Mr. Bill Hennenlotter
Camp Years 1940s - 1960s
My Life with “Mr. Bill”/“Ranger Bill” Hennenlotter at Nassau County 4H Camp by Judy (Tomshaw) Hennenlotter
Living at camp was an awesome 30 years –“Amazing!” We met so many wonderful, talented people who inspired us to be our very best! It truly was a “Living Laboratory of Leadership.”
Growing up I was in Girl Scouts and from childhood on, I’ve always loved the Great Outdoors – the birds, trees, wildlife, marine life, campfires, firelight, people, hiking, Indian Lore, songs, dances, jokes, meeting new people.
My life adventure began in 1965 at Drew University in New Jersey when my roommate, and fellow swim team member, Sandy Bergold asked me if I wanted to go with her to a “Work Weekend” at 4-H Camp on L.I. for a change of scenery.
I asked, “What kind of work?”
She replied, “Oh, painting, sweeping, clearing paths. It’ll be fun!”
Skeptically, “Yes.” When we arrived at camp, other teens were there: Eddie Goldmacher, Ginna Donovan, Kenny Clemens (who married Stephanie), Steve Case, Kenny Spitz, Big Mike, John Saunders (who four years later was an usher at our wedding), Kenny and Kathy Rathgeber, and several others.
One of our first jobs was painting the trim around the windows of Edranel Lodge. Peg Schroeder, our supervisor, taught me how to paint, “Never dip your brush all the way into the paint can, Judy!” We also cleaned the windows with vinegar water and newspaper (a trick I still use today!).
Mrs. Pugsley was the cook and Ray Timmon was the Camp Ranger. We had cold cuts and salad for lunch; for supper, Ray brought up lobsters which he’d caught in traps in LI Sound. In the evening, we assembled in Pine Tree Lodge. Nancy “Duffy” Schroeher and boyfriend Tom MacIver led square dancing. It was great fun! That was when I first met Bill with his hypnotizing blue eyes, fresh out of the U.S. Army and in great shape! I couldn’t wait for the next work weekend!
A few months later, Sandy learned about a job opening for Assistant Waterfront Director at Camp. She introduced me to Marilyn R. Meyer who hired me. So that summer and the next, I was a Senior Counselor working on the Waterfront–hard work and great fun!
At camp the Junior Counselors stayed in the cabins after the campers were in bed, while the Senior Counselors went to the dining hall for evening activities. We played all kinds of card games: Hearts, Spades, Bridge, etc. At first John Saunders and Peggy King were the “champs.” Bill and I were partners who quickly moved up from 2nd place. On our nights off, we took excursions to Bernie’s (now known as The Cooperage Inn), a local pub with a shuffle board and pool tables.
Sitting at the Staff Table was a special privilege. That was where the Camp Director and visiting special guests were welcomed and introduced, such as Agents Dell Thompson, Ted Jenkins, MRM, Phil Chipouras and his wife Jackie and any other special speakers who were leading classes. One Unit Leader a week rotated in and, for that privilege, led the camp in the “Welcome Song” (in Echo Style).
“We welcome you, to our camp so fair.
We’ll treat you with hospitality rare.
We’ll swim with you in our Sound serene
And in our woods, you can sit and dream.
And when it’s time for you to depart
Please take a bit of Camp 4H in your heart!”
After lunch or dinner, counselors took turns leading the campers in songs while the Junior Counselors scraped the leavings from the plates and brought the dirty dishes to the dishwasher. This is when “Mr. Bill” would interject with a whistle and announcement, “This is not a dishwasher dishwasher. This is a Sterilizing Dishwasher! So scrape your plates Clean!”
Some of Mr. Bill’s other “Billisms” were: “Was ist das, Mein Herr?” “Tables are for Glasses, not Asses,” Take your time going, but Hurry up back!” “When you’re at my shop, see if you can find some Elbow Grease,” “Mabel, Mabel, if you’re able, keep your elbows off the table.”
During camp, Marilyn R. Meyer led a Counselors Choir where we learned many songs and harmony so that we could lead the campers in singing. I made several lifelong friends there: Sandy Bergold, Beth Robinson, Eileen O’ Halloran, Mary MacDonald, Bonnie Green, Joanna Meyer, Mary Travato, Jan Moll, Kathy Rathgeber, Mary Music (who later married Lynn Pyle), Patty Federico, Ellen and Bonnie Tuminelli, Mrs. Vleik, and “Duffy” MacIver to name a few.
