The list of mothers who sent their daughters to camp would be endless and incomplete, but for most of the daughters who believed the magic of their mother’s stories of their Maqua camp experiences, they were not disappointed by their summers. Well, let’s just add, most of them were not disappointed. There were a few who had stories of their dreaded days away from home.

Sisters, friends and cousins were very influential in convincing and influencing, as seen by the rosters of relatives who attended year after year. Sisters from the Cone, Sherman Augustyniak, Carney, Kessler, and Wilkinson families were prime examples.

“I was twelve and my sister was a year younger than me, but everyone thought we were twins. It was fine that she went at the same time as I did, because we were in different cabins. We enjoyed going even though we had just been on vacation, mainly because it was the first time, aside from overnights at girlfriend’s houses, where we were away from our Mom. She was divorced and worked nights, and I knew camp fees had to be a lot for her, but honestly I think she was glad to get rid of us for a few weeks so she could get her work done,” admitted Deb Wilkinson with a laugh.

Sue and Chris Augustyniak camped in the sixties and were enticed to attend by separate girlfriends, who did not want to go alone, but ended up hanging out in each other’s cabins.

Judy (1946) was the middle child of the three Kessler girls, who included Mickie and Bonnie, and although their camping years overlapped and clothes were passed down, they were never at camp at the same time. Judy Sherman (1946) was a young six or seven, and was allowed to go because her sister was there.

Carol Levine, sister of Lois, was forced to go by her Mom, who was the bookkeeper of the YWCA. (Beatrice Levine) “I went for three God-awful sessions in the summers of 1955-1957”, moaned Carol, who was at least fortunate enough to have familiar faces from Washington School in her hut every summer. Lois (1948) had gone with her cousin Sue, but was not happy about the decision, having been forced also, but consoled herself with the thought she would be with her cousin Sue Levine, who was the same age.

Her cousin Barbara Beerman was packed off to camp at the same time and disliked the experience so much that she called her aunt and uncle, who happened to be Carol’s parents, to drive up and get her. They picked her up, but not their own unhappy daughter, which infuriated Carol, who was left behind to adjust to her misery.

It was Pat Sauve’s first time away from home, but she was with her cousin Cynthia Behan in the late forties. “I wanted to go home. I hated snakes, bugs and dirt. The only thing I remember were the songs that still stick in my mind, like “We Are The Girls From Camp Maqua”. I hated the food and I think that was another reason I wanted to go home. I know I learned to swim at camp, but honestly never went back and I never wanted to go back.”

Afraid of the water, Corinne Campbell attended in the late thirties and hated the horses and hated the swimming. “I remember I had to swim to the raft and I thought I was going to die, but I learned.”

Homesick Carole Cross couldn’t swim, was afraid of the dark and despite the fact that one of her sisters and a friend went to Maqua at the same time (1975), she hated it. (Another session at a different camp held better memories for her, as she had matured.)

“I was not an outgoing child”, admitted Muriel Richert (1956), who was the oldest of three girls and had two working parents. “If someone talked to me or I was introduced to them, I would talk, but I think the reason they sent me to camp that summer was to get me out of the house. I think it was the summer my baby sister was born.”

Mary Jo Phillips (1949) hated camp so much that she had her Mom take her home on Visitor’s Sunday, three days before the end of camp. Her friends, nice counselor and the fun she had making bracelets in arts and crafts were not enough for her to stay. Letters from home did not ease her homesickness and she lost seven pounds. She did not know how to swim and she didn’t care to learn. “I never went to camp again and it was a terrible experience for me”, said Mary Jo, who did send her kids to camp and camped as a family.

Can you recall girls who bunked with you that hated it so much they went home before the end of session? Did anyone try to talk them out of it?