Laurie Cone was a kitchen aide for the first time in 1966. Her room was in the lodge as a kitchen aide and at fourteen, she was the same age as many of the campers. Laurie’s older sister Tally, was in Senior Village the summer she attended Maqua for the first time. It was 1962 and she was ten years old and she camped until the summer of 1966, when she joined the staff.

“I worked the first summer with Sue Kiltie, Chris Varney and a few others. We worked three meals a day for one hundred and twenty campers for $50 for the entire summer,” she said.

Laurie Cone “was indeed one of my rewards”,  said Dorthe, who was thrilled to see a “once camper become a staff member” According to her director,she took her responsibilities very seriously and was an asset to the nature director, as well as her assistance in boating. She had shown her director that her two summers were a true learning experience.

The four junior counselors that summer were Susan Kiltie, Laurie Cone, Ann Obey and Chris Varney. They were used as cabin counselors in various activities, having previously been camp aides, and they were also experienced. They arrived early to help the activity directors, were used in the dining room and kitchen on occasion and were considered the best group Dorthe had ever had!

Susan Kiltie assisted with sailing and for Dorthe, it was a pleasure to watch an old camper “develop into a fine young lady”. She was dependable, took over a second period cabin, and provided some happy campers with fun activities such as cookouts and hikes. Dorthe was impressed with her neat grooming, pleasant personality and sincere interest in her campers. The activity director also could find no fault with her teaching methods or her abilities, but found “she tends to play favorites with the campers she knows well, but she is harder on and seems to expect more from these favorites.”

Ann Obey, counselor in campcraft and boating, was an alumni and Dorthe found her to be a joy and an asset to the staff. She had cabin two the second session, which was the younger girls. Her patience, understanding and responsibility were great for the younger campers, and she was always a reliable person for Dorthe to call on. “Ann’s loyalty to Maqua was very apparent and greatly appreciated,” wrote Dorthe. The activity director found Ann was a confident instructor for rowing, although not as confident with her canoeing, but never claimed to be! Her methods, ability and dependability were rated good by a tough director.

Chris Varney helped out in many sports, as well as a cabin counselor.She was described as quiet, but loyal to Maqua, Dorthe had reservations as to whether she could project to the campers with this quiet personality, but her previous camping experience and her sense of fun translated into a hope that she would return as staff.

Were you a part of any of these capable teams that summer and what do you remember of your experience?