Each summer ended with a banquet put on by the junior staff to honor the senior staff. The junior staff secretly decorated the dining hall with a theme and each place setting had a souvenir by the name and a poem selected or written by MRM for each senior counselor. I was always impressed that each poem was so appropriate for each individual. Earlier in the day there was a vote and during the banquet MRM would read out the best song, the best raid, the best evening program and the best special day of the summer. The final event of the night was when MRM announced the person who won the recognition of Spirit of Camp.
After graduating from Drew with a BA in Psychology/Zoology, I began teaching 1st Grade at Peck School in Morristown, N.J. for $4000 a year. Once I earned my NJ teaching certification at Kean State Teachers College, I taught 30 third graders in Long Valley for $5,000 a year. I loved teaching BUT, after I contracted pneumonia, I decided teaching wasn’t for me.
Upon returning home from a summer European tour with two fellow teachers, I received an offer to be Program Director of the Brookhaven YMCA in Patchogue, LI. I taught twirling, Fun and Fitness, hired a Tennis Pro and Ski Instructor, worked with a Board of Directors, and ran a “Learn to Swim” program and a Day Camp where I used organizational skills I learned at 4-H Camp.
One night, I called 4-H Camp and surprisingly Bill, now the new Camp Ranger, answered the phone. Bill had grown up at camp, first attending when he was six years old. His father ran a grocery store in Merrick and knew Mr. Burkhardt well. Bill’s father passed away from a heart attack when he was 12, and Mr. Burkhardt took Bill under his wing. He brought Bill to 4-H Camp with his own son, Fritz, and daughter, Janet. At the age of 18, after his mom passed away from a heart attack, Bill joined the Army as a Reconnaissance photographer (flying in a helicopter over East Germany).
Upon returning home, he worked in bulkheading and dredging with Russ Wood, his best friend, during the week and volunteered at 4-H Camp with Ray Timmon on weekends. In Nassau County, as a hobby and for extra income, Bill raised guinea pigs and had a “Mouse House” with hundreds of white mice he raised for labs doing experiments for pharmaceutical companies.
Bill and I dated off and on and had some very unusual dates including a trip to Mrs. Pearly’s Menagerie in Maine where her dining room table was adorned with three STUFFED BEARS and a snowy white owl. During those three years I grew to recognize his work ethic and persistence and fell in love with his heart of gold.
We married in 1969, the year the Beatles “Hey Jude” and “Will you Marry Me, Bill?” were popular. While we were on our honeymoon in the Bahamas, Mona Leftoff and Willy Martin decorated our Camp Ranger’s house with green crepe paper steamers ending on our bed with the 4-H motto, “To Make Your Best Better.” Soon I was expecting our first child, Kathryn, so dainty and tiny, born December 30, 1970. (Through my YMCA work, I was inducted as the first woman Rotarian on L.I. during that pregnancy).
Sandy and I brought others from Drew to 4-H Camp–Mary Music and Lynn Roberts who taught in the Science Program with Marnie Sullivan. In 1966 after her father passed away, Marcia Kevitz arranged a donation of 11 of his Shetland ponies. So began our Equestrian Program.
Ray Timmon built a fence on Terry property across from the Camp Ranger’s House. Jean Jacobin, Ro Murphy, Erica Fine and several others taught pony care and led summer horsemanship classes. Richie Klauber became our farrier.
After Bill was hired as Camp Ranger, he built the horse stable and the recreation cabin for storing bats and balls, etc. near the water fountain. Both structures have been torn down now.
Joe Passantino, the Farm Manager at that time, gradually exchanged the ponies for horses. One was a beautiful white circus horse who stood on his hind legs when prompted. One was called “Clumsy” because his front feet would sometimes give out. “Big Red” was 17 hands high and could not be contained because he could jump fences. We had a Welsh Pony named “Peanut Butter.”“Appy,”an Appaloosa, was my favorite.
We were so fortunate to meet Camp America Exchange Counselors from England, France, Netherlands, Germany, Wales, Poland, East Germany, New Zealand, and Australia. On International Day our Exchange Counselors cooked a favorite meal from his or her country, wore a costume, or led a song.
One year our Welsh Exchange Counselor, Maraid taught us a hard to pronounce “Gaelic Song” which we all diligently practiced. When she left mid-summer and her sister flew over in her place, the whole camp sang the “Gaelic Song” to welcome her.
She responded with, “What are you singing?” When we told her Maraid had taught us this, she burst out laughing! Maraid had “made up” the song, and she won the award for the BEST RAID (prank) of the summer.
Another summer Joanna Meyer taught us Lummi Sticks–where two people sit facing one another crosslegged and tap two dowels each and click them, throw them to one another-very rhythmic challenging and fun. She also taught us Tinikling, a Philippine dance where you’re challenged to hop in and out of long poles being struck together (almost like jump rope).
