“I gravitated to the horses right away,” said Cathy Hawkins, who admitted it was her only interest. “If they made me do other activities, which they did, I did it, but as a camper I was a goodie two shoes and it was so unlike me to do this, but I skipped the other classes to go back to the horses.”
“One of the summers I went as a camper and there was another counselor who was in charge of the horseback riding and it did not work out. They hired me as a junior counselor for $50 for the summer, plus my room and board and I worked under Mert and Ollie Webb. I became so close to them—I even sent them an invitation to my wedding!”
“My nickname was “Horse” and so many of the parents were in shock to see me, thinking I would be this big strong girl, when I was a skinny petite thing,” she laughed.
Although Cathy was not homesick, she did miss the feeling of having her family around. Her horse was part of her home and part of the deal for her to become a counselor was to bring her horse with her. “Carryback” and “Misty Moonlight” were two of her horses, but she cannot remember which one came with her or if both did at separate times. It was her horses she missed when she was a camper and she was always happy to go home to see them, but tried not to get too attached to them in order to “move up” in horses.
It was Cathy’s first time as a junior counselor and she was between her junior and senior year of high school. “All the other girls were college girls. I felt a little less in stature, but I do remember Dorthe telling me at the end of the summer that I showed maturity for a girl my age. She wasn’t easy on us either.”
“For the life of me, I do not remember how I found that job! It may have been through a local Cleveland area newspaper or it may have been because I had visited friends in Bay City. I do not recall being interviewed. I may have been hired because of my extensive Girl Scout experience (and badges) and 4-H and horse show background,” wrote Donna Mautz, who was hired by Dorthe Balaskas.
“I had experience as a camper, yes,” she said. “We had a family farm and always had horses and other farm animals, so riding was second nature to me. I bought and sold horses after breaking them in or polishing them up. That helped with my college expenses! They were never expensive ones—just plain old riding horses. Although, my last two horses were registered, on a five gaited green broke American Saddlebred and the other a three quarter Arabian.”
Donna was the riding instructor in 1967 and wrote, “What I do recall is my primary assignment to the riding program. I developed long lasting correspondence and friendship with the owners of the horses, Mert and Ollie Webb. I returned to visit with them once before I moved to California. Not quite sure when or how our “pen pal” relationship ended, and that saddens me now. I so enjoyed assisting with the horses, the campers, and working with and learning from the Webbs. And I remember how I loved the trail rides when the wind would blow the leaves upward exposing their undersides. The Webbs said it was a sign that rain was coming.”
“With experience I gained as a riding instructor and trail guide at Camp Maqua, I went on to apply these skills at Ohio University, quickly transitioning from a student enrolled in riding classes to an assistant! I had enrolled in a class as a P.E. requirement and ended up assisting in that class since I had gained experience at Camp Maqua as a trail guide and riding instructor.”
Dorthe’s director reports described Cathy as wonderful with campers, a true teacher with a warmth for Maqua. Her attributes gave Dorthe a secure feeling that it was one big happy family with her co-workers,classes and organizational skills. Donna assumed the assistants position and had to assume more than that job the first two weeks and was deeply appreciated by Dorthe, who felt she would do anything that was asked of her.
Did you take instruction from either Donna Mautz or Cathy Hawkins? Was it your first time on a horse?