November Update

Dear friends of the Camping & Education Foundation,

Several years ago, Tom Deupree helped create a beautiful coffee table book titled From the Great Central Fire. It was a collection of the most iconic camp photos distilled down from tens of thousands of pictures gathered over many decades. A companion to From the Great Central Fire, was to be a book with the working title Ripples that Tom was poring over until his passing. Ripples was to detail the expansion of our wilderness trips program from its early days on Rainy Lake to our current travels to the far reaches of northern Canada.

Tom’s opening asks, “Have you ever wondered what it is about Kooch-i-ching and Ogichi Daa Kwe that gives us our elemental values, our good humor, our sense of community, our serenity of mind, and, most importantly, our humility? Have you ever thought, on a portage, if you took two steps off the trail, you would be the first human ever to walk in that spot? Did you ever ask, “What if we took that river over there? Has anyone paddled that?”

Many have asked about this project’s status. Taking over this effort has been daunting. Tom worked on it every day for the better part of two years and it is approximately 75% complete. We are thrilled to report that we are dedicated to finishing this portage and have the end in sight. We promise a finished product by the end of next year and we are not putting our canoe down until we do.

Stay tuned.

This is the time of year when we ask you to remember us as you consider your year-end giving. As you know, the 2022 camp season was truly historic and another reminder that working together is how we are so successful. Call it old-fashioned hutzpah, Kooch-i-ching and Ogichi ingenuity or simply accepting the challenge of the historic flooding for what it was, our staff pivoted on a dime. Everyone went into hyperdrive, working overtime to protect an infrastructure spread out over multiple locations and, in their spare time, volunteered to help the local community that was overwhelmed by the crisis. No one sat on the sidelines.

Our programs rely on the generosity of our community members, and with tuition lost from having to cancel Kooch-i-ching’s first session, this is especially true this year. This year more than ever, thank you in advance for your support.

In other news…

We are currently gathering submissions for our 2022 Alumni Newsletter. If you have news to share, such as a move, job relocation, nuptials or a newborn on the way, please let us know so we can pass on the news to the camp family.
We will be hosting an Open House on Friday, December 9 from 4pm to 9pm at the 40’s in Madisonville in Cincinnati. Food and beverages will be served. It’s been three years and we hope folks can stop by to share some holiday cheer! Please RSVP here, but even if you don’t, we hope you’ll stop by.
Be on the lookout for the fall Songs of the Paddle and the Tumpline. Our campers and families love to receive these and we love sharing them!
If you have missed past newsletters, they can be found here.

We hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving.

Seek the joy!

—Hugh

WINTER HEADQUARTERS

3515 Michigan Avenue

Cincinnati, OH 45208

(513) 772-7479