Winter months, from December through February, were lonely at camp. My immediate neighbors were the horses and the chickens. We had one neighbor family, the Passantinos (who lived in the house at the east entrance by the road). Joe and Mary Lee had four children–Nancy, Peter, Rosalee, and Christopher. Mary Lee had a station wagon, and we’d all pile into it for our adventurers around town. She had a beautiful voice, and we sang all kinds of songs especially her favorites, John Denver’s.
Gradually, I met people in town, most of them Polish farmers– the Zilnickis, Deniseskis, Yakoboskis, Weslowskis who raised potatoes, cauliflower and strawberries on Riverhead’s vast fields. Then I met the Tramentanos, the Warners, the Talmadges, the Terrys, and the Goodales who later owned Riverhead Building Supply. The only stores in town at the time were Mid-Island Lumber, Sears, Barth’s Drug Store, Griffing Hardware, Main St. Diner, and Pop’s Ice Cream Parlor. Later on came Swizey’s Department Store.
Our mason, John Sendlewski built a beautiful brick fireplace in our living room. I had red (our favorite color) wool carpet installed throughout the house which helped warm the house up. When we were married, Bill only owned RED SOCKS. When I asked him why? Easier to match!
Bill asked me to always keep the coffee pot on because the electrician or plumber or fuel oil or milk delivery or lumber delivery might arrive. I can’t tell you how many mugs I washed nor how many phone calls I answered regarding camp. (Our phone and the camp phone were the same).
Bill had a friend Leo who raised hounds. Leo occasionally called after supper and asked if he could “run his hounds” and tree some raccoons. This helped keep the raccoon population down! At other times, our plumber, Dave Fulton, and his buddy hid in their “tree blinds” during deer season to hunt deer which helped keep that population culled.
Dogs became another problem! At summer’s end, visitors to the east end of L.I. left their dogs who “packed up” and killed our chickens and rabbits. So Bill kept his shot gun handy.
One day I walked up the camp road to meet Bill where he was working at the Cliff House. Baby Kathryn was in the carriage. Halfway there, dogs started following me. One by one, they surrounded us. I kept walking and shouting to Bill who came running out of the Cliff House yelling and waving his arms until they dispersed! Later he hunted them down.
Spring brought Strawberry season. Counselors were allowed to pick at our neighbor Jenny’s strawberry patch. Then Joe planted our own strawberry field. In September after camping season ended, Mary Lee and I picked the farm tomatoes. We usually canned about 38 quart jars each. A golden delicious apple tree on which George Burkhardt had grafted other varieties of apples stood at the entrance to the Burkhardt Arboretum. We picked them and made applesauce. Delicious!
One fall Joe borrowed a hand worked cider press and we (Joe, Bill, and I–Baby K in carriage) pressed our own cider–lots of work! Once we found out that Youngs Orchard and Farm Stand on Sound Ave sold their cider at a reasonable price, our cider pressing venture ended. Joe milked the cows and brought us fresh milk which I skimmed and pasteurized in our kitchen. Later on, MCarrick’s Dairy delivered our milk when they made the camp delivery. Remember the milk crates?
From the quiet of the winter, we went to the commotion of Spring, Summer and Fall. There was always someone going up or down the road-All Camp fire drills, cabin nights or units playing archery, soccer or baseball, hayrides or pony riding, chicken barbecue on Visitors Sunday, square dances or candle lighting ceremonies on the Tennis Courts. Fun times, but privacy was an issue because several people mistakenly took our home as the Camp Office. So Bill grew a private hedge around our house, and I posted our family names and planted flowers in window boxes.
Our friends Tony and Louise Tramentano’s little girl, Kristy, was the same age as Kathryn. When Louise decided to go back to teaching, I agreed to babysit Kristy. The two girls were inseparable. One day Kristy ran a fever and broke out in a rash. Louise took Kristy to Dr. Peoney, a pediatrician who diagnosed Kristy with measles and recommended that Louise terminate her pregnancy. (Both Louise and I were pregnant).
Thankfully, Dr. Brown another pediatrician in Southhampton, said he believed that Kristy had “Roseola” because there hadn’t been a case of measles in awhile. So, as preventatives, Louise and I took a series of Tartar Shots and prayed that Dr. Peoney’s diagnosis was incorrect knowing exposure to measles could cause birth defects. Thankfully, we both delivered healthy babies.
In 1972, our son Billy was born. Bill was overjoyed. He had his SON!
Billy was a colicky baby–quite a pair of lungs which led him to be a great
singer later on. Billy loved our walks and could open doors early on. One day
Kathryn, 4 years old, was outside with 2 year old Billy. I was watching from
the window and did not see Billy. I asked Kathryn where her brother went.
