Please see a peak of the 2020 Wachusett Log below. The Log book is similar to a yearbook for the camp season and will be mailed out to families of boys who attended this past summer. The dedication is given to a Staff member who has shown exceptional dedication and loyalty to Wachusett. The introduction is written by the editor of the log. We would like to thank editor in chief: Ross Turkington for his hard work in assembling this year’s log.
Dedication
The 2020 shortened camp season was a great success due to the incredible efforts of our staff and campers to adhere to strict guidelines of safety, infection control and physical distancing. We could not have made this happen without the support and cooperation of our camp families. We are so grateful for everyone’s role in ensuring boys were safe and able to enjoy themselves under the ever present challenging circumstances. I am hopeful that we will revert to simpler times when we return in 2021!
The many obstacles we had to address and overcome to open and operate camp as a safe and functional environment, have made it impossible for me to single out one person as this year’s recipient of the log dedication. While this dedication genuinely goes out to all of our staff for the roles each took on to bring us to a safe conclusion this season, I would like to give special recognition to two longtime Wachusett leaders.
The key leader in adapting our program, to not only meet the guidelines set forth by the State of Vermont but to make alternative programming actually fun-is Ross Turkington. In addition to stepping into the role of Assistant Director, he is also the Log’s chief editor. Ross would likely not have been able to return to Wachusett this summer had it not been for the pandemic putting extreme limitations on his acting options. We are grateful that his plan B was to spend the summer with us.
Ross has spent eleven summers at Camp Wachusett, many of those on staff. His high energy and wide range of theatrical talents, ranging from Shakespeare to opera to extreme comedy, provide the ingredients for his unique way of connecting with campers and being able to figure out creative ways to make camp activities fun under current restrictions. His presence and leadership made this season a much needed respite for all of us from the stresses of the outside world.
The key “behind the scenes” leader to making this summer a success is 15 year veteran Matt Oxley. He absolutely took on and coordinated every essential task to ensure the kitchen and dining areas were spotless and disinfected to the highest extent possible. His non stop pursuit of areas of the camp property that needed attention was exhaustive. He motivated staff members with free time to help reorganize and clean areas in and around buildings, repair cracks, sealcoat and reline the basketball court, and bushwhack hiking trails through the woods to provide campers with hiking and camping experiences. He took this to a higher level by coordinating with our nurse, Stefanie Wilbur, use of her farmland to provide additional overnight trips during week three. We can not thank Matt for his dedication to Wachusett without making mention of his loyal K-9 sidekick and nighttime running partner, “Samson” who plays a major roll as honorary staff member.
Thank you Ross, Matt and others for always doing what it takes to make Wachusett a better place.
UNALIY, Phil
Camp Wachusett - Summer of 2020
Camp not only survives, it thrives.
When Phil reached out to me earlier this year expressing his interest in opening camp for the summer, I must admit I was taken back. I had already accepted that camp simply would not be able to open for the summer due to current circumstances, and though bummed, I understood. I didn’t quite realize at that point, the labor of Phil Williams. Phil had already been working tirelessly, researching statistics, gauging interest, accruing staff, and most importantly, working miracles. I was in from my first phone call with Phil, as camp is truly my home away from home, and there is no place I’d rather be in a tumultuous world, than the peaceful cove of Camp Wachusett.
Though the camp season may have looked different this year, the Wachusett spirit never changed. The staff couldn’t gather in large groups, and faced additional training during our setup week, but our mutual love for camp kept morale at a high, only to be rivaled by our excitement for the 2020 arrivals. We were more than pleased to find that our campers shared our enthusiasm, and thus the season was off. The summer was filled with fun, as our staff innovated to ensure campers were busy, safe, and of course, happy. At that, the boys certainly were busy, as the summer was marked with an impressive number of campers achieving our three lodges: Prospect, Chocorua, and Wachusett. In addition to improving on old skills, campers developed new ones, as some fired their first shots at riflery, took their first lap around the lake waterskiing, and even took their first night out in tents in the woods. On the health side, we succeeded in keeping a happy and healthy camp, and beneath our masks, I know there were smiles all around camp.
Behind the scenes, I believe to have witnessed the most hardworking and committed summer by a staff to date, but all fails in comparison to the labor of Phil. His undying passion for camp is what permitted the 2020 season to happen, and happen it did. He has a love for camp unlike any I’ve seen, and he truly appreciates what this place can do for its attendees. Phil put himself on the line this summer, and he spent his time appreciating the work that others put in, but all things considered, he is deserving of all the praise. Camp lives within Phil, and it lives because of him. The 2020 season was a major success, and I hope to see familiar faces, and new ones come the 2021 summer when the world it is a little more “regular.”
I pray all the Wachusett families near and far have good health, good cheer, and the Wachusett spirit be with them. “Till we meet again”
-Ross Turkington