayed with me for the rest of my life. I was in legal aid for a while and I wanted to reach out to people. Camp helped me to become more responsible and my college years were wilder, with my active part in the Vietnam War demonstrations and a trip to the big gay pride demonstration in Washington in the sixties, but my job as a sports director helped me with organization, because I had a responsibility for an area and I found I liked it. My father was an attorney and my parents were affirming and encouraged me to become the person I was meant to be, but Maqua brought me friendships and closeness and those close relationships at camp, which followed into college when I roomed with many Maqua girls, was tremendously important.”

“Maqua was a loving cocoon,” ended Chris. “It was a spiritual, warm and loving place. The best I could hope for would be the preservation of that spirit. To this day my partner and I still love outdoor activities. My parent’s idea of camping was a room at the Holiday Inn, but I have taken survival classes, hiked the Appalachian Trail, camp, kayak, still love to canoe and have hiked in the Colorado Mountains for two weeks. I owe the start of all this to my activities at Maqua, which contributed to my love for the outdoors. I have to admit, I do have a motor home now, so I can have a real bed and bathroom.”

Friendships, the music, campfires and the ceremonies were a large part of Karen Kaiser’s (photo above) memories at camp (1959-62). “It was a chance to become who we were. Karen met her husband at WMU and both were both successful athletes. She went to college on a sports scholarship, but due to an injury on her ACL after a fall, was in danger of losing her scholarship Every year she had to be voted back into the program and sign letter of liability release, so she could stay in the program and compete. Her husband began a camp for underprivileged kids and they became co-directors and now works full time at Van Buren Youth Camp.  She said they both have a long tradition of camping in their family. Karen is the author of many books and is a motivational speaker and is pictured above.

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