ART: The legend, the magic sticky buns!

Fall 2015 Knoll News:

So famous for several generations of WLC history that he needs no introduction or even a last name to be recognized, we are thrilled to bring you a brief look at the life story of ART!

Spotlight Profile: Art Makechnie

  A Career to Fall Back On

By Robert Gallagher

There aren’t many who have spent more time at summer camp than Art Makechnie. Surprisingly, his first experience of summer camp came not as a camper but as an assistant to the chef at the Geneva Point Camp.  Before that, Art’s summers had been taken up with activities closer to home.  The family had a small farm and Art was in charge of one cow, four sheep, two pigs, and 150 chickens to go along with fifty apple trees and a one and a half acre garden.  In the camp kitchen that first summer, Art found work to be agreeable and he did well.  The chef noted somewhat prophetically that his college-bound assistant would always be able to fall back on food service. 

Throughout his college years at Ohio Wesleyan, food service would continue as a reliable source of income: in the dish room of a girls’ dorm during the school year and back in the kitchen at camp during the summer.  After graduating as a history major, when Art moved on to continue his studies (first in theology at Boston University and later at Harvard in education) summer work in a camp kitchen would be a constant. 

Art’s introduction to WLC came in mid-summer of 1970 when he agreed to take over the kitchen at WLC after two cooks had walked out.  Art accepted the job over the phone – it was a matter of some urgency for Owen Carle to secure another cook – and soon found himself riding to Center Tuftonboro with Owen’s wife, Lorraine, who had been sent to bring him to the Knoll....

Read the rest of this profile and the entire Fall 2015 Knoll News by clicking here!

#DOSOMETHING

                It’s been over a decade since I was a camper on the knoll. It’s been six years since I worked on staff for WLC. Coming back in January of this year brought a new vision of camp for me.  I think few people get to see the tireless efforts that happen year-round for places like William Lawrence. For most, camp is this beautiful, greenery-filled fixture that forever stays in the season of summer. Over this past winter in New England, I was privileged enough to see seven feet of snow pack continually layer the campus in Ctr. Tuftonboro. It was exactly how I always imagined the age-old phrase of “winter-wonderland.” Having family from New England, I can truly say winter is easily my second favorite season;  second only to the New England summers.

                My time at William Lawrence (both as a camper and on staff) has been nothing short of exceptional. There is something special about the air and living communally that has impacted my life greatly. At camp, people come together differently than I have ever experienced. The songs and chants perpetually play out in my mind. Whether it was going to an inter-camp competition, an all-camp Evening Program, or simply a Free-Swim down at the Waterfront, the bonds I created at camp endlessly flourish. I have friends that live in all corners of the world because of my summers at William Lawrence.  It may sound odd, but camp is where I learned to successfully fail. Failing is something I believe that every person needs to discover.

                Kids are able to try new activities and sports while at WLC. Our motto of “Do Something” is what every boy is able to do. This is where failure becomes helpful. Camp has a hidden safety net for boys to engage in new things without true fear of being a failure. In my opinion, failure is when we stop trying, when we lose our will to work for the things we want and need. I distinctly remember counselors literally picking me up from the ground and saying, “That’s alright, have another go.” Giving kids (and ourselves) opportunities to fail presents the chance to build an identity and persevere in the face of adversity. They learn to thrive in the journey of working towards personal or common goals. This is what I love about William Lawrence. To quote a popular animated kid’s show, Adventure Time, “Dude, sucking at something is the first step at being sorta good at something.”

-Jamie McDonough

CHAPEL PHOTO ANSWER UNVEILED!

We posted this picture in our Spring 2015 Knoll News and asked readers to post their guesses for a date of the photo on Facebook. The range of guesses made (1930’s all the way up to 1964) are indicative of how timeless this view is. In fact, unless you are very familiar with how the chapel looks today or when those drop-W-L camper T-shirts were worn, this picture could be from last June!

You actually can find this picture in the William Lawrence Camp promotional brochures from 1937 and 1939. So Les McDowell is our winner with his guess of “1930s”. We recently received copies of these brochures from alum Robert Chase of Falmouth, MA, who was at camp with his brothers during this period.

The caption under the picture in the 1939 brochure is timeless as well:

The early morning Password Service in the woodland chapel each day inspires the boys with Christian ideals, and the daily camp life with its deep friendships and helpful guidance, encourages the campers to make these ideals live.