She shrugged her shoulders and pointed down the road. Luckily, I saw Billy
sneak through the gate to the horse pasture. “Appy” stood over him
protectively, preventing him from moving. The ponies had been fed and were
kicking up their heels and milling around. Close call!
Billy was always headed out the door and with 150 acres to wander, he
sometimes put himself in jeopardy. Thankfully, Dee (Popp) Martin, Camp
Director, and Peggy O’Connell were on the “look out.” Peggy swears her
back problems started when she’d stop Billy, who ran with his head down
like a battering ram, from running up the road.
Speaking of rams, on Billy’s 10th birthday, he had nine friends over to
play soccer on the field in front of our house. My mom and dad were visiting.
As she looked out the picture window, Mom exclaimed, “Look at this!” Our
billy goat was loose and playing soccer with the boys. (Unbelievably
hilarious!)
About this time Kathryn rode her bike down the camp road and skidded
on some gravel by the horse pasture. She landed on a boulder and hurt her
right ankle. Luckily, our babysitter Patty Zilnicki happened by and pushed
Kathryn back to our house on her bike. I iced her ankle and sent her to
school. The next day the school nurse called and said, “Mrs. H., you might
want to have this X-rayed.” Sure enough, it was broken! (What a Mom!)
I looked forward to Marilyn Meyer’s Friday night visits when she and
Bill, who was responsible for 150 acres and 105 buildings, devised a list and
the plan for the weekend and the week. She was always reassuring and a true
friend!
Since there were three camps, with three Dining Halls and two sets of
beach steps, something always needed to be fixed, repaired or built, such as a
cabin or roof. Fortunately, from the end of February on, Teen Work
Weekends were interspersed with Council Weekends. Under Bill’s tutelage,
the teens learned life skills. Some of Bill’s helpers over the years were Bob
Denihan, Charlie Miereau, Willy Martin, Todd Shapiro, Mike and Steve
Masaryk, and Ulle from Germany.
A thirty foot deep well supplied cold and refreshing water to the Camp
Ranger’s house. One winter the pump broke. We had no water in the house. I
had two children in diapers. Plus I was babysitting Christine, another two
year old in diapers while my friend Wendy was in the hospital. Luckily, the
Cliff House had water. So we spent the week there while the well pump was
restored.
In early spring 1973, “Mr. Bill” started an apiary of 12 hives which he
tended over in Wildwood, just south of the Burkhardt Arboretum and
Memorial Garden. Our summer neighbors, Dele and Arnold Workman who
lived on the Bluff between Pine Tree and Wildwood, were experts at
beekeeping and taught Bill some of the basics such as beekeeping attire and
smoking the hives. After a couple of years, Bill was stung by a bee that got
caught in his mustache. After his whole face swelled up, he discovered he
was allergic to bees, and a change in hobbies was in order.
Dele and Arnold Workman volunteered their time several summers
teaching leather craft, cedar craft, woodworking, and “Peter Hunt” painting.
So when they passed away, Bill was eager to build the Dele-Ar Craft, the
octagonal shelter in Pine Tree, in their honor.
Mrs. Pugsley, our cook in Edranel, taught me how to use left-overs. She
never let anything go to waste. You never knew what you might find in your
meatloaf–corn, peas, or string beans, and it was delicious. She also taught me
how to bake cakes that count, e.g. carrot cake and zucchini bread, and how to
sweeten chocolate cake with beets.
In Wildwood, Ally Ackerman, our Swedish cook, taught me how to bake
fresh yeast bread and rolls just like she did for each meal. I and my family are
forever grateful.
Under Marilyn Meyer’s leadership, counselors and campers from all
denominations learned to respect, appreciate and encourage one another.
After a delicious meal, we’d sing, “Cookie, Cookie, listen while we sing to
you…”
Before meals we sang Grace, being thankful for what we had been given.
1. Johnny Appleseed “Oh the Lord is good to me, and so we thank the
Lord…”
2. “For health and strength and daily food, we praise thy name, dear Lord.”
In April 1975 our “Debbie dimples” was born. She was born naturally
and was an easy baby with a delightful temperament (still is). When Debbie
was still a baby, Bill brought home a little lamb whose mother had
abandoned her. So I bottle fed the lamb and baby Debbie at the same time–
even for the 2 a.m. feedings. And the lamb really did follow me around
everywhere I went. It was fun, but I was relieved the day the lamb rejoined
the farm.
