Camp Kawanee 1994

*** With the Kids at Kamp Kawanee-***

When our nephews and nieces were young we always felt it was more important and meaningful to give the gift of shared experiences at Christmas and Birthdays. Over the years for Christmas we’d pack everybody up in Jappy and Bumpa’s station wagon, (some diapers included early on) for parties at Silver Lake or the Trolley Light tour around Boston Common and Downtown, making Christmas cookies in our kitchen… For birthdays we’d take an excursion up to the condo in North Conway or some other outdoor adventure- and perhaps the most memorable of those was to Kamp Kawanee. We had checked this out with Cousin Maureen who had been there with her kids…rustic cabins, a nice swimming lake; it sounded like a great place for an overnight, not- roughing- it too much camping trip.

After packing the kids and provisions in the Kelly van, we discussed the menu on the way down, picked up the food and arrived mid afternoon on a perfect summer day. We settled into our cabins, basic 4 walls with some pegs for clothes, cots to put sleeping bags on - the kids in one and we adults about 10 feet away in the other. Soon we rendezvoused with Maureen and her kids, had a lot of fun swimming for hours in the lake. We had the basic burger and hot dog, cook-out supper, and after dark a fire, smores, stories and laughs right up until Maureen and her kids drove off to their nearby home all of us happy with the fun-filled day we had shared.

I took the boys and Cyndy the girls over to the bathrooms to wash up and brush whatever teeth they had at that age. Near the bathrooms on the same mission there was a group of mentally retarded campers with their counselors. Some of these special campers because of their size and erratic movements and noises were a bit frightening in the dark. Being the “enlightened, new-age” uncle and aunt we were, we seized the “teachable moment” and assured the kids that these differently- abled folks were just a little excited and there was nothing to fear. Back at our cabins we made sure that everyone was all set for sleep, had a few flashlights, felt assured that they would come get us –just 10 feet away if they needed anything throughout the night, figuring that after fooling around for a short while they’d turn out the lights and go to sleep.

We said “goodnight”, went to our very dark cabin, settled in our cots, reviewed the good day and in very short order were sound asleep…

For in what seemed like a matter of minutes, the cabin door crashed open
there was a flashlight shining blindingly in our faces and Kate and Alisa
yelling in truly frightened unison voices:

“There’s rats in there!!”

Startled awake, and with nightmare visions of rodents gone homicidal
movies. ( “Willard” and “Ben” in mind ) fearing that such monsters would be
gnawing on our beloved nephews and nieces (not even thinking yet how we’d
explain this to their parents in the emergency room…) we ran with flashlights
to their cabin where the ungnawed kids pointed to where “the rats” had been.
A weeny field mouse crawled out of a trash bag hanging on a wall peg and ran
out a crack in the wall. Quite relieved we assured the kids that it was a
harmless mouse, not a rat and he/she was much more scared than they were.
As soon as everyone had settled back down, it was lights
out, and we returned to our cabin chuckling and we were shortly sound asleep
again…When out of the darkness there were blazing colored lights and booming
outof a bullhorn the command:

“Attention campers- stay in your tents! I repeat, stay in your tents!”

UFOs? An enemy invasion? Natural or man-made disaster? An escaped maniac?
We ran to the kids cabin –whatever it was, we’d face it together! Turns out it
was the local police, fire and ambulance emergency response. One of the special
campers had a seizure, but was declared all right. After about ½ hour the
troops departed, the skies over Kamp Kawanee darkened as kids and head-
shaking adults returned to bed…wondering….What next???

Next thing we knew …it was daylight…but not the bright sun of the day before.
It was a dreary morn and soon drizzly so we chucked the plan for the campers’
great outdoors breakfast and instead gathered our gear and headed for
the“golden arches mcfood. The leisurely swimming and forest hike were called
off on account of rain. Plan B was put into action = “rainy day special” = 2
family rated movies, with a lunch in the middle, followed by ice cream. .
Everyone returned safe and sound to parents by late afternoon, with a laughing
recap at each homestead.

We vaguely remember one of the movies was one of those “ group of misfit
kids learns to accept their differences and become better people and a
successful team” flix, and the other maybe was “Goonies”or something
adventurous and funny like that. But we do remember we had a really special
time again with our great nephews and nieces and that’s a real gift.

But Kate, Lisa, Jess, Alisa, Pat and Shawn – What really happened at Kamp Kawanee??????????
************************

As we have over the past years we’ll be making a donation in your names to “save
Mother Earth” and help some of her needier children.

With Love at Christmas time 2006 and
Happy 2007 and always!

Uncle Mike and Aunt Cyndy