One Family’s Memories

I loved being at camp. It was a magical place for me. I loved going to camp-fires and going for walks. As a country girl living in New York City for 22 years, camp made it easier for me to stay in the city. Without camp to go to, I would have struggled more. It helped me survive the Bronx.

The first time I went to camp was with Dale on September 4, 1969. I was 18 years old and had just arrived in New York City to serve a term with Mennonite Voluntary Service. It was my first weekend as a New Yorker. Dale took me, Elvin Bowman and Jim King to camp for VS orientation.

An MYF retreat was also taking place at camp that weekend. Elmer Lapp came up with a carload of youth and he had brought Jesus and Jose Cruz. I joined in a volleyball game, which is where I met Jesus for the first time. He was playing on the other side of the net. I noticed him, thinking he was a nice looking young man.

When I returned to the Bronx, I was assigned to work at the sandwich shop at Glad Tidings Mennonite Church, where I attended the week after I arrived in New York. I was pleasantly surprised to see that Glad Tidings was Jesus’ church, and that he apparently thought I was attractive too; the flirting and getting to know each other had begun. Jesus and I had a first date on December 12 of that year, and were married in 1970. So, camp is also special to me as it’s the place where I met my husband.

Over the years I have served as director of camp, on the board and on the association committee. Jesus and I would help with camp clean up in May or June. I cooked at summer camps—one camp per summer—when my kids were in grade school. And sometimes we volunteered to help cook on weekends for church retreats.

I was 28 years old when I took a half-time position as director of camp. I was called the director, but I worked off-site from the city, living at camp only in the summertime. I had a babysitter during the summers when I was director and I loved being able to live up there in little motel #1 with my baby Danny for about two months each year. I think I began in the fall of 1979 and resigned when Christina was born during the fall of 1982.

I was responsible to hire summer staff. I traveled to EMU to recruit staff. I also had to get volunteer cooks and schedule retreat groups. Those were my primary tasks. The biggest challenge was finding camp nurses and lifeguards each year, and finding volunteer cooks for the retreat weekends. Also, my inexperience was a challenge!

Gene Shelly was chair of the board during this time. Phil and Bonnie Detweiler were the people on the grounds, while I was in the city.  During the summers I spent more time at camp, but during the year I would go out about once a month. I’d send Phil and Bonnie volunteers to help out on weekends. There was very slim staffing in those days!

I didn’t have a clue about budgets, but I would meet with Gene and Carl Metzler and follow their advice. Whatever they told me, I did!

It wasn’t easy. It could be difficult to find staff. Once at camp, there were sometimes challenges and struggles with expectations. Sometimes kids and staff were rowdy. We had staff orientation for two days, but there wasn’t much training. It was very basic safety stuff. I was in my 20s and did the best I could.

During summer camps I tried hard to get the kids into the woods to enjoy nature. Camp programming in the morning rotated between Bible study, nature and crafts. One time I was in charge of nature class and so had three different groups of kids as they rotated. I took the first group of kids for a walk along a stream. We were finding things in the water. One kid crossed through the stream and went to the other side, wandering into a nest of yellow jackets. He got stung a couple of times and threw off his hat and ran. I took him to Theda Siegrist, the camp nurse.

When I took the next group for a walk, we went to the same stream. But I told the group, “No matter what, don’t go on that side of the stream.” Well, one boy saw the hat and he ran right over to it and picked it up. So of course he got stung. I took him to Theda.

I think someone from all three groups got stung.

Theda couldn’t understand what was going on and was a little perturbed. I remember she said, “Mim, why do you keep bringing me kids who are stung? Why do you keep taking groups to where the yellow jackets are?”

I just kept thinking they would listen to me and not wander off to the exact area where I told them not to go!

I had so many good days at camp. I especially loved our church retreats; we had a ball. I can’t imagine not having had camp in my life. It holds a very special place in my heart.

with Jesus Cruz

I was born in Puerto Rico but moved to New York at the age of 6, and moved a few times before landing on Sherman Avenue in the Bronx, where I first encountered Mennonites. I grew up as part of the Catholic Church, but eventually found myself being attracted to the Mennonite Church.

Two ladies from Fox Street Mennonite Church (where John Freed was pastor), Mable Herr and Norma Brenner, ran a Bible Club on Sherman Avenue, across the street from where I lived. I was curious about what was going on in there and asked some school friends whom I had seen going in; I learned that we could do crafts but were expected to stay for Bible stories. I started attending the club along with my brother when I was 11 years old. That first summer we were introduced to summer camp seven hours away at Camp Hebron in Halifax, Pennsylvania. It was a couple of years later that we learned about Mennonite churches in New York City and decided to visit one.

My brother, Jose, and I began visiting Fox Street Mennonite Church initially, but migrated to Glad Tidings when we were around 13. There were a couple of young women we found attractive, so we switched.

I was never a camper at Camp Deerpark but was involved with it from the beginning, becoming an association member, participating in getting it ready for summer camp (spring cleaning), going to church retreats or attending MYF retreats there. I have been involved in other ways over the years; together with Miriam, I sometimes helped with cooking for church groups, attended many banquets and auctions, served on the board for about 12 years and have been involved in fund-raising efforts.

A tremendous aspect of camp is that it provides an opportunity for young people to learn leadership skills. I’ve seen young people who spent time at camp grow in faith and develop into leaders. So many youth have been impacted over the years, from New York City and from Lancaster as well. And many people who have worked at camp—whether from the city or elsewhere—still connect to camp. That is a good legacy.

Camp greatly influenced my life. I met my wife there. We had a lot of fun at retreats, and made lasting friendships. We stay in touch by attending the auction and reunion weekend at camp when we can. We go to the annual camp banquet in Pennsylvania, and I help with the fund-raising campaign for Promise Woods.

My hope for camp is that it can continue to be a resource for the New York City churches in providing leadership opportunities for their young people. I also hope it can continue to be a bridge between Mennonites in New York City and Lancaster and other groups it connects with.

with Christina Cruz

When I smell nature smells—like autumn leaves—it takes me right back to camp. When I was a child I went to camp for church retreats with my family, but also as a camper. I went to children’s camp and teen camp.

I also worked at camp for four summers. I helped in the kitchen and was a counselor. It was an important social experience for me—I made wonderful friends. There was always a lot of pleasant, enjoyable teenage drama. It was a fun place to be a teenager. One clear memory I have from the time I was on staff is when we would play hide-and-seek in the main building. On weekends in between camp sessions, when the main house was unoccupied, we would turn off all the lights and play hide and seek throughout the entire building. It was extremely fun and hiders got very creative like hiding on top of the refrigerator. No one ever looks up! All my memories of camp are great. Camp holds many layers of meaning for me. I lived in the Bronx and it was the first place I learned about nature. Camp seemed like a far off place in the world and I was totally in love with it.

—Written by Donna Stoltzfus, former camper and staff.

Mim Cruz, former director, former board member, volunteer, attended Glad Tidings Mennonite Church and North Bronx Mennonite Church, both in the Bronx.

Jesus Cruz, former board member, volunteer, attended Glad Tidings Mennonite Church and North Bronx Mennonite Church, both in the Bronx.

Christina Cruz, former camper and counselor.

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