While there is no minister and no religious content to the morning services any more, this phrase is as appropriate to describe what we will be doing on the morning of June 29, 2015, as it was in the 1930’s.

FROM the Spring 2015 Knoll News:

Special Store Bundles On Sale Now At Camp!

Offers expire May 31; order via mail or email, accompanied by check (made out to William Lawrence Camp) or credit card information (including CVV and zip code of account, 3.9% convenience fee will apply). Prices INCLUDE shipping within the United States. We have only limited quantities of some items, so order early! 

 

                                                                                                      

 See pictures of the items and read the entire Spring 2015 Knoll News by clicking here!

The Value of Summer Camp

Ross Fidler, camper, counselor, and member of the Camp's Honor Society with a total of 13 summers spent on the Knoll so far, sent us the following article. Like Ross, we feel that it echoes the mission and the real importance of William Lawrence Camp.
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Why Summer Camp is Important for Generation Y

Ephram Caflun M.S.W.

One of the greatest gifts you can give a child

Ephram is the Director for Camp Wekeela in Hartford, Maine. In this article, he writes 

" Camp provides children with the opportunity to connect with nature, to participate in human-powered activities, and to benefit from personal and primary relationships.

   At camp, children learn to stretch their boundaries and experience life through the eyes of someone whose life is not a mirror image of their own. By doing so, camp increases their self-esteem and confidence and fosters their independence."

To read the entire article, click on Ephram Caflun article
Article is copyrighted 2014 by VincentCurtis Educational Register

REMINDER: This is heavily based on William Lawrence Camp!
We will get pictures/videos as we are able to post after the event for those who cannot attend, but live is always best. The Route 28 group is "a capella" and awesome as well.

A few more set production shots as promised:



Melly Moore, Savanah Waddington, Aaron Willette, Clay Drakely, and Lexie Kust are hard at work building set pieces. To be part of the KRHS Festival play, set pieces need to be sturdy and portable, as well as pretty easy to set up and take apart, as there are enforced time limits on stage set-up and breakdown!

    

KINGSWOOD REGIONAL HIGH SCHOOL THEATRE GROUP BRINGS WILLIAM LAWRENCE CAMP TO THE STAGE!!!

If you can be in Wolfeboro on March 5th or 6th (2015) at 7PM, you will NOT want to miss the premiere of the new play "FINISHING SENTENCES", written and co-directed by our very own Scott "Goose" Giessler.  Here is the press release describing the play; more pictures to follow!

PRESS RELEASE:

            Kingswood Theater’s spring show “Finishing Sentences” will feature a fictionalized version of local summer camp, William Lawrence Camp.

            “Finishing Sentences” is a one-act comedy / drama that tells the story of Kendra, a troubled teen who is sentenced to work as a camp counselor after getting in trouble with the law. Once there, she is assigned a young girl named Isabelle, who continually struggles and fails to make friends or be accepted by the group. Kendra takes on the task of helping Isabelle attain her summer goal of winning “the big trophy.” From there, they each embark on a madcap odyssey of self-discovery.

            The play’s setting, William Lawrence Camp, is a real residential summer camp in Center Tuftonboro that has been in operation for over 100 years. Although the play depicts William Lawrence as a coed camp, the real William Lawrence is actually an all-boy camp. The play draws inspiration from a lot of the camp’s culture, customs, activities and events. “Camp is this crazy, wonderful place that has an indescribable charm and energy that can sometimes border on the surreal,” show co-director, Scott Giessler notes. “A large portion of the show’s success comes from having the real William Lawrence as a touchstone to draw from.”

            In fact, one of the main characters in the story is named after William Lawrence Director Nat Crane.

            In preparation for the show, Kingswood Theater toured William Lawrence last November. They took pictures and notes in order to design a set that not only looked authentic as a summer camp, but represented specific elements of the property, such as cabins and the dining hall.

            “Finishing Sentences” is Kingswood Theater’s official entry into the New Hampshire Educational Theater Guild’s Festival. Each year, high schools from around the state produce one-act plays to showcase at the festival, which will be hosted once again at the Kingswood Arts Center.

            “Camp is such a positive force for good in kids, and it has been a joyful challenge attempting to accurately depict all of its qualities on stage,” states Giessler.

            “Finishing Sentences is set to debut on the Kingswood Arts Center stage, on March 5^th and 6^th at 7pm, with special guest opening acts Route 28 and the KRHS Jazz band.