One day I had Debbie in my arms as I watched Kathryn and Billy who
had gotten into the car. I misstepped off the stoop, fell and broke my right
tibia. Fortunately, Kathryn was wonderful at following directions and was
able to call for help.
My friend Wendy drove me to the hospital. The doctor put me in a
walking cast and told me to go home and elevate it. Boy, did I belly laugh! “I
have a four and a half year old, a two year old, and an infant. You’ve got to
be kidding me.”So for the rest of the summer, I was in a walking cast and
Kathryn was myhelper. “Please get the bottle from the fridge for Debbie,” or
“Get a diaper for Debbie,” or “See where Billie is.” etc.
During the 1976 camp season we had a special day to celebrate
America’s Bicentennial. At that time, there were about 500 campers in the
three camps. All the campers and counselors participated in a huge parade
wearing costumes they had made themselves with the help of their
counselors, Mrs. Workman, Mrs. Finnegan, Mrs. Peterson, and Mrs. Meyer.
Ranger Bill made a Conestoga wagon from the farm wagon. I sewed
period costumes for our family, and we rode in the parade. One of the male
counselors, dressed up as “Father Time,” wore a huge diaper and a huge
chain watch. Everyone was so creative!
In September 1976, Dee Popp and Willie Martin were married in
Wildwood. They had planned to be married in the Pine Forest because the
lowest pine tree branches, 10 feet off the ground, gave the forest a cathedral
effect. However, it teamed that day, one of the heaviest rainfalls on record.
So Wildwood Lodge became the venue. Kathryn, age 5, was Dee’s flower
girl, and Billy, age 3 was the ring bearer. Grandma and Pop Pop came from
NJ to babysit Debbie.
In the winter of 1976, fire trucks heading up the road awakened us early.
Our farm neighbor, friend, and firefighter, Marvin Warner noticed black
smoke billowing from the camp. Tanager (the winterized building next to
Edranel Lodge) was on fire! The firefighters managed to contain the fire,
BUT Tanager burned to the ground. The floors in Tanager had just been
gym-sealed, and it was suspected spontaneous combustion. Needless to say,
rebuilding Tanager was on “Mr. Bill’s” list.
After the Passantinos moved to upstate NY, a new farm manager, Willy
Hsiang arrived with his wife, Kathy, and their son, Ezra. Willy expanded the
farm by planting more fields of corn, pumpkins, watermelons, a peach
orchard, and crabapple trees.
Willy reintroduced wild turkeys, which were native to Long Island. Soon
neighbors from Reeves Park called to say, “Can you come and get your
turkeys? They are in our yard.” Unfortunately, wild turkeys can fly 40 feet in
the air and roost in trees.
Since Bill was doing so much carpentry, he often came home with
splinters in his hands. After witnessing me removing splinters from his hands,
little three year old Debbie came after me with tweezers saying, “I help you
with splinters, Mommy,” as she tried to remove the stubble from my
unshaven legs (a nurse even then).
When Millie became Wildwood’s cook, I babysat for Kelly and Erin.
Debbie and Erin played with their Barbie dolls or doll house or outside with
the baby bunnies.That school year, Kathryn brought home a kitten from her
teacher’s cat’s litter. We called the kitten Butterscotch because of her color.
Debbie and Butterscotch were inseparable.The kitten rode on her shoulder
and allowed Debbie to dress her up in doll’s clothes. Butterscotch remained a
true member of our family for 15 years.
When Debbie was five, she and Erin asked if they could ride their bikes
on the tennis courts in from of our house. Since I could see them from our
picture window, I said, “Okay.” Erin and Debbie decided to go down the hill,
but Debbie had not learned how to stop her bike yet. The next thing I knew,
one of the mothers from the group by the baseball diamond was carrying
Debbie up toward the house. As I ran down to meet them, David Dutcher was
driving the blue Army jeep down the road and saw me. He piled us into the
Jeep and drove us to the hospital emergency room (five minutes away) where
she was treated for two skinned knees and received 12 stitches in her shin.
Thank goodness for EMT David Dutcher and his serendipitous arrival.
During MRM’s tenure, Indian lore was very much a part of Camp 4-H.
“Color Wars” was competition between tribes in sports where each tribe wore
a different color. There were tribal songs and challenges and tribal Indian
dress.
Before Council Fire, we lined up in our tribes. One camper from each
tribe, leading her tribe and holding an armful of sticks for the fire,
approached the chief and asked, “Kola, Oh Great Chief, may I and my tribe
enter?”
The chief asked, “What tribe do you represent?”
The camper responded, “I represent the Algonquin, or Cherokee, or
Delaware, orMohawk, or Montauk, or Ojibway, or Seneca, or Shinnecock
tribe.”
