Category: Ojibway News

Looking for an adventurous read?

Posted on by John Frazier

In an age when regions of the Canadian North had hardly been discovered, Prentice G. Downes, a Harvard graduate and a teacher at the Belmont School outside of Boston, chose to travel alone by canoe to explore the Great Sleeping IslandBarren Lands. Sleeping Island: A Journey to the Edge of the Barrens, originally published in 1943, is an account of Downes’ canoe trip in northern Manitoba and the southern Northwest Territories in 1939.

In Sleeping Island, Downes describes a landscape and a people untouched by the modern world. His account captures the excitement of wilderness canoe travel, the enchantment of discovering new lands, and the deep connections Downes made with the people he met along the way. Downes was a very astute observer of native lifestyles and culture, as a result he was held in very high regard by the Cree of northern Saskatchewan and Manitoba.

The 2011 edition of Sleeping Island  has a detailed biographical introduction of Downes and extensive footnotes. The edition also features illustrations and maps from authentic sketches and mesmerizing photos of his adventures.

CanoeistsSleeping Island is a favorite book of Jason Pigeau, the Director of Facilities on Devil’s Island and an avid canoeist /outdoors man. The book is highly recommended by outdoors enthusiasts, scholars, and history buffs alike.

To order Sleeping Island or Downes’ Distant Summers contact McGahern Stewart Publishing at mcspublishing@gmail. To see some of the books’ photographs visit McGahern Stewart’s site!

Calling All Alumni!

Posted on by John Frazier

What’s New With You?

Get married? Have a baby? Graduate? Move to a new state? Took a new job? Got into college or grad-school? Traveled the world? Found an exciting adventure?

How are you doing and what have you been up to?

You can e-mail your news to [email protected], post it here on our blog, or call in for a chat with one of the camp directors!

We can’t wait to hear from you!

Preserve Classic Keewaydin Country!

Posted on by John Frazier

Help the people of Lansdowne House on the Attawapiskat River in Ontario preserve the North Country. This film shows how invaluable the river and lands are to not only the people of Landsdowne House, but also to the area’s wildlife. The Ring of Fire is the term for the Chromite deposits that have been discovered just south of Webequie. Open pit mines,  roads, and railways will go in to this pristine area to support the chromite mining. Sadly, this will forever change what has become classic Keewaydin country.

Watch it, Share it, and Support preservation of the North Country.

Blog Clip

Acclaimed Child Psychologist and Keewaydin Alumnus, Michael Thompson ‘61, Pens New Book

Posted on by John Frazier

Michael Thompson’s new book will be in stores May 1, 2012!  Entitled Homesick and Happy: An insightful and powerful look at the magic of summer camp—and why it is so important for children to be away from home . . . if only for a little while, the book includes a chapter, “Passages,” highlighting Keewaydin Temagami’s 7 week trip to Hudson Bay, as well as interviews with campers and staff from all the camps.

In an age when it’s the rare child who walks to school on his own, the thought of sending your “little ones” off to sleep-away camp can be overwhelming. But parents’ first instinct—to shelter their offspring above all else—is actually depriving kids of the major developmental milestones that occur through letting them go—and watching them come back transformed.

In Homesick and Happy, renowned child psychologist Michael Thompson, PhD, shares a strong argument for, and a vital guide to this brief loosening of ties. A great champion of summer camp, he explains how camp ushers children into a thrilling world offering an environment that most of us at home cannot: an electronics-free zone, a multigenerational community, meaningful daily rituals like group meals and cabin clean-up, and a place where time simply slows down. In the buggy woods, icy swims, campfire sing-alongs, and daring adventures, children have emotionally significant and character-building experiences; they often grow in ways that surprise even themselves; they make lifelong memories and cherished friends. Thompson shows how children who are away from their parents can be both homesick and happy, scared and successful, anxious and exuberant. When kids go to camp—for a week, a month, or the whole summer—they can experience some of the greatest maturation of their lives, and return more independent, strong, and healthy.

 

Tanya McCubbin Hired as New Ojibway Director

Posted on by John Frazier

After an extensive search and interview process it is a great pleasure to announce Tanya McCubbin has agreed to become the next manager of the Ojibway Lodge.  While no one will be able to replicate the leadership, warmth and historical knowledge Sandy Chivers possesses, Tanya will bring her own expertise and familiarity to the job.  Tanya’s experience on Devil’s Island is deep.  Her first year on the island was in 1995 when she worked as Assistant Cook under Glen Toogood.  Nine summers later, in 2004, Tanya returned as Head Keewaydin Cook and has returned every summer since.  In 2009 Tanya took on the duties of Keewaydin business manager.  In addition to her intimate understanding of island operations, Tanya brings other hospitality skills: a degree in Culinary Arts and the experience of having been the owner of Mood Food from 2000-2008, a company which produced and marketed a retail line of food products and offered catering to groups under 100.  Her boys, Malcolm, 16, and Hudson, 13, join her on the island every summer.  Malcolm will be in Section B this year and Hudson is heading out for his first season at the Evans Outpost.  Tanya’s husband Rob, a dramatic arts instructor in North Bay, uses the island as summer base camp.  When he is not off for workshops brushing up on his teaching skills, he works bringing campers up from Toronto, settling accounts in the business office, or even painting floors.  We are fortunate to have Tanya join the team in this new role.  She will begin work in September of 2012.

Oct 24: Keewaydin Service Award Presented to Joe Fogg ’60

Posted on by anne

Earlier this week, Joe Fogg was presented the 2011 Keewaydin Service Award at the annual New York Keewaydin Alumni Reception.

Leslie and Joe Fogg with daughter-in-law, Darcy Fogg.

Hosted by Roger Smith Hotel owners Sue II and Jimmy Knowles, the party included a large number of Joe’s family, close friends, the Keewaydin camp directors and the Foundation Board, all on hand to celebrate Joe and all he’s done for Keewaydin.  Joe was a camper at both Dunmore (’60) and Temagami (’61-’62), Temagami staff (’63-’65, ’67), parent (’86-’92, ’99-’04), Co-Owner of Keewaydin Temagami (’90-’01), and a member of the Keewaydin Foundation Board (’01-’07).  In 1999 Joe, with his partner Lew Lehrman, started Songadeewin for girls on Devil’s Island.  In 2001, Joe and Lew generously donated Keewaydin Temagami to the Keewaydin Foundation, bringing back together the two camps after more than 60 years apart.

A copy of Joe’s remarks are here.  Congratulations Joe!