The Pace Picks Up!

It has been a hectic fortnight for North Woods and the pace just keeps picking up as we get closer to June!

Before I begin thanking the many who have assisted in ways both large and small, I would like to remind everybody that ANYONE is welcome to come help out during the pre-season. Yes, Joe Dooher, even after you put your arm in a cast :-)

Obviously, we hope that the traditional Memorial Day Work Weekend will be the best attended ever, but if you can spare another weekend or two we would love to see you up at camp!

Carole Gary - deserves special mention for spending Mother's Day working on creating the new garden behind the Arts & Crafts building so that the camp composting process can come full circle. We hope some day to see her sons Brian and Glen return to camp to help as well!

Tom and Ben Driscoll (Woodside '98)- performed as a wonderful father/son team doing a little bit of everything from sweeping out cabins in the old Senior Section, dragging brush in the Middler Village, clearing debris off the lower ball field to cleaning up Woodside and Shirley's old room in the Junior House.

They even managed to catch a glorious view of the lake from Abenaki Tower before sunset and pizza!!

John Trump came up to survey the condition of the Trail Lodge and begin preparation for the Old Timer's Weekend on June 4-6th.

Keith McCarthy, Jill Gary, Ysabel Baez, Jennifer Christian, Bonnie Johnson, Elliott Barry, Kate Bowie and Alice Maxfield Henchey - were kind enough to help out at the picnic and open house at Ponkapoag and answer questions for first time campers and parents. Nice to see Jeff Morgenstern drop by with his family. Note for future weekends, Elliott flips burgers with the best of them!

We have had other visitors to camp as well:

Rick Grenzeback gave a tour for his son Tyler, who will be following in his father's footsteps by staying in Trail 5 this season.

Andy, Rocco and the kids not only tested out kite flying on the upper ballfield which many of the cabins will be attempting this season, but also helped out by clearing the basketball court the old-fashioned way!

Speaking of members of the Todaro clan, I would be remiss if I did not mention the tremendous work that Linda Todaro has been doing with Roger Jones to provide leadership for the Nathan N. Todaro Leadership Center.

Thanks also to Kirk and Julie Bishop for opening their house up to us and having a slide show for over twenty in Wenham. Look out Winchester, Melrose, Needham and Lexington - you have friendly competition indeed!!

Our gratitude goes out to Richard Turner for his gift of canoe, picnic table, camping equipment and many other goodies that the staff and campers will find use for in '99. Likewise, our appreciation to Charles Sterling for donating Chip's windsurfing board and rig to help strengthen yet another program area this year.

Andy Sherman deserves special recognition for going above and beyond the call of duty for spending a very long weekend that began feeding a chipper on Friday and ended driving the stake-rack back to camp during the wee hours of Monday morning with nary a break in between. Then again, that's what one expects of the Forestry Patrol!

I would like to extend a hearty "welcome back" to Josh Otlin who returns from his sojourn in South Africa to take on the role of LIT Director.

A reminder to the '99 Staff: please get ALL of your paperwork in as soon as possible!  If you haven't yet received a staff packet please drop me a note.

Finally, to members of the Program Committee - this week's meeting is cancelled.

Details on our next meeting will be forthcoming at a later date.

David Goodwin, North Woods Director

"Staff picture on the lower ball field!"