“We were always singing,” said Kimela Peck (1966-74), who said she could still see “Beanie” with her guitar by the fireplace and the girls in their “whites” swaying back and forth to “High On Chapel Hill”.
“The lodge was filled with kids all summer long from Bay City, Saginaw, Flint and Detroit and everyone seemed to have a good time,” said Nancy Sautter (1968-70). “The staff worked hard to make it fun. Everyone sang. I played a guitar, but poorly, but I remember Barb (Haggart), her guitar and her ‘Montague” routine and singine “Adelina”. We had such fun!”
“I was not not a picky eater and I ate everything and I loved being in the lodge,” said Jenifer Penzien (1969-71). “I can still see the words to the songs on big pieces of paper on the wall and “Beanie” leading us in songs. Two songs I still remember are the “Ram Sam Sam” song and “Little Bunny FooFoo”.
“Beanie” (Barbara Haggart) made up all the activities, led the songs and played her guitar. “We sang after lunch and after dinner. I wrote out some of the songs on big poster boards and tacked them to the lodge walls. I later mimeographed them into a songbook for the staff. I think I still have them.”
“I was an only child. I went to camp late in life at age thirteen and was only supposed to stay for two weeks, but I called home and asked to stay the whole summer. I was always interested in sports, sang in church choirs and in college and learned the baritone ukulele while I was living in the dorm,” said Barbara. It would turn out that her favorite interests would be what created the perfect counselor and director, where she would be remembered for her singing, her love of the sporting activities and her fairness as a director.
Camper turned counselor, Anne Obey, (1966-70) remembered the songs on scrolls on the walls, hanging high for young eyes to see, written on the backs of wallpaper or some big banners. “We would either sing the Johnny Appleseed song or one of the other grace songs, then after our meal, while we sat with our cabin mates, we would sing some more. Later on there were funny skits with the counselors. What great memories.”
Jeananne Grego, who camped in the sixties’, loved the singing and felt it enhanced her camping experience. “I have a terrible voice, but I sang anyway and I can still remember the voices—Mel singing “Diane”, “Beanie” and her guitar, singing around the campfire. And I loved the words up high on the lodge walls, so we could all learn the words to the songs. We sang everywhere, by candlelight, at meals, and at the closing ceremony.”
Tracy Topping and Jodi Tripp, who camped in the early sixties’, had memories of the washtub band, with Melba and Kerry on guitars, Kitty on the washboard, Sue in a donkey hat (?) and “Beanie” on a washtub bass fiddle.
Jodi admitted she was a quiet “goody-two shoes”, while she was a camper, while her friends “Dodo” (Diane Dudley), Lois and Martha were all outgoing. “When I became a counselor, some of us formed a band called ourselves The Maqua Band. There was another counselor Mel who played a guitar with Kerry and myself and two others on spoons and washboard.”
Anne Shutt (1961-66) was so influenced by this band and the musical talents of her surrounding mates, that she ended up buying a ukulele, following in the footsteps of “Beanie”.
“When I first went to camp, everyone was playing the ukelele, but it moved on to guitars, then twelve strings, which “Beanie” could play. There was a counselor that showed up one year named Eva. She had long black hair and was very pretty and she was dynamite on that twelve string. It was all Peter, Paul and Mary and all the folk songs back then, but my sister and I were the worst singers in camp. There were some songs that required you stand up and at one point we had to stand up and sing. I’m sure they picked us because they knew we were bad, but I was cool enough that year, so I thought it was funny. I was not a singer at all. Most times it was like, don’t bother me I want to read or I want to be president of something. Not singing. And those kids on the piano—I think all they knew was “Chopsticks”. When I was in Senior Village, there were some girls who were playing guitar and shouldn’t have. They tried to teach me, but I was useless, “ laughed Cara Prieskorn (1966-71).
“The singing was the piece that brought attention to one place. The dishes would be clashing in the kitchen, dinner would be done, everyone would be tired, but sometimes I would stand up and start singing and everyone would break into song,” said Judy Moore, who was the assistant under Barbara Haggart.
“Beanie” managed to leave an imprint on many hearts and souls of her campers and staff with her Peter, Paul and Mary songs, her guitar, ukulele and the lyrics on posters. Jennifer McLogan still thinks of her to this day when she hears those songs, as does Kathy Butsch (1968-74), who laments that some of her tapes of Debi Gotlieb playing were chewed up.
But, Nancy Michelson and Shelley Harris, whose families were friends for three generations, are still close to this day and continue to sing those songs. They even went so far as to call up “Beanie” in the middle of the night to sing the old camp songs! What do you remember of those times?