Then the tribe was allowed to enter the Council Fire ring and be seated.
(“Mr. Bill” built the council fire, but Ms. Meyer, the chief, always started the
fire by a secret method that corresponded to the story she told). So
impressive!
And who can forget Marilyn Meyer at Council Fire in Indian Chief
Dress, including a full headdress, raising her arms to the sky and chanting,
“Wa kan da Tha Thu, Wa pan din A To Na” followed by the words, ”A
needy one stands before thee. I that pray am she” as she opened the
encampment ending Council Fire awards ceremony. And the ending songs,
“Each campfire lights anew, the flame of friendship true. The joy we’ve had
in knowing you will last our whole life through” followed by “Day is Done.”
On Memorial Day weekend (which was Bill’s time off), Bill and I
hosted a family picnic with Mom and Dad, aunts, uncles, cousins and friends
from church. We held it in the picnic area in front of our house. My Uncle Al
mowed the picnic area and the field in front of our house. I painted all the
picnic tables which Bill had repaired. It was a “covered dish” picnic and great
fun!
After Marilyn Meyer passed the camp manager baton to Don
O’Callaghan, he instituted family camping on Memorial Day Weekend. It
was a wonderful opportunity for those who had never been to summer camp.
Families such as: the MacLellans, the Breidenbachs, the Masariks, the
Sobeys, Fran and Denny Finnegan, the Sullivans, the Stachelaks, the Sellars,
the Hines, the Murphys (Momma Murphy was the nurse), the Brechts (Sue
was the secretary), and of course, the O’Callaghans,and Hennenlotters and
many others. Each day everyone had a class schedule just like in a summer
camp session.
One morning as I was walking from our house through the woods and
Pioneering Unit in Wildwood, I came face to face with Sean Brecht and ten
year old Billy Hennenlotter. Sean saw me and immediately handed the
matches to Billy. They had learned to make a fire in the Outdoor Living class
and decided to put their new knowledge “to the test.” Another “close call.”
In 1979 under Ranger Bill and Bill Devlin’s supervision, former staff
members and alumni helped build the two story Science Center between
Edranel and Wildwood. John Sendlewski was the mason. It was quite an
accomplishment.
One winter, Bill and I decided to start a 4-H Club with our new
neighbors from Reeves Park, Rolling Woods, and Dolphin Way east of 4-H
camp. Bill built a rabbit hutch across the street from the Camp Ranger’s
House, and we raised lap-eared grey bunnies and a New Zealand white
rabbit. Our children recycled vegetable food scraps to feed the rabbits.
Kathryn showed our New Zealand white rabbit at the county fair and won a
prize.
One parent taught “How to Make a Doorbell” and another taught First
Aid. With our Suffolk County Agent, Bob Kent, we learned “Know Your
Trees.” I taught how to make an apron, how to bake “Cakes That Count,”
how to make “Dinner Tacos,” and ornithology. Bill taught entomology.
Through our 4-H Club, I met my good friend Anita Chukijian who
helped me find a part time job with the US Office of Personnel Management.
I worked three half days a week, which fit my schedule like a glove. I put the
kids on the bus in the morning, and I was home when they came home from
school. So for 15 years, I worked for the Federal Government.
In November 1982, at the age of 42, Ranger Bill had his first heart
attack! As the paramedics wheeled him into the hospital he said, “Just like
my father.” (All the men in Bill’s family died before the age of 50). “If I live
through this, I will never smoke another cigarette again.” And he didn’t.
Bill had to be appointed each year as Camp Ranger. His job was never
secure. Thankfully, Marilyn Meyer assured me that as long as she was alive,
we’d have a place to live. Coincidentally, in 1982 the Oddfellows Lodge (of
which Bill was a member) inherited 627 Roanoke Avenue from Henry
Hooper. The Lodge held a members only bidding auction for it. We put in a
bid and won! It was security in case we had to move.
During the winters in the 70s and 80s, Bill plowed the camp roads. Extra
snow always drifted across Edranel Road. Then we’d all go sleigh riding
down the hill in front of our house. It was a special family event.
On weekdays Bill prepared for the additional hands he had on the spring,
fall and occasional winter work weekends. The work weekends often
alternated among Council groups. When the Councils started disbanding in
1989 and 1990, the powers that be let church groups rent a weekend in Pine
Tree. I was then hired as a cook earning $150 per weekend.
While our children were little, I taught C.I.T. (counselor in training)
classes at a picnic table across from our house. Two of my star C.I.T. pupils
were Melanie Yules and Bonnie Garone.
