By Henry Paul Johnson, Maine Summer Camp Historian According to a newsletter article published by Camp Wohelo in 1942: “All the camps of Maine are co-operating to raise money for the Red Cross. The total amount raised will be sent to the Treasurer of the Maine Camp Directors’ Association in a lump sum at the end of the summer.” As further stated in the article published by Camp Wohelo in 1942: “We have high hopes in regard to the amount we will be able to raise. Each camp will try to do its part to help this worthwhile co-operative venture. Through the Red Cross Life Saving Program, the camps have been assisted for many years.” In the context of this...

  Beigette Gill certainly knows about girls and their journeys. Fernwood Cove, the camp in Harrison that Beigette owns and directs with her husband, Jim, provides hundreds of girls each summer with the opportunity for connection, challenge and personal growth. Now Beigette is also sharing her passion for and commitment to high school girls’ development by guiding participants in the Olympia Snow Women’s Leadership Institute. The Institute, serving high school girls since 2015, was founded by former Maine Senator Olympia Snowe “to raise the confidence and aspirations of high school girls by helping them develop the skills needed to be leaders in their lives, families, careers, and communities.” This mission statement is complemented by the program’s vision to be a...

  Directing a camp comes with its own unique set of rewards – and challenges. For new camp directors facing such challenges, the support of more seasoned professionals can be invaluable. When Mike Douglass began directing Camp Bishopswood more than a dozen years ago, he says, “I remember that I randomly sat down with Cat (Sangster) and Peter (Kassen) at the networking extravaganza and I thought to myself, oh my gosh, they are so good at what they do. I always thought ‘wouldn’t it be great to have something to help new directors – or old directors – learn new things?’” Today, Douglass, along with former longtime Hidden Valley Camp directors Peter and Meg Kassen, are spearheading a Maine Summer...

MSC’s Camp Historian Henry Johnson took on a labor of love when he visited five camps celebrating milestones during the 2025 summer camp season. Johnson, a longtime Maine camper and counselor, delved into deep detail and offers a wealth of information about these camps in a full-length article available here. Camp Wawenock, Camp Walden, Agassiz Village, Pine Tree Camp, and Camp Micah Celebrate Milestones By Henry Paul Johnson, Maine Summer Camp Historian The wonderful history and traditions of Maine Summer Camps were prominently on display this past summer as Camp Wawenock (1910-2025), Camp Walden (1915-2025), Camp Micah (2000- 2025), Agassiz Village (1935-2025), and Pine Tree Camp (1945-2025) celebrated milestones. Camp Wawenock – 115 years Organized as Camp Wawenock for Boys...

New camps, new community partners and the same energy and enthusiasm on the part of both mark preparations for the Level Ground Initiative’s summer season. Registrations are underway and, thanks to successful experiences, nearly every 2023 Level Ground camper will return to camp this season – in several cases with the addition of younger siblings. The Initiative was founded in 2018 to offer tuition-free camp experiences for youngsters from Maine’s immigrant and refugee communities who otherwise would be unable to attend camp. In 2024, 16 camps have offered space for such campers and the number of community partners identifying and placing campers also continues to grow. Mike Douglass, director of Camp Bishopswood, has welcomed Level Ground campers since the Initiative’s...

“The summer overall was great.” Junior Maine Guide (JMG) program director Ron Fournier reports that “excellent staff,” supported by the longtime team of JMG testers, engaged candidates, and participation by eight camps all contributed to a successful 2023 season. Testing camp, held from July 24-28 at the Stephen Phillips Memorial Preserve in Oquossoc, resulted in a fifty percent passing rate among the 39 JMG candidates. Fournier is enthusiastic about the program’s trajectory. “I feel like we are still building back after COVID,” he said. “Camp programs changed, but we are in a good place. We’re moving in the right direction.” Fournier says that the eight participating camps – Arcadia, Birch Rock, Bryant Pond, Kawahnee, O-AT-KA, Runoia, Winona, and Wyonegonic –...

  Dozens of children from Maine’s immigrant and refugee communities once again enjoyed a summer at camp as part of MSC’s 2023 Level Ground Initiative, a program founded in 2018 to make tuition-free camp experiences possible for children from Maine’s immigrant and refugee communities. Camps welcomed these youngsters via their own connections to communities as well as through placement by Level Ground community partners. During summer 2023 more than 60 children benefited from tuition-free experiences at nonprofit and private camps across the state. Camps’ commitment to Level Ground continues to grow as more camps welcome more campers, a longstanding goal of the Initiative. In all, camps contributed nearly $200,000 in tuition this summer; campers’ attendance varied from one week to...

Kids plunging into lakes, hiking Maine’s mountains, playing sports and making art. And, foremost, connecting with beloved camp peers and role models. It’s all back. In the coming days, thousands of youngsters will once again join friends and mentors in what many call their second home. Once again, Maine youth camps are opening. The majority of youth camps suspended their 2020 seasons. Now, having navigated a shifting landscape of pandemic protocols based on federal CDC guidelines, camp directors are committed to giving kids exactly what they need: time to play, connect, learn and unplug. In other words, the Maine camp experience that has helped children thrive for more than a century. It’s a given that COVID-19’s challenges have been extraordinary....