NEW HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) - Former Boy Scouts, scoutmasters and staff returned to the woods of Camp Workcoeman last Saturday for the camp’s 95th anniversary.
They dug holes, planted trees and painted signs for 95 minutes before reminiscing over a barbecue dinner.
The Camp Workcoeman Alumni Association sponsored the service day. The association raises money for kids who might not be able to come to the camp without financial assistance.
Tom Leisten, program director at Camp Workcoeman, said the service day is for the camp’s history, but also valuable for the younger scouts to learn the importance of connection to the land and the community.
“I think it reminds people of why they were scouts in the first place, and shows younger scouts the long history of taking care of things for the long run,” said Leisten.
Camp Director Lou Seiser joined the camp staff in 1968 but then left for a while before returning as camp director in 1981.
“It gives people the opportunity to come back and see how it’s changed. And having a project, they get to dedicate time to make the camp better,” he said.
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A camp, with a 95-year history, certainly has seen some surface-level changes. Jim Sadler first came to Camp Workcoeman in 1950 as a Boy Scout in Troop 55 from Harwinton, and returned later in life as a scoutmaster for the same troop.
“It’s changed - the mess hall is bigger,” Sadler said. “There’s a lot more campsites and tents.”
However, the spirit and essence of the camp remains the same despite the passage of time. Joe Conaci first came to the camp in 2001 as a Boy Scout and has been the assistant program director since 2006, dedicating himself to leaning and sharing the long history of the camp.
“Camp Workcoeman has a particularly long history. Most camps haven’t been around this long,” Conaci said. “The bedrock doesn’t change, something about it stays common. It’s quiet and removed from day-to-day life.”
Ted Sanford is one of the directors of the alumni association that put the anniversary event together. He first came to Camp Workcoeman as a scoutmaster 12 years ago. He likes the more traditional camp style of Camp Workcoeman, where they have merit badge instruction only in the morning, and the rest of the day is left for team building activities within each troop.
“You kind of fall in love with it,” Sanford said as he led a tour through the shady trails of the camp.
Jim Michaud came to Camp Workcoeman as a kid in 1983. He recently returned to the camp as an assistant scoutmaster for Troop 425 from Bristol. They camped last week and Michaud returned for the service day to paint sign posts.
“It’s fun to reminisce, to see old staff and be like, ’Oh hey, I know you,’” he said.
Camp Workcoeman is changing with the times, as is scouting in general. There is a whole building dedicated to STEM learning and campers recently started using underwater drones. Seiser said that while the camp is keeping up with cultural trends, at the end of the day it’s more about the spirit of the camp and how it makes people feel.
“You can have a house, but a home is about the people in it,” Seiser said. “It’s the spirit - the interactions and memories with people that makes it a special place. That’s why they come back.”
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