REFLECTIONS

Capturing something as elusive as the Christopher Spirit in print is a formidable task.  But those of us touched by that spirit continue to try, in the hope that some glimmer of that grace can shine through. Enjoy these thoughts shared by some of Camp’s sweet survivors, then leave a reflection of your own!

“Working at the happiest place on earth!  Have had so much fun and met some of the most incredible people working at Camp Christopher. Crazy, it’s been 11 years since my first camping days here. It’s both rewarding & fulfilling being able to give back the same experiences that I was so fortunate to have when I was a camper. I hope I contribute to many everlasting memories for these kiddos!”   — Megan Green, staff member for Camp’s 100th summer – 2023.

        Fifty weeks of private anticipation about camp managed to crawl past, and on the way to camp in a packed station wagon, my friend’s mother was lost, trying to work south towards a crossroads dot on the road map called Bath, Ohio.  I could have told her exactly how to get there.  I traced it countless times with my finger on the complimentary Sohio roadmap in our glove compartment. The route was all surface roads then, and it took forever to get to the dot on the map. That dot represented my obsession.  It was the last turn, right before camp, a mile and a half of Ira Road. It’s a straight, gentle downhill course. The left-hand side was marked by manicured grass and the continuous white rail fencing of the Firestone family’s fox hunt grounds. On the right, fields and farm buildings until Ira Road ends at the rust red painted gate of Camp Christopher. The stop sign is the final pause before the curtain parts and body and soul enter the eternal.       – – Mary “Beora” O’Connor, camper and counselor of the 1970s. An excerpt from her book Free Rose Light: Stories Around South Street. (University of Akron Press, 2021)

           PORCHLIGHT

As I sit on the porch alone on a still and quiet night,

I take in my surroundings by the porch’s yellow light.

I looked down at the gravel which at first seemed ordinary,

but then became quite special for it held the footprints of many.

The sky above me held the stars, the same ones the whole world sees at night,

but when I saw them from places other than Camp they never appeared quite as bright.

And all about me were the trees, the frail ones and the strong,

Each one unique in its own way though their roots all shared the same ground.

It’s these trees that remind me of those close to me, those here on the ’89 staff.

We are each unique, some strong, some weak, and we all have to choose our own path.

We all go in different directions, but there’s one that is very clear,

We’ll always share a common bond because our roots are here.

–Meghan Maloney, staff of 1987- 1989

(2016 photo courtesy of Lisa Willey)

 I can smell Lake Marian. . . I can feel the warmth of the sun. . . I can hear cabin songs being sung as campers head to the beach, craft shop, stables, courts . . . I see counselors squelching “horseplay” . . . and starting it . . .           – Jim Thomas, Camp staffer in the 1980s  

  I know we have a tendency to glorify the past, but I look back and I know that that was one of the happiest times in my life. Those camp days. I was 21 when I started and about 27 when I stopped working there. Those were great years, working with people you respect, cooperating to get the job done, you’re outside and close to nature. It was fun and it was a life-developing experience. I think we were in a time of great transitions in the world and in the Church. We were at the end of an era in the way people used to live and think and behave and worship. I think the faith started in your home and then was nourished in the settings we have described. There was no question about your beliefs, your morals. Everybody trusted everybody. It was a wonderful age in which to grow into a priest.

  –   Fr. Jim Becherer On Staff in the late 1940s

The songs from those sing-a-longs are still part of my life. When I’m in a classroom, I still find myself singing some of those songs with the kids. If anyone were to ask me: ‘Where was your Camelot?’ I would tell them it was Camp Christopher.

                        – Sister Joan Franklin,OP                  On Staff in the 1950s 

I’ve always believed that Camp wrecked you for any other type of job. I can’t think of another work setting where you could form the kinds of relationships with the quality of people that you had working out there. Though I may not remember a lot of particular incidents from those days, I still can recall that feeling of how you hated the seasons to end, how you hated your stay at Camp to end because you knew that you’d never have these same kinds of relationships again. We all knew when it was time to move on and we wanted to grow older, but we didn’t want to leave that situation behind. It was almost idyllic; you just don’t run in to a collection of such quality people any place else. You can’t put a value on that.