When our children were old enough, they attended camp and learned
many things including cutting boards, silk screening, and cedar craft from
Adrienne Lowe. In Wildwood Billy learned leather working, rocketry,
archery, outdoor living, Native American lore, macrame, and lanyards.
One summer we had quite an infestation of poison ivy. Camp Director
“Sam” Stanton and our five year old Debbie (both with poison ivy and
wearing aviator glasses) stood up together and gave announcements.
Once our children started camp, I returned to the waterfront teaching
swimming until I was 40 with some wonderful counselors such as: Ronnie
De Koenig, Judy Cranch, Jeannie Schroeder, exchange counselors Sally
Burton (New Zealand) and Eileen Troughton (Australia) and returning
Waterfront Director “Duffy” MacIver. After retiring from the waterfront, I
led classes in Home Ec sewing stuffed animals “Pound Puppies,” counted
cross stitch and embroidery, candle wicking and making macrame hanging
planters.
After I finished final patrol (Senior Staff members took turns to make
sure all campers and staff were in bed with lights out) one night, I was in
Edranel Lodge taking out the last bit of garbage. All of a sudden the door
knob turned and in peeked a masked raccoon.
Startled, I yelled, “What are you doing here?” He or she quickly shut the
door and ran away. That’s the first time I realized raccoons can open and
close doors!
During another final patrol on a Cabin Night, I discovered a cabin of
campers was missing! I sounded the alarm, and we had an all camp search.
It turned out, the junior counselor had taken her campers on a walk down the
old beach trail and gotten lost. It was getting dark. They were in a thicket,
and it started to rain. Counselor Jackie had the girls sit down and start to sing
all the camp songs they could remember. Laughing and singing they dubbed
it the most memorable cabin night.
Some nights, we planned a Special Day-–making posters or costumes or
learning special songs or dances. One year we did Disneyland. Bob John
rented and donned a Mickey Mouse costume and sat on top of the Farm
Building waving to the campers as they went by. Another year “Quimby and
Baylor,” Phil Schaefer and Gary, painted a yellow line down the road from
Edranel to Wildwood when we did “TheWizard of Oz.” Another year we did
an International Day-very successful!
On Beach Sundays, after a turkey dinner, the whole camp headed to the
beach for a “free swim.” Counselors, especially Carol Greenberg, carried
Army Jerry Jugs full of water down the 150 stairs. (Eventually, Ranger Bill
connected a water hose to the beach via the bluff).
The summer Dave Timmon, Ray’s son, returned as Boys Waterfront
Director Mary Grace Raccioppi was the Home Ec Center counselor. Each
week she regularly “borrowed” Dave’s swimsuits off the line and took them
in little by little so Dave thought he was gaining weight. Mary Grace won
“Best Raid” (prank) that summer.
Many of the campers returned year after year and so became family,
“camp cousins.” Some even fell in love and married, i.e. Sean Machellen and
Carolyn Edward.
Through the decades we had wonderful camp staff members. Among the
fine nurses were Mrs. Vliek, Trisha Stanley, Nancy Irribaren, Debbie
Dutcher, Momma Murphy, Debbie Sellars, and Pat Sullivan
Some notable cooks were Mrs. Pugsley, Cookie DeVeau, Mae Sosko
with my sister Joan as assistant, Ally Ackerman, Maryann Grippe, Millie O.,
and IrenePracher. But one did more than cook. Sue Manning, in Edranel,
talked me into all kinds of shenanigans. In 1985, Duffy, Sue and I dressed up
in duck costumes which Duffy sewed. We appeared in Edranel as “Huey,
Dewey, and Screwy” and since we only quacked, no one knew who we were.
Another time Sue, Diane Hines, and I dressed up as turtles with green
stockings over our heads and arms wearing camouflage scarves covered
washtubs on our backs. During evening program, we crawled in, Sue in the
lead, to lip-synch “The Turtle Band.” Another time I had to play ”look out”
while Sue stenciled “4-H” on the rear ends of the horses. Then there was the
morning Willy Hsiang delivered two peach baskets filled with peaches to the
Edranel kitchen. Sue challenged me to peel, cut up, and bake 12 pies by lunch
time (and I did).
BUT the “piece de resistance” was the night Sue had Duffy and me
swim two miles from the wrecks to Reeves Beach pulling a canoe, a torch on
each end and Sue, dressed as Geronimo, sitting in it. The whole camp, sitting
on the beach stairs for the Candlelight Ceremony, watched this reenactment
of the “Legend of Geronimo.” What a woman Sue was!
In 1985 Hurricane Gloria knocked down numerous trees in the Pine
Forest. It was a domino effect as they all fell. On the girls’ side, the water
rose so high that we used the row boats to go from Grey Beech to the Edranel
dining hall.
