The Race For The Top Bunk–

Published on October 19, 2016February 21, 2017 by Kathy Baker

The “Dear Diary” section was written by

Dorothy Niedzielski, Betty Miller and Ethel Feldman in the “Loon” in 1947, outlining a weeks’ worth of camp musings. “Well, I finally got here and rushed to the lodge, found my hut and rushed (knocking everyone over) to get a top bunk (success). After dropping my belongings all over the hut I rushed to Dutton (poor me 14 ½ years and only weigh 95 pounds.) Finally making my bed before supper, I came back and found my bed pied.” (And what would pied be?)

“I was in Hut One and I loved it,” said Minette Jacques, who was only seven when she camped in 1955. She had slipped past the age requirement because her two older sisters were at camp. “I wanted to be on the top bunk, but because I was the younger one, I had to be on the bottom. Well, you can bet every year I bullied my way to the top bunk by running to the hut first and grabbing it. My sister and I loved being on the top bunk. From that bed we had control of the window—your own private window where you could open and close it. And in the 2×4 rafters, you could put a shoebox with your personal things in it.”

“Everyone wanted the top bunk”, said Susan Williams, who camped for ten years beginning in 1947. “You had to step on the bottom with your sandy feet to get to the top,” Cindy Naylor (1967) always liked the top bunk and “always got what I wanted because I was just that kind of girl.”

Missy Plambeck, (1968-78) said it was a big deal to have the top bunk, where you could store personal things on the shelves. “We would line our stuff up and I think the girls on the bottom bunks actually had shelves or cubbies.” For Carolyn Stanton (1947), the top bunk was where she wanted to be, “but I had a room of my own at home and so it was crowded!”

Footlockers As A Status Symbol–#2

Published on October 17, 2016February 21, 2017 by Kathy Baker

Some of the girls who owned footlockers laughed as they told me they still owned theirs–a few holding Camp Maqua memorabilia.

Jane Miller had s shiny black one during her years in the late sixties and early seventies ”, and Amy Falk (1971-74) still has her red, white and blue one. Debbie Tweedie’s was light blue and sat at the end of her bunk from 1965-72.

Debbie Hawkins (1960) had a metal footlocker, which was bought just for camp. “It was a big deal to have that footlocker and I remember I had to buy two bathing suits because I swam every day.” Same year camper Anne Marxhausen was pretty sure her Mom packed her footlockers, filled with new clothes, “knowing my Mom, who loved to shop”.

“I laugh now when I think of packing for my camping and what he (my son) has packed for his. He is taking enough for the whole cabin! I had a footlocker and could fit my sleeping bag and pillow in besides my clothes. There is no room in his for either,” laughed seventies girl Karen Selby.

Carrie Norris (1972) was in a cabin with girl who came to Maqua with a footlocker filled with stuffed animals and food. “I have the feeling she came from a house that would equal one on the “Hoarders” television show, judging by the things in her footlocker,” she laughed.

Pat O’Tool (1944-52) is convinced camp taught her leadership qualities. “I was always an organizer and planner and I always packed my sister Nancy’s footlocker to go away because I was more organized. I can remember we had a long hallway in our house and packing those footlockers was always a big thing. Our bedrooms were upstairs and we would line our footlockers up and make piles.”

Footlockers As A Status Symbol–#1

Published on October 12, 2016February 21, 2017 by Kathy Baker

“How I wanted a footlocker,” said Mary Obey (1957,1966-67). “You were considered in if you had one, and I finally got one.” Andrea Gale (1970-74) never had one, but said footlockers were a “huge thing and a huge status symbol”.

Vicki Wynne-Parry (1965-68) had a green footlocker that her Dad bought her for years. She was eight and went with her sister Kim, who was three years older. “When my parents dropped me off on opening day, I was an independent girl and I remember waving goodbye to them. I was raring to go! I remember someone yelling, “Wait you left one behind– you forgot one!” They didn’t think I belonged because I was so little. I had a little pixie haircut and I was small.”

Her sister Randi (1969-73) thought the cabins were so cool with the bunk beds, but for her the best part was that her Dad bought all the sisters matching footlockers

It seemed to Kim Wynne- Parry that footlockers that sat at the end of the bed were mandatory. (They were probably never mandated, but plenty of girls wanted one!) Kim still has her and recalled the list she checked off, as she packed two weeks worth of clothes into her. She laughed as she remembered her sister only used the clothes at the top and the rest were clean when she returned home.

Arrival!

