July 9, 2005
Camp Kinderland West Coast Reunion. Bobbie
Schneider Rabinowitz
In an incredible get together, close to ninety Camp Kinderlanders spanning over
six decades of camp life, and their family and friends, attended a West Coast
Camp Kinderland Reunion in Pacific Grove, California on Memorial Day Weekend,
2005. The site was Asilomar, an oceanside conference and retreat center, in a
beautiful natural setting of lush forests, boardwalks over fragile sand dunes
and ocean views.
Nobody, except the planning committee, expected the gorgeous natural
surroundings, the lovely accommodations, the well prepared family style meals,
the well planned and spaced out activities, which was what we experienced at
this historic reunion..
The reviews, throughout the weekend, were “raves”. “It’s so beautiful here”, “I
can’t believe it”, “I’m so glad I came”, “I wasn’t sure I would enjoy it”.
“Everything is so well planned”. And best of all, “It feels like being in camp
again.”
How to capture the mood and the feelings engendered over this weekend? There was
an intense sense of identity. Most participants did not know each other in
advance, though some did. Their only common denominator was that they all had
attended camp at one time or another in their lives, in different decades and
during different periods of history.
Nontheless, the “camp culture and experience, , the meaning of camp, the feeling
of camp, brought everyone together- sharing memories, laughing at photographs,
singing the same songs together, amazed at remembering the words after years of
not ever singing them and bringing back memories from the past to the present.
And what was recreated was a microcosm of what camp was like for us. Sharing
meals, ideas, politics. Going to scheduled activities that were of interest to
campnicks, then and now. And realizing that we all carry Camp
Kinderland around with us every day of our lives.
What actually happened?
An introductory Friday evening reception and get together, after which strangers
became friends very quickly as there are no strangers in
Camp
Kinderland. Lyber Katz gave a short overview of the history of
Camp
Kinderland. Judy Rosenbaum introduced Jenny Bartlett, a third Generation current
Camp
Kinderlander (the grand
daughter of Ann & Al Wasserman) who described what camp means to her.
A presentation and film on the life of Paul Robeson, a talk by Mickey Hartman
Flacks on “Children of a Vanished World,” a photo documentary of life in the
Eastern European shtetls before the outbreak of WW II and the Holocaust, with
the addition of children’s songs in Yiddish and English, songs which we all
learned in camp. A hilarious and knowledgeable presentation of “Songs of Social
Protest,’ by Dick Flacks featuring the top 15 social protest song contest. A
viewing of the Alumni web site and a showing of a video which included film from
1932 and 1948 from camp.
Morning exercise led by Ann Wasseerman. Two evenings of entertainment in typical
camp style with Camp Kinderlanders leading the
way. Saturday night with Eliot Kenin and his bluegrass and topical political
repertoire, with banjo and guitar. Sunday knight with the Tenney Family, Jerry,
Leslie and Noah, accompanied by an assortment of musicians, Richy Strell and
Marty Itzkowitz, performing favorites in Yiddish surely made us feel we were
sitting in the casino on Sylvan Lake, or in front of a campfire in heaven, or in the new Paul Robeson
Playhouse in Tolland, MA.
There was a video of Edith Segal’s memorial service, which brought back
memories for so many of us of her unique contributions to the camp experience
and her influence on our lives. Many went the road of dance, performance, or
teaching because of Edith’s unique ideas and influence.
There was a lively discussion and description of Camp
Kinderland’s trip to Cuba, on which many
reunion attendees went. An additional dimension and highlight for us West
Coasters was that many folks from the East Coast joined us at the reunion. Judy
Rosenbaum, intrepid Camp Counselor, Group Leader and general advisor to
generations of campers, Lyber and Elaine Katz, Board members who helped keep
Camp together in the darkest days when it was under threat of disappearing,
Alice Kogan (Pennywhistler member) and Fred Kogan, longtime campers, counselors
and Cuba trip participants, New Rochelle residents and other New Yorkers. mixed
and mingled with the West Coast campnicks. We thank you for trekking to the West
Coast. And a big thanks to Alice Schecter and the Board for their unswerving
support for the event.
For those who wanted to enjoy the unique setting of Asilomar, there were nature
walks with the forest ranger, along the boardwalks over the dunes, a chance to
learn about the wildflowers, natural terrain, with the beach and ocean ever
present in the background. And a walk featuring the history and architecture of
Asilomar’s buildings, designed by noted West Coast architect Julia Morgan, a
pioneer female in her profession.
And Nature worked for us this weekend. We had glorious weather; sunny, warm and
magical.
I want to congratulate the work of the planning committee which included myself,
Lenore Cymes, Al & Ann Wasserman, Gene “Huey” and Harriet Falk. We had the best
time and the most fun planning this event, meeting regularly over a period of
about ten months. We worked hard to plan every detail so that, at the event
itself, all went very smoothly. And we could enjoy it also. No emergencies,
catastrophes or glitches for us. We all wanted to have a reunion, and a smooth
running one, which would be memorable. And we did.
Should it be a one day picnic or a weekend venture? Should it be two days or
three days? How many rooms should we reserve? Should we have an organized
program or just free time? How to match up roommates? All the details of putting
together a four day program for who knew how many people were carried out with
good spirit and lots of hard work and attention to detail. We enjoyed each other
and the process, working harmoniously and humorously for a good cause, helped
out by our complementary talents and abilities that contributed to the success
of the whole - Lenore’s creative cookery and menus, Al and Huey’s spreadsheets &
computer savvy, Ann - keeper of Kinderland’s history and archives, letters and
written material promoting the event by Bobbie, and Harriet’s sage advise and
counsel. We had it all.
So we are all still reveling in the success of the event - the good time we all
had, the friends we made and the reconnections. We have bright red Camp
Kinderland baseball hats and bandanas as mementos. A group photo has been
forwarded to everyone. At the time it was taken, the group broke out into
spontaneous song and went through all the camp favorites with gusto and fervor,
proof that we reconstructed the spirit of
Camp
Kinderland! We know we have new campers waiting to attend, that Camp has many new
names in its Directory and that $1200 was raised for the Camp Kinderland
Scholarship Fund from the proceeds of weekend sales of Camp memorabilia and
other donations.
And the best part, the Camp Kinderlanders from Southern California have risen to
the occasion, offering to plan and host the next West Coast Camp Kinderland
reunion in their part of the world, whenever that will be. One thing is sure, we
will all be there.