   – Jim Doles   On staff in the 1950s- 1960s

I’ve been thinking about the amazing impact Camp has had and continues to have on my life. One of the most powerful moments for me was Girls’ Season– not sure what year, but there’s a good chance it was 1970. The entire camp encircled the flag pole with arms around each other singing and swaying to Give Peace a Chance. The memory and its power give me goose bumps 40 years later!                                                                                        – Jeanne McGuire            Camper in the 1960s, on staff in the 1970s, Family Camper, September Song Camper

  Camp will always have a special place in our hearts. It has been important in more ways than we can say. It is a place of peace, joy, fun, friends and hope. Our family has spent many days at Camp hiking, climbing, swimming, canoeing and just being. God’s presence there is so evident and yet so gentle. It’s tangible. Thanks for the memories.

  – Linda Marcin              Friend of Camp  Christopher  &    Wife of  Former Counselor Phil

Damp Camp clothes drying out – photo courtesy of Camper & Counselor  ABBEY RAMICONE

Another fine study in Camp mobility by Abbey Ramicone.

We arrive for a week of camp with new shoes shiny and bright after a heartfelt opening campfire stepped in a horse plop the first night

a vigorous game of capture the flag played on a hot and muggy evening socks socked through with humid sweat the warm shoes practically steaming

wet shoes wet shoes wet shoes stinky sneakers

hiking is a required daily activity often stepping in a blackish muck the foot sinking to ankle deep funny sucking sound getting unstuck the summer rains they do come forming puddles on every path one must attempt an epic splash giving your mate a muddy bath wet shoes wet shoes wet shoes stinky sneakers running the bases in a baseball game foot odor becomes athletic smell clay dust does little to mask the reek that is beginning to gel

the cabin gets misty by mid week something is growing around the camp not only the shoes but the bathing suits towels …heck everything is damp

wet shoes wet shoes wet shoes stinky sneakers

near the end of the camping experience shoes must be left on the porch sleep comes deep and easy even a bear wont dare approach too fast but the great week is over wish my shoes and I could stay I will carry the memories always but I am throwing the shoes away wet shoes wet shoes wet shoes stinky sneakers Shawn O’Neill Camper of the 60s, Counselor of the 70s  

It was one of the best feelings returning every summer, seeing how people remembered you and how they made you feel like a friend for life. This makes you feel very special. Now, as a counselor in the program, I really like how my fellow Spaniards come to the camp for the first time feeling the same way as I did. Initially they are always complaining about bugs, about not having a decent mirror, how surprised they are to see the showers, and how they declare that they will never swim in that lake. But the thing I like most is that by the end of the week, they have completely changed their minds. They realize that they have become indifferent to bugs, that they don’t need a mirror in order to survive, that nobody can coax them out of the lake, and that they long to stay there for the whole summer. — Luisa Castillo Frasquet,  Spanish camper and counselor the 20Teens  

CAMP CHRISTOPHER HAIKU  by Mary Benninger Truax

INSPECTION

In a line outside

Did we sweep under the bunks?

Staff Party awaits

SOUNDS

Footsteps on gravel

Laughter, singing, and yelling

Screen doors slamming shut

HERB

Do you hear a car?

Get moving and look busy

He’s at the PX

GIBBONS

Mouse nests in clothing

Campers all crammed together

Best cabin in Camp

SQUARE DANCING

Overalls, plaid shirts,

Family campers, and staff

Shoveling the coal

REST OF THE YEAR

Sitting in math class

Looking at the trees outside

Waiting for summer

AFTER HOURS

Cards, buck-buck, ha-ha

Late night guitar serenades

Dungeons and Dragons

Mary Benninger Truax (On staff 1978-1985)

  I believe there are places and moments in our lives that dwell in our soul that no one else can reach. They bring us joy and light. And those who have been or were there alongside us have the same memories, while others who weren’t just don’t quite understand.  ‘Welcome to Camp Christopher, Little Boy, this is where part of Momma’s heart resides. It’s her happy place,’ and today when we left I heard, ‘Mommy, Camp’s my favorite place too. I want to come back,’ and my heart exploded.   —Kara Sciarabba, on staff in the 2000s.      

You need not let decades go by before you can offer a lasting insight. Camper Libby Henry shares this bit of Christopher Spirit. And even the pandemic of 2020 could not prevent campers, like Olivia Vrobel, from having a “magical expirience.”