Winnebago Alumni Newsletter

Uncle Andrew “LSU” Raborn was killed in an automobile accident on January 6, 2012. He worked at camp in the summers of 2007–2009 and was a beloved member of the Winnebago family. Zach Rosen-bloom, an alumnus and fellow swimming counselor, remembers his beloved friend.

How can I even begin to describe someone as wonderful, friendly, and kind as Andrew Raborn? An-drew—whom everyone at Winneba-go knew by the name of his alma mater, LSU—had a rare genuine-ness about him and the ability to see the fun and joy in any situation. More than just a talented swim-mer, a skilled instructor, a terrific counselor, and a good friend, LSU was an exceptional human being who lived life to its fullest.

When I joined the swim staff in the summer of 2008, LSU was already a seasoned veteran. He wel-comed me into that tight-knit band of waterfront unks in a way that could not have been more Win-nebagan. The first words he said to me were: “Here on the swim staff we do three things: teach, life-guard, and tan. And we’re about to go tan. Come join us.”

Come join us. Those three words summed up LSU’s welcoming personality in a nutshell. They also captured his instinctive affinity for the Winnebago way. Only at Win-nebago do such close-knit groups welcome a new member without a

FIELDHOUSE BUILT ON NEW FIELDLilienthal, 1; Rain, 0

Halfway down the right field line of the New Field, a team of local contractors is well on its way to completing the largest construction project in Winnebago history—a 12,500 square-foot, two-building fieldhouse that will open in June 2013.

Construction began in Septem-ber, with South China builder Troy Prescott leading the work. Building 1, the larger of the two structures, has been dug deep into Echo Lake Road hill to allow for a double-height ceiling suitable for basket-ball, volleyball, tennis, and an in-door climbing wall. Building 2 will house a court built for street hockey and indoor soccer, a stage for eve-ning assemblies, and a staff weight room. A short covered walkway will connect the two structures.

“Maybe it’s just that I’m getting older, but it seems to me like the weather is changing,” Uncle Andy

said with a wink when asked to explain his rationale for the field-house. “I felt more and more like the space we had to utilize for rainy days wasn’t sufficient when you had two or three days in a row of rain. No one wants to play his eighth ping-pong tournament of the sum-mer.”

For generations, no camp prob-lem has demanded greater on-the-fly creativity than a day of rain. A downpour means no basketball, no tennis, and no street hockey; a full wash-out forces campers and counselors into the Lodge to dream up zany and beloved spectacles like Winnebago Downs and Indoor Baseball. Winnebagans are at their best when they’re improvising, defying small hardships with vim. Will the fieldhouse, the Winnebago Alumni Newsletter asked Uncle Andy, really fit into camp? And does he worry it could rob Winnebago of

In Memory ofUncle Andrew“LSU” Raborn

inside: a message from the president • a look at our books • a british unk’s american wedding

Winter – Spring 2013 “…for the boy who will.”

some of its “boy who will” spirit? Uncle Andy convincingly dismissed both of our concerns. The fieldhouse

will indeed be massive, but it will look very familiar, finished with a rough pine exterior painted brown and fitted with window frames that will be painted (you guessed it) green.

And worry not about Winnebago losing it soul. The addition of a field-house doesn’t mean our camp on wooded hilltop high will be succumbing to the trend obsessions of certain other Kennebec county interests. “This is about necessity and maintaining a great camp program,” Uncle Andy said. “My tendency is not to care about keeping up with the Joneses.”

second thought. LSU played a big part in making that happen.

LSU’s infectious friendliness and positive attitude were Winnebago values to the core. Those qualities made him a wonