Camp Echo Weekly E-Newsletter Feb 24, 2002 ***** Camp Echo E-List Update ----------------------- The Camp Echo E-List is now at 334 members. Spread the word! Who's Applied For Echo 2002? ---------------------------- From previous years: John Donoghue, Jessie Hodgman, Erica Lynn, and Mick Morel. From Indiana University Camp Job Fair: Amanda Sullivan. From Purdue University: Rebekah Odell. Others: Justin Altay and Amella Lehto Alumni Notes (Send in your news!) ------------ C'mon, don't be bashful! Just a few sentences is all it takes! The Alumni Board met on Friday and has some exciting plans for an Echo alumni event which will hopefully be scheduled for April. Watch here for news! Openings at Camp This Summer ---------------------------- Although the goal is to have 8 cabins of boys and 8 cabins of girls each session, we have more girls than boys signing up for camp. With long waiting lists for girls, we once again made the decision to "flip" a cabin from boys to girls in sessions C, D, and E. This means there will be 9 cabins of girls and 7 cabins of boys for these six weeks. There are still spots for boys at camp in these sessions - 11 in C, 28 in D, and 11 in E. So if you have neighbors or friends with boys entering grades 4 through 8 looking for a camp, tell them about Camp Echo. Our Michigan Trip ----------------- Last week my wife and I made a grand circle tour of Michigan. On Monday we met with representatives from Creston Mayfield Christian School in Grand Rapids, which will come to Echo May 1-3. On Tuesday we met with the Principal of NBC Middle School in Montague, which will come to Echo May 9-10. Tuesday afternoon we drove through Frankfort and stopped at Camp Crystallaire in hopes of visiting with Fuzz Foster (whom I had spoken to by phone the week before) but Fuzz was nowhere to be found! On Wednesday we met with representatives of Grayling Middle School which will come to Echo June 5-6. Wednesday was also the Central Michigan University Summer Job Fair. Our table was across the aisle from Camp Newaygo, where former Echo staffer Marci Gray was recruiting. We spoke to 20 promising candidates, including four possible Assistant Wranglers. While we were there, Tony Marshall, Echo cook Laurie's son, stopped by. Tony plans to apply to work as a Senior Counselor. Winter Projects --------------- One of the most interesting projects this winter has been dealing with an address change for Camp Echo. Newaygo County, in an effort to provide adequate emergency coverage for the camp, decided that our "2000 West Thirty-second Street" address had to go, and officially designated the camp road as Triangle Trail. The Gate House is at 3437; the Director's House is at 3616; and Camp Echo proper is at 3782. After the letter from the county arrived, we needed to alert others to the changes. I asked Rob Johnston to visit the Newaygo County Offices to determine the proper course of action. The people in this office are used to dealing with complaints, and their initial reaction was a surly, "What's YOUR problem??" Rob used his magnetic charm to disarm the situation and put them at ease [you really have to hear him tell the story]. He later made trips to the Fremont Post Office and the Fremont Department of Roads and Signs, which then led to more calls and visits. Sure enough, a few weeks later an official "Triangle Trail" sign was installed at the end of the camp road. We also have a brand new bright red Stop Sign for people leaving camp and entering Thirty-second Street. Song of the Week (Send in your requests!) ----------------------------------------- THE ASH GROVE Down yonder green valley where streamlets meander, Where twilight is fading, I pensively roam. Or at the dark moontide in solitude wander, Amid the dark shades of the lonely ash grove. Tis there where the blackbird is cheerfully singing, Each warbler enchants with his notes from a tree. Ah, then little think I of sorrow or sadness, The ash grove enchanting spells beauty for me. Echo History ------------ In December of 1986, I met with Jim Dugdale, Larry Peterson, Frank Endicott, and Al Butler to hear their stories about the history of Camp Echo. "Rollin Ford was a chauffeur for Abbott Labs. He married Eleanor Abbott, the daughter. The Ravenswood Episcopal Church built a gym and recruited Rollin as a Physical Director; it became the Wilson Avenue YMCA. We got Rollin on the Camp Echo Committee. He drove a large Cadillac limo and he would take the entire committee up to camp for a meeting. One time Howard Rogers painted a sign that said "For Sale $800" and put it in the window of the limo when we stopped at the Dinner Bell in Fremont. When we came out a large crowd had gathered around the limo. Rollin and Eleanor had a son named Wally who made All-American at Coe College in Cedar Rapids. He was a counselor at Echo. He became a pilot in the Air Force. He died young from injuries sustained in a crash. The Fords gave the money for Wally Ford lodge in his memory. In his will, Rollin left 10,000 shares of Abbott Labs to the YMCA. The $375,000 proceeds were used to buy the land south of the original YMCA building." Wish List --------- If you, or anyone you know, has any of these items to donate, let me know. Dodge Caravan or equivalent 'minivan' for Town Run Laptop Computers (Pentium or G3) iMacs, any generation, any color - even Dalmation! Coming Soon: ----------- Computer, Website, and Internet Plans Feel The Spirit! -- Rob Grierson Camp Echo Director rg@mcgawymca.org 847-475-7400 x259