Directors, Counselors, Staff

Nurses, Doctors and Patients–#4

Published on by Kathy Baker

302629_4231747144203_154471756_nIn 1967 Mollie Forester was the camp nurse. Dorthe described her as a talker with a kind heart, who was always willing to help out. Her Infirmary was always spotless and there were only two trips to the doctor and one hospital visit on her watch. She had a wonderful rapport with the younger campers, but strained with the older ones, so Dorthe passed out meds to the seniors that summer.

One of her patients was Cindy, who never forgot the orange Mercurochrome, but then who doesn’t remember that little cure-all? Cindy Naylor (1967) turned around in her horseback riding class and the horse raised his leg and kicked her. She still has the dent in her leg.

Zoe McGrath had camped at Maqua as a young girl in the mid fifties, so going back to camp, smelling the campfires and eating “S’Mores” the summer of 1968 was a good bridge between her graduation and her future career as a nurse. It was her first experience as a camp nurse and not only did she fulfill that duty, but she helped out in a kitchen staffing emergency with her director, Dorthe Balaskas. There were a few suggestions from Dorthe to the camp committee for the following summer, and Zoe had the desire to leave her present job and return if she was re-hired.

“One day I was the one that got injured with a concussion on a sailboat,” said Zoe. “They came about quickly and I got whacked in the head with the boom and had to spend the night in Dorthe’s room in the lodge, so they could check me all night.”

Maureen Moore (1968-70) broke a tooth in a water fight when she was working as a kitchen aide. “The girls had their rest period and it was a hot day to do dishes, so we went out with pitchers of water. One of the girls grabbed a metal pitcher and I turned my head just in time to catch it on my teeth. My Mom was horrified when she picked me up because the root was exposed. It was close to the end of session. I don’t know why that girl didn’t grab a plastic one like we did.”

In 1969, Nadine Furlong was listed as the registered nurse, with Dr. Payea still serving as the camp doctor. In her end of season report, she mentioned a staff meeting where she addressed the crushes girls might develop on staff members, as well as notifying some of the staff of the severe ailments they may encounter. (One camper suffered from seizures.)

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Nurses, Doctors and Patients–#3

Published on by Kathy Baker

IMG_6529By1963, the salary for the nurse had increased to $450 for the summer and Lillian Richards R.N. accepted the position. She was forty-five and lived in Harrisville, just north of Hale. It was not always easy to find medical staff to reside at camp for an entire summer, but there was a need that had to be filled, as well as a job–even if the nurse handled only small incidents.

“One not so good memory was when I tripped while walking down one of the hills that had gravel on it, so vehicles could take our trunks and suitcases to the cabins,” said Susan Bradford (1965). “I slid down the hill on my elbows and knees and got skinned up. They had to take me to the hospital in Tawas to get checked out, but I healed quickly.”

Dorthe Balaskas had been hired as director for the camp and wrote in her 1966 report that Dr. Norman Payea had been hired as the camp doctor and practiced in Tawas. “The nurse is the decision maker when a child is ill, as to whether to see the doctor, and makes the appointment and brings the health form,” she wrote.( If the nurse was not in, the camp director or program director took over the Infirmary.)

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Nurses, Doctors and Patients-#2

Published on by Kathy Baker

IMG_6530Lurking in the background during her days at camp in 1945, Carol Requadt recalled the silent fear about water and polio, despite the fact that it was not certain how it was contracted. “Since I was at camp during the days of polio, there was a generalized fear and slight paranoia about catching it. I knew a few who got it, but it was not talked about too much and I was never afraid of catching it as a young girl.”

“There was a girl who did not feel well for three days, and no one knew she was in the early states of polio,” said Carol Sue Abendroth (1953-54). “I heard later in high school that it was what she had, but she survived with only a limp.”

The camp personnel committee was responsible for hiring in 1958 and met on February 27, 1958. Their notes indicated Elizabeth Loessel was hired as the nurse with a salary of $270, plus room and board with a room for Margo and a period of camping for Sandra. (Were they daughters?) Nancy Griebel was hired for the final period.

In 1960 the nurse was a retired public health nurse by the name of Margaret Conley, followed by Janet Gehres in 1961. She was recruited for the camp nurse position by director Alice Bishop, who was taking anatomy classes at Michigan State University with Janet. Although she did not have her Michigan nursing license, the YWCA paid for her to get it, so she could take the position. (She was from Reading. Pa.)

“I went home and got my shorts and stuff ready and headed to camp. I lived in the Infirmary, which was in the middle of camp, and was the only building with a bathroom in it. I was pretty much on duty twenty-four hours a day. There were a lot of girls with allergies that summer and they all brought their bottles along with them, but I don’t recall giving any injections. I think they did that before they got to camp,” said Janet.

Alice Bishop had notes in her director’s report that summer relating to the program presented by the Michigan Tuberculosis Association. They presented a program, complete with songs, about TB for the campers to acquaint them with the disease. Although there was no indication that TB was a scare, public awareness about this disease was important.

Janet Gehres filed her nurse’s report at the end of the first session. She indicated that ninety-one campers came to camp and checked through the Infirmary with pre-camp medical sheets, personal medications collected and all girls weighed in. At the end of the session, they were weighed in again and it was noted; “Many of the girls gained weight, apparently satisfied with the menus offered them.”