Published on October 10, 2016February 21, 2017 by Kathy Baker

An early copy of “The Loon” was found in the Girl Reserves scrapbook dating back to 1937 with an article entitled “Arrival Day”, which gave a great vignette of what it must have been like for the new girls to land at camp.

“About eleven o’clock Wednesday morning a few girls began to arrive one or two at a time, some with more courageous faces and others with frightened and apprehensive faces. At last about twelve fifteen the bus itself arrived. The new girls clambered out and many greetings could be heard thrown back and forth as a girl ran into an acquaintance of the year before. Also could be heard the many goodbyes from the girls leaving and the more lucky ones who were to stay. The faces of those leaving expressed alternately grief of desire as they viewed for the last time the familiar landmarks of Maqua. After a delicious dinner Miss Epple informed the new girls of the mode of living at camp. Then came physical and swimming examinations followed by the supper bell. After dinner a very delightful program was arranged and a jolly time was had around the campfire. At eight forty-five the girls prepared for the night and all hopped into bed tired but happy and well satisfied with their first, if rather strenuous day at camp.”

Laurie Cone (1962-68) recalled the caretakers helping with the arrival at camp. “Mel and Ollie were the couple who helped us. I can’t remember if Mel or Ollie was the man, but he drove the truck for the camp. The families would unload the girl’s luggage on the archery range beside the lodge. There would be a mark on the ground that signified which cabin the luggage and lockers would go and he would deliver it all. Getting down the hill in muddy conditions was a job!”

Melissa Plambeck (1968-78) still has her footlocker with her photos tucked inside. “I can still remember the truck that would take our footlockers to the cabin and whoever was on the truck would sing, “We Welcome You To Camp Maqua”.

Traditions On The Way–

Published on October 5, 2016February 21, 2017 by Kathy Baker

When Beth Phillip’s parents drove her to camp in their pick-up truck (1972-78), there was a certain point where she would get so excited, because she felt like she was almost there. As they neared US 23 there was a pink tent and that was the landmark she waited to see!

“My Mom and Grandma would always drive me up there for sessions and my Dad would always pick me up and drive up to meet my Mom at our cottage near Harrisville,” said Jenifer Penzien (1969-71) of their yearly summer ritual.

For Maggie Young (1962), it was an adventure. “Even travelling in my Dad’s 1961 Corvair was an adventure. It ended up being my first car.”

“My family was not wealthy, and we didn’t even have a television until 1956,” said Ellen Hydorn (1954) whose aunt shared her vacation home in Tawas with the family,” but the rest of the girls I went up with were all fairly wealthy. I remember my Dad drove me up in the old Cadillac.”

Carol Requadt’s brother was in Camp Iroquois on Sand Lake in 1945 and when both camping sessions were over, their parents would pick them up and head to their rental cottage, which was also in Tawas. She was not alone in that double pick up, as many of the campers had brothers attending nearby camps.

Hop On The Bus!

Published on October 3, 2016February 21, 2017 by Kathy Baker

“Camp Goers Too Busy To Worry About Weather” read the headline from a local Bay City newspaper pasted into the archival scrapbook. “Grade School Registered At Maqua Today: 25 Travel By Bus” was the second headline.

“Too agog about going to camp to care about the gray weather, and too busy lugging crowded bags to bother about rain coats, twenty-five youngsters of grade school age were at the YWCA this morning to board the bus that took them to Loon Lake. Munching candy, and starting to sing before they were even out of town, the crowd made a merry invasion of Camp Maqua for the first camping period of the season”, read the piece from June 26, 1935.

“The girls usually arrived on a bus that left from the YWCA in Bay City”, wrote 1920’s camper Margaret Dahlem in a letter in 1988, “but one rich girl arrived on a white motorcycle.”

There were more ways to arrive in style, as her friend Harriet Crumb could attest to one summer as she stood on the lawn of the lodge. She also rode the bus through Pinconning, Standish, Twining, Turner and Whittemore and into Hale, singing camp songs the entire time and loved the attention she received from the locals as they arrived in town.

“Initially, we were all loaded onto a bus, which belonged to the Y,” recalled Beverly Schlatter (1944-1949), “in front of the old “Y” building. We would meet all our friends there, with our footlockers or trunks packed with clothes or bedding for two weeks. My Dad unloaded the footlocker from the car to the bus and all the parents waved to us. As the bus pulled away, the older girls who had been to camp before, started singing the Maqua camp songs and that’s how we learned them.”

Girls of Camp Maqua

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