Kingswood Theater Stage Managers Lexie Kust and Melly Moore construct one of the several pine trees that will be used for their spring production "Finishing Sentences."  The tree is composed of cardboard, paper towels, spray starch and glue.  Once painted, it will look like the one in the in-laid photo.  

Spotlight Profile: Knoll News Fall 2014

Fall 2014 Knoll News:

Spotlight Profile: Charlie Cleary

 Decades of Appreciation for WLC

Like so many other memories of fun born of youthful exuberance, the ’72 Camaro more commonly known as “The Gold Tooth” has a special place in a long list of WLC ties that bind for Charlie Cleary.

For $75 each, Charlie and three other counselors had joined in creative collaboration to add mobility to their summer camp experience.  The Gold Tooth was the result.  The wheels would be short-lived for the counselors though; the Gold Tooth would not survive a close encounter with the camp bus.

 

Long after the summer of the Gold Tooth, its memory lingers.  It’s the same way with much of the WLC experience.  Decades after the fun, the memories linger, mellowing into something deeper: appreciation.

Introduction to WLC for 11-year-old Charlie Cleary was not so different from the experience for most boys, with mom, dad and two younger brothers all loaded into the family car along with dad’s Navy trunk for the drive to Camp.  Imagine the sense of adventure rising as the car neared the Camp, left the paved road, and kept going along a dirt road before finally reaching the camp.

Team sports were big at the Camp then, and Charlie quickly found his way to the soccer, baseball and tennis teams.  There were also more exotic offerings  like archery, sailing, waterskiing, and canoeing, activities that helped to make Camp special because they weren’t part of everyday life at home in Needham, Massachusetts.  The introduction to WLC went so well that first summer that the three Cleary brothers would each spend ten summers on the Knoll.  Charlie’s son Thomas holds the family record, though: 12 summers (and counting)....

 Read the rest of this profile and the entire Fall 2014 Knoll News by clicking here!

Directors Message: Knoll News Spring 2014

The use of the word ‘Camp’ has taken some strange twists and turns over the past few decades.   For most of us traditionalists, when we say ‘Camp’, we think of organizations such as William Lawrence where we ‘sleepaway’, live independently of our parents, learn and play in the outdoors, sleep in cabins, chant and sing songs, develop lifelong friends, learn helpful skills and truly grow as a person.

Nowadays, ‘Camp’ means a whole myriad of things, strangely dissimilar to what history has called ‘Camp. ‘   There are lacrosse and hockey camps, skateboard and computer camps; you name it, the word ‘Camp’ is used.   These specialty camps are short-term residential or day camps.   Nowadays, most of those using the term ‘Camp’ have nothing in common with nor offer anywhere near the value of the traditional New England Camp.

Proudly we stand to say: William Lawrence is CAMP.   We know the value of such an experience and we know that society would be best served if all children went away to CAMP.   A week of lacrosse camp is not a substitute for the awesome value of real CAMP.   I would think that we would want a society of well-rounded, naturally intelligent citizens versus a really good lacrosse player.   So make sure when you are talking with families that have boys that you share your passion for real CAMP. It will benefit all of us.

Nat

Read the entire Spring 2014 Knoll News by clicking here!

Centennial Lodge Blessing: Knoll News Fall 2013

A Blessing For Centennial Lodge

             By The Rev. Gail Avery, Trustee

             Inspired by John O’Donohue’s “Beginnings”

May this CENTENNIAL Lodge be a home to all who enter.

And every time you come here,

     may all the weight of the world fall from your shoulders.

             May every heart be tranquil here,

     blessed by a peace the world might not be able to give.

May this Lodge be a happy place,

where the dreams and aspirations of campers

always find the pathway to this door.

May nothing destructive ever cross its threshold.

May this be a safe place,

full of understanding and acceptance,

where campers can be as they are,

without the need of any mask

of pretense or image.

May it be a place of discovery,

where the possibilities that sleep

in the playfulness of our souls can emerge

as we deepen and refine the Camp’s vision.

And for all that is yet to come to birth.

May it be a place of courage,

where persistence and growth are loved,

where dignity and kindness prevail;

a camp where patience of spirit is prized,

and our values and spirit of Willingness, Loyalty,

Comradeship and Sportsmanship are never lost.

May there be great delight around this hearth.

May it be a place of welcome, especially

for the broken and diminished and the homesick.

May we ALL have the eyes to see

   that no visitor, Camper or Alum arrives without a gift..

And no one leaves without a blessing…