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Happy 75th Anniversary Brookwoods!

Tags Camp Brookwoods Camp Deer Run

Happy 75thAnniversary Brookwoods

Mark your calendars for July 26-28th! We hope that you will come back to camp, relive memories, rekindle friendships, and jump in the lake! We will celebrate the legacy of Brookwoods and Deer Run, sharing how our camp days have shaped our lives. Included in our weekend celebration we will also wish Deer Run a Happy 55th Birthday and a Happy 20th to Moose River Outpost. (Yes, this is Brookwoods’ big birthday, and yes, we’re hoping lots of Deer Runners will join us!)

More about the festivities later, but first, a little history, in 1944 Dr. Lawrence Andreson answered God’s call by founding Camp Brookwoods for boys. He and his wife Duggie purchased the land and set to work, prepping the property and hiring staff. Twenty years later, the Andresons started Camp Deer Run for girls, sharing the property and waterfront, but run quite separately. In 1972, the Andresons made the difficult decision to sell Brookwoods and Deer Run. There was no “camp as we know it” the summer of 1973, but Miles Strodel ran camp trips out of his garage in Lexington, MA. Through a series of miraculous events, (watch “The Miracle”) the property was purchased by George Bennett, Sr. and reopened in 1974. Christian Camps and Conferences, Inc. was established as the non-profit parent organization and Camp has been going strong ever since. This summer we will celebrate the start of it all, all that God has done, and is doing to build lives of faith and character.

 We’ve got a great schedule planned.

BW 50th Breakfast Cookout at Inspiration Point

There isn’t enough space here for us to give you all the details, because there’s a lot going on: dinner cookout, s’mores, singing, waterskiing, archery, breakfast cookout at Inspiration Point, and more. The schedule on the web will give you an idea of the flow of the weekend. We will have golf carts available to help folks get up and down the hill to the waterfront so everyone can enjoy the fun. Keep reading for highlights and how you can help make the weekend extra special.

 To share a story with us click here and then scroll down.

We would love for you to share one of your favorite camp memories. Or, if you’d like to send us some pictures, we’d love that too. We’ll be making decade boards to be displayed in our Anniversary Museum and later hung in Moose Hall after the celebration.

 Anniversary Museum

We will have a designated space to display camp pictures, stories, and memorabilia. If you have some camp mementos that you would like to share, we would be happy to display them. Also, we have several camp alumni authors and we’ll have a library with their books. If you have a publication to contribute, please let us know!

 Camp Store

We’ll be stocking up on your favorite camp items so that you can go home with a new camp sweatshirt and you can give that vintage one to your camper! Deer Run alumna Dara Mongelli Dunn designed a commemorative poster for purchase, you can check it out here. Also, local artist Peter Ferber is painting three camp scenes that will be made into prints. Later this spring, we will post pictures of them on the Anniversary website. We still have a limited number of “The Waterfront” giclee prints, also by Peter Ferber, that were commissioned to celebrate Deer Run’s 50th birthday, available for purchase.

 Download a song here!

We were planning ahead during the summer of 2017 and made a live recording of some our favorite songs during morning worship outside in the Chapel. On the 15th of each month, a new song will be released! Download them for free and take those beautiful camp voices with you, wherever you go!

 See Who’s Coming here!

On Mondays, we’ll update our lists, both who is registered and who is planning on coming. If you’d like help getting in touch with your camp friends to plan a reunion at the Anniversary, please contact me.

 Register for the Anniversary here!

We have several different options for you to register: Beginner, Intermediate, and Advanced. Based on how much time you’ll be able to spend with us, there’s an option for you.

 Looking for a place to stay click here!

We wish that we could have you all bunk in with us at camp, but we can’t! The campers will be using all the cabins! But have no fear, in addition to a block of rooms at the Holiday Inn in Rochester, we’ve listed some other lodging options for you to explore. Airbnb.com might also have some good options. It is a good idea to book early if you can.

Sunday Worship

Brookwoods Alumnus Peter Greer will bring us God’s Word on Sunday morning. Peter spent 8 summers at Brookwoods as a camper, LDP, and on staff. His wife Laurel (Steinweg) served on Deer Run staff for 3 summers, and they first met under the Moose at Brookwoods. Peter is president & CEO of HOPE International, helping underserved communities around the world, author, husband, and dad. Peter and Laurel call Lancaster, PA home and have three kids, Keith, Liliana and Myles, and are foster parents for children that God puts in their path. Peter grew up outside of Boston, and they still cheer for the Red Sox and the Patriots.

 If you have any questions about the Anniversary, pictures to share, or a great idea for the weekend, please email me, I’m always happy to talk about camp!

BW 50th tent on the BW backfield, 1994

BW 50th Saturday Evening Dinner, 1994

Deer Run getting ready for her 50th, 2014

Uncle JJ and Camilo led Sunday worship at BW’s 50th, 1994

 

Melissa Yonan, Amumni Director

Melissa has been a part of the camp family since 1982 and has been the Director of Alumni Relations since 2005. She can name all the past Deer Run Directors in order! She is responsible for our vast alumni network and serves as Editor for the camp newsletter, The Weathervane, as well as the Director for our annual Alumni Camp weekend. These days she is busy planning for the Brookwoods’ 75th Anniversary. If you have camp stories you’d like to tell, she’d love to hear them, contact her here.

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