A Voice for the Good: Camp Whitley
3Rivers is proud to support so many of the non-profit organizations that are committed to making our community a better place to live, work, and play, and we want to help spread the word about the difference they're making in our region. We’ve teamed up with 97.3WMEE to bring you A Voice for the Good, a series in which we feature local organizations on our website in the form of an informative articles as well as on-air segments highlighting the non-profits’ missions.
This article features Camp Whitley, a local non-profit with a mission dedicated to character development, outdoor recreation, sportsmanship, and leadership enhancements for campers, staff, and community.
We connected with Hannah Walters, Camp Director, to learn more about how this organization is making an impact in our community.
How did Camp Whitley come to be? What’s the history/story behind how the organization initially got started?
Camp Whitley began as a dream for a man named Walter Stephenson. Walt, a Columbia City school shop teacher, established an annual “appreciation outing” for students who helped him clean up at the end of the school year. In 1927, he decided to make a permanent “home” for the outing and inquired about land on Troy Cedar Lake. He wanted to provide an overnight experience for the youth of Whitley County (originally marketed towards young boys from the area). In 1928, his first session of Whitley County Boys and Girls Camp took place on Troy Cedar Lake but was owned by Clarence Eisaman. There were three, one-week sessions. The first group of campers slept in army tents on the ground. They were instructed on riflery, archery, nature identification, fire building, and other outdoor survival techniques and skiffs by Mr. Stephenson. For many years, the Camp was run as an independent entity, providing a reprieve for the young males of Whitley County during the Depression years.
In 1929, Mr. Stephenson purchased the land for $1 and gave Whitley County Boys and Girls Camp a permanent home. Stephenson got support from Columbia City School Trustees for financial assistance.
In 1937, the Columbia City Schools Trustees purchased the land known as Whitley County Boys and Girls Camp for $1 from Walt Stephenson and purchased additional land (now known as the Pointe) for $1 from Harry Clark, who assumed managerial and financial control over the Whitley County Boys and Girls Camp.
In 1938, Stephenson held a local contest to rename the camp. “Camp Whitley” was the chosen winner.
In 1940, Watler Stephenson sold what is known as Tinkham's Woods (purchased from A.A. Harker in the same year) to Columbia City School Trustees for $1 and ends his 15-year tenure with Camp Whitley. Art Lloyd succeeds him as the new Director. Columbia City Schools Trustees maintain ownership and financial and managerial control over Camp Whitley.
Again, for many years, the Camp thrived and was a very rich and integral part in the lives of hundreds of Whitley County children. By the 1950's the camp was providing a residential camp for the young girls of the area, too.
There were 12 permanent cabins built to house the children, and the lodge was erected to provide a large gathering place for the campers. During their stay the children participated in many of the same activities as experienced by campers today. Throughout her history, Camp Whitley has even seen the incorporation of horses and go-carts into the daily activities.
Originally, all meals were prepared for the campers from the supply of food they would bring with them to Camp. It is recorded that a week at Camp Whitley had cost $3 and a bag of whatever food the family could afford to send with their child. Many times, there were bags full of vegetables and fruit from the family gardens and bags upon bags of canned foods. The cook would take whatever the children had brought and create their meals. Campers never knew what to expect when they entered the mess hall for meals!
For almost 60 years the local school system (since named Whitley County Consolidated Schools in 1990) would oversee the summer operations of the Camp. Many of the Camp Directors were involved in the school system as teachers or administrators. The staff often was composed of teenagers who had themselves been campers at Camp in their younger years. During the 1970's and the 1980's the enrollment for Camp had soared so quickly that all available space was utilized to provide housing for the campers, including the loft on the lodge (usually reserved for the counselors). The camper numbers were as high as 125 per week, which made for very tight quarters in some of the original cabins!
The early 1990's marked a dry period for Camp Whitley enrollment. The prosperity of sports camps, day camps, and other summer activities for youth created competition for the Camp in enrolling campers. At the end of the summer of 1993, the Whitley County Consolidated School Board decided to maintain the campgrounds for school purposes only. There would be no residential camp offered. Essentially, Camp Whitley was ceasing to exist!
During the summer of 1994, Camp Whitley grounds were utilized by the local YMCA for a day camp and by the school corporation for the summer biology classrooms. It seemed that the last Friday night bonfire had burned out permanently at the end of the previous summer. Many in the community were upset with the closing of a Whitley County institute, but six individuals combined efforts to form a Task force to ensure the reopening of Camp Whitley for the fall of 1994. The original six Task Force members, Dick Cira, Carrie Gates, Jeff Harker, Randy Plew, Devon Schuman, and Reisa Snyder set out to find community members to "back" the reopening of the Camp and to solicit the local School Board to provide for the reopening.