In 1991 Hurricane Bob hit! For whatever reason, the outgoing
encampment was not bussed home after the incoming encampment was
dropped off! (Who would send their kids to camp in a hurricane?)
By lunchtime, we had lost power and served whatever we could find by
candlelight. Fortunately, Kathryn (then Assistant Waterfront Director), and
Chris Webb, Kelly O’Callaghan, Linda Baraban, the Unit Leaders, were well
experienced at adapting! They led a continuous songfest.
Meanwhile, Lorraine Jensen Boyles and her husband had been camping
at Indian Island State Park and sought shelter from the storm at 4-H Camp.
As a former Camp Director, she went to work right away! We passed out
board games and crafts and managed to keep all the campers comfortably
occupied until a bus picked up the outgoing campers at 4 p.m.
Eileen and Chris Jahn were also there. Chris was indispensable as he
wielded his chainsaw clearing downed trees to help “Mr. Bill” provide safe
paths for the incoming campers to go to the washhouse and their cabins for
the night.
In 1987 I started working full-time in the middle school while taking
evening courses at Long Island University Southhampton to pursue my MA
in Reading and NY State Teaching Certification. That summer I was hired as
Children’s Librarian for Riverhead summer school. It was a wonderful and
fulfilling job, and the salary helped pay for our children’s college
applications and tuition. I continued working as the Children’s Librarian until
2003 (even after Bill retired, and we moved to Florida).
Riverhead High School was known for its superb music education and
theater productions. Both Kathryn and Billy had lead roles in musicals such
as “Grease,” “Jesus Christ Superstar,” “Pirates of Penzance,”and “Anything
Goes.”
Kathryn graduated with honors in 1989 and attended Geneseo State
University. She received her MA in ESL from Stony Brook University and
taught ESL in the Czech Republic In 1996.
Billy graduated with honors in 1990 and attended Swarthmore College
and Stony Brook University where he studied Engineering and Biology.
Debbie chose NJ ROTC as her interest in high school and excelled in Drill
Team and sports. She graduated from Riverhead High in 1993 and from
Ithaca College with a degree in Finance and Economics in 1996.
During this time Hal Ifft succeeded Don O’Callaghan and stopped teen
work weekends!! With the same responsibilities but without help, Bill had to
open up the camp. Working alone he cleared the roads and paths, sprayed
bactericide, repaired the screens, added another door to each cabin, repaired
the floor and windows of Edranel Lodge, painted the trim, etc. He also built
three super cabins, with wooden bunk beds, a new Unit Leader cabin, a small
gazebo by Wildwood’s baseball field and repaired the beach steps. At the
farm, Bill built the Hayden Building and the two story storage building by the
Camp Ranger’s house. Then Hal requested that Bill electrify all the cabins.
All this very stressful work affected Bill’s health. In 1995, he suffered
his second heart attack and underwent quadruple bypass surgery. When he
came home, he started running a fever. I called the hospital, and they told me
that it was normal. I went up to see Pat Sullivan, the camp nurse, and asked
her to come and check Bill out. She examined Bill, called the hospital and
said, “This man needs to be in ICU STAT!” An ambulance came for him, and
he was admitted to the ICU. Ultimately, he returned home and soon resumed
working. He kept up the best he could with help from Willy Martin, Stephen
from East Germany, Todd Rosenberg, and me.
Bill’s wonderful cardiologist, Dr. Babu Easow, was a Christian who
prayed with Bill during our visits. At that time, he made it clear that if Bill
wanted to live, he needed to retire. So in December of 1997, we said goodbye
to Camp 4-H and moved to Florida.
Through it all, we knew God continued to watch over us. In his last year
at camp, Bill earned $30,000. Though we had not had much money through
the years, we had fringe benefits which included a comfortable home, as
much government surplus cheese, peanut butter, and eggs as we wanted, and
the gleaning of the veggies at the farm. Because we earned below low income
level, our children, who did so well in school, qualified for substantial college
scholarships.
On his deathbed, Bill expressed how happy he was to have lived to see
his three children graduate from high school and college, to attend Kathryn
and Tom’s wedding, to be Bill’s groomsman/best man at his wedding, to see
his youngest daughter become a Navy nurse, and to get to know his six
grandchildren.
We were blessed in so many ways. I truly believe we were predestined to
lead that life. When Bill proposed to me, he said, "I don’t have much to give
you except myself, but I promise you will never starve.”
My “Mr. Bill” delivered much more than promised. He greeted each
day with a smile, grateful to be alive. We thrived as a loving family,
surrounded by nature and a camp life filled with people who enriched our
lives in unique and memorable ways.