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Post-Camp Clean-Up–

Published on by Kathy Baker

Maqua scans_Jun60_4a-2A copy of the revised edition of the “Notes Regarding Closing Camp Maqua” for the season, dated 1954 and updated from August 1950, listed the elements required to successfully close up camp.

The surplus food, that was unopened and would not keep until the following season, had to be returned. The kitchen had to be cleaned well enough that the mice would not have an attraction to it. Bedding had to be stored with paper supplies in Dutton. The screen doors and shutter ropes were removed from the huts for security. The supplies in each area had to be stored safely. The furniture inside and outside the lodge were positioned, rugs were rolled, poison was spread for rodents, windows were latched or shuttered, doors were padlocked, planks were nailed, screens were removed, water was drained, and pumps were covered. At the waterfront, ropes, buoys, riggings, rafts, and anchors were stored inside the boathouse, huts or lodge.

According to Dorthe Balaskas’ 1966 notes, post-camp days were a busy time for the caretaker and a time for the counselors and directors to list repairs needed in their areas. Mert and Ollie Webb were the caretakers at that time and she was always confident of their abilities to handle the general maintenance, but enlisted the help of “Pop” Watson to deal with some of the larger issues to be delegated to the appropriate services, since he was familiar with what had to be done to close up camp.

She had a banquet style meal for the staff after they had packed their bags. All the living areas were checked and counselor notes had to be handed in before she passed out their checks. The frozen food, record player, library books, mimeograph machine, medications and station wagon were taken to the “Y”; the guns were put into storage or repaired, and surplus food was returned to Schwanbecks in Saginaw.

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Pre-camp Staff Training

Published on by Kathy Baker

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There were no records of pre-camp directives in the files until the sixties, when reports were left in the files of the Bay City YWCA, so it is unclear whether the same type of schedule was used for previous years.

Alice Bishop’s first period in 1961 as camp director began with pre-camp training sessions on June 28 until July 2, with twenty-six staff members. Her program included hints on effective counseling and the reading of the staff manual. There were always unexpected issues to deal with and she wrote, “Last summer the cook broke her leg on the first day of camp. This summer the cook had her luggage lost by the Greyhound bus company and was without menus and clothes for a week and a half.”

Seven members of the camp committee and board of directors, as well as vendor, a banker, hardware owner and frozen food company owner were in attendance for the Friday night cook-out that particular summer. It was a perfect way to see how the camp and staff operated for those who had a direct or indirect part in the camp’s smooth operation.

The report from director Dorthe Balaskas in 1966 was an informative and comprehensive peek into what the summer sessions were like for staff and campers alike. Pre-camp began in September with the executive director and some of the committee members to discuss the upcoming season. If a director were to be asked to return, this meeting would be the normal time for such an invitation. A contract and job description of the duties would be given out. “The immediate supervisor is the executive director,” Dorthe stated, “—you will find that you will turn to her for assistance and guidance many times.”

The director usually arrived at camp three days before the staff, just to set up. The caretaker checked the food inventory, which arrived around the middle of June. Dorthe’s report mentioned she had checked with the druggist, gas station, grocer and hardware to determine how each business wanted to handle the purchases over the course of the summer. She even met with the Webb family about the horses.

There were schedules included in the report with the itinerary for each day of pre-camp, which included training, meetings, inventory, swim tests program set-up, campfire demonstrations, manual discussions, nurse appointments, fire drills, work-shops, visits to each separate activity area or building, caper charts, trips to church and even the free time and trips to Lumberman’s Monument had been itemized.

Dorthe, as all directors probably did, greeted her staff on the first day, handed out all the bed linens and assigned cabins. The staff was given time to settle, unpack and she assigned three cabins for time for them to get acquainted.

Camp schedules were handed out, physical exam forms and YWCA memberships were handed in, and at this time insurance could be purchased. The staff was given ample time to inventory, prepare their lesson plans and create their bulletin boards. According to Dorthe, the waterfront staff had the toughest job, setting out lines and hauling rafts and boats.

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Special Needs Considerations

Published on by Kathy Baker

644420_460710000629947_1369161173_nThe camp committee was meeting more regularly during the spring, reviewing applications for staff, discussing new policies, accepting final payments and organizing small get-togethers to allow the new staff to get to know each other.

Over the years many different policies were instituted for the safety of the children and staff and also to comply with different state regulations. But, one question continued to be brought up concerning the admittance of “borderline retarded children or handicapped children”.

In 1960, it was noted in the minutes that handicapped children would be accepted, which would include the hard of hearing or those who were slightly crippled (due to hilly terrain). Physical examinations were always part of the camper’s acceptance, including those with no infirmities.

In 1961, after no applications had been received for any campers with physical limitations, it was decided “it would be best to work them through the Live Y’er program” at the YWCA.

In 1964, the issue came up again. “Borderline retarded children to be considered, upon recommendation of Mrs. Larry Miller of Fordson High, Dearborn Schools”, with the possibility of admitting four, was the consideration in the minutes.

As a counselor, member of the staff or camper, what type of disabilities were admitted to camp? Were the girls with limitations able to navigate the camp grounds easily and were they treated well by their bunk mates?