Camp Whitley officially opened her doors (or gates) to campers for a residential camp again in the summer of 1995!
From 1995 until March of 1998, the Camp was theoretically governed by the Whitley County Consolidated School Board, although the actual management of the residential camp was controlled by the Camp Whitley Task Force. The Camp was in serious need of repairs and improvements to make the leap into the new millennium. It appeared to be too costly for the school to maintain and upkeep Camp Whitley for the small amount of usage by the school. Camp Whitley was purchased in March 1998 by the Task Force members and is now run as a not-for-profit organization. Camp Whitley, Tinham’s Woods and the Pointe were sold to the Task Force for $10 and two conditions: WCCS was allowed two appointed Directors on the Board of Directors, and should Camp Whitley, Inc cease to function as a summer residential camp, ownership of the grounds and programming would revert to WCCS to utilize as they see fit.
The Task Force became the Board of Directors and oversaw the management of the Camp. The Whitley County YMCA had even been given permission in the past to use the lakefront for boating and swimming for the "Y" day camp program, and Camp saw her first coed camp sessions when the Whitley County Soil and Conservation Camp chose Camp Whitley and her staff to run their “Soil Camp."
In 2000, additional land on both sides of the drive coming through Camp Whitley was purchased by Camp Whitley, Inc. from LeRoy Waugh through generous grants from Dekko Foundation and Whitley County Community Foundation, making the total acreage at 85.
The staff of Camp Whitley continues to provide an updated program that incorporates many of the old-fashioned ideals established by Mr. Stephenson, 80 years ago. Although the facilities are crowded at times, many in this area are pleased that Camp Whitley is still "alive and kicking” and providing memories that last a lifetime for her campers. The spirit of Camp Whitley reawakens each summer to the joyful peal of children's laughter resonating through the woods as they experience her magic and the traditions passed on through generations of campers.
What is the official mission of Camp Whitley, and how is it currently being put into play?
Camp Whitley is dedicated to character development, outdoor recreation, sportsmanship, and leadership enhancements for campers, staff, and community. Camp Whitley provides an opportunity for your camper to have positive interaction with peers and adult staff. These relationships support our commitment to the value of youth. Camp Whitley provides an environment that fosters a healthy atmosphere, encourages positive self-image, and promotes independence with old- fashioned fun. Camp Whitley truly "makes memories for a lifetime."
Our staff learns the mission throughout their training week to better understand why we do what we do. It all boils down to an acronym that we reference often (and is easier to remember), C.A.R.E.
—C (Character Building & Development): is this interaction/sport/choice good for their character development?
—A (Atmosphere): is it healthy, is it inclusive of everyone, is it positive, etc.
—R (Respect): are we respecting camp itself, and each other?
—E (Esteem): are we encouraging and helping build self-esteem in our campers and each other?
Our staff are asked to reference care with each decision and interaction they have at camp. They are also encouraged to share these attitudes with our campers! Ultimately, we are aiming to build a healthy and safe community for everyone, and our mission is our compass wherever we go.
How do you see the mission and vision of Camp Whitley evolving in the future in the Northeast Indiana community? Where do you see your organization a year from now, or even five years from now?
I hope that our mission remains the same, as I think with each passing year it is harder to attain. Kids and parents are not used to being apart like they used to be, so independence is sometimes a tough skill to learn. Outdoor recreation and valuing communities seem to be lacking in comparison to the past. So, we aim to keep these values and skills alive through summer camp. Most of these skills and beliefs are valued by our community, there is just less opportunity in day-to-day life to practice them.
With our camp coming up on its 100-year anniversary, I hope to see some improvements made to our facilities. For example, we are slowly out growing our mess hall and lodge areas. I would love to see our buildings be expanded and updated within the next decade.
Are there any exciting new developments, updates, or changes that have recently taken place at Camp Whitley?
Yes! Over the past year there have been some updates on our facilities. Our riflery range was updated with a brand-new backstop. We have also purchased several new kayaks for our campers.
This year our infirmary is getting a much-needed makeover. Our infirmary is held in a small cabin in the center of camp. We are putting in new windows, insulation, air conditioning, new lights and flooring.
As far as programming, we have added a day camp option for our younger campers who might be nervous about staying overnight. This option is from 9-5 Monday-Friday.
Could you share a standout story or two that really illustrates the impact of Camp Whitley and/or its programs has on those in our community?
With Camp Whitley coming up on its 100th year, there are thousands of stories you could hear about camp in our community. I think the message I hear the most from our recent campers and their families is one about mental health and confidence.
A huge problem kids are facing today is anxiety, and it’s something we work with every single week at camp. Usually with more than one camper. Their anxiousness could be general, or it could be about specific aspects of camp. For example: sharing a cabin with new people, being in nature at night, meeting and trusting new adults, eating food that doesn't come from their own kitchen, swimming in something other than a pool, fitting in with others. The list goes on. While it is difficult for campers to work through their anxiety at camp, I almost always hear positive feedback from their families at the end. I credit this to our staff who take mental health very seriously and always are there for our campers every step of the way. They can help them through their emotions and problem solving. By the end of the week, campers are proud of themselves for getting out of their comfort zone and making fun memories along the way. We even have an award for those kids who persevere and grow within themselves! We call it our Johnny Appleseed award. The smiles and excitement from our end of the week award ceremonies are priceless, and that award is very special to us.
On a less serious side, I think our traditions and stories have made an impact on our community. I often hear questions such as, “Do you still tell the story of the Lost Camper?” Or, “Do you still sing the song about Cowboy Joe?” My favorite question I had heard from an elderly man was, “Do you still have a donkey up at Tinkhams?” We still have many of the same stories, songs and traditions that camp had 60 years ago. Unfortunately, we do not have a donkey up at Tinkhams, which is what we call an area for opening night campfires. Memories from camp really do last!
How can those interested in your services go about getting started or getting in touch?
They can visit our website to check out more about our summer programs. If they would like to speak to me or a board member, they can find both the camp email and my email there. We are also very responsive to Facebook and Instagram messages.
Are there other local non-profit organizations that Camp Whitley works/partners with to enhance their programs?
For the past few years, we have been partnering with Easterseals and Boys and Girls Club. For one week, they come out for a day camp! We have games, swimming, arts and crafts, boating and nature hikes with these kids and the staff. We have really enjoyed our relationship with these groups and are so thankful they come out to play with us. We also partner with Scout Troop 84 of Columbia City regularly providing the Scouts access to our grounds in exchange for assisting us with the numerous projects we have.
The Community Foundation of Whitley County has been an awesome help to Camp Whitley. They have helped fund many of our projects.
Are there opportunities for community members to volunteer at Camp Whitley—and if so, how can they go about learning more?
Absolutely! We have two scheduled community days every year. We have a day in April dedicated to being a pre-camp prep day. We finish projects, landscape, clean, organize, paint, etc. It is a day dedicated to opening camp and blowing off the winter dust before campers arrive. We have a second community day at the end of October, dedicated to closing and winterizing the camp. If you would like more information, please reach out via email or on our social media pages.
In what other ways can community members support Camp Whitley—be it through monetary donations, material donations, education, etc.? Do you have an itemized wish list of any kind or utilize options like AmazonSmile to raise funds?
We do have an Amazon wishlist on our website! Lots of items on there to support our campers and staff: art supplies, organizational tools, medical items, kitchen equipment, games and office supplies, etc. We appreciate the support through Amazon!
This year we have had more requests for scholarships than ever. Life is getting expensive, but kids still need camp! We always take donations to fund camper scholarships. Each camper scholarship is $375. There is a donate option on our website. We take donations through Paypal or check.
Where can our readers learn more about Camp Whitley or about getting involved?
Visit campwhitley.org or our Facebook or Instagram pages. Our email is campwhitley1928@gmail.com.
Donations through checks can be mailed to:
4305 West Camp Whitley Road
Columbia City, IN 46725
Is there anything else you’d like our readers to know about Camp Whitley?
I do want to mention our staff training. If you are over 30 and went to a summer camp, it is likely that your camp counselors only did lifeguard training and took CPR courses as their training. Today, it is a very different story! We have mental health professionals, police officers, firefighters, and our nurse all guests speak and train during our designated staff training week. They all hit the procedures and protocols for any major or minor emergency that may happen. Staff also learn about homesickness, safe boundaries, incident report writing, behavior management and weather preparedness. They also get to plan programs, play games and go through team building exercises. It is a jam-packed week, so we can be as safe and prepared as possible for our campers and families. Don’t worry, we still fit in lifeguarding and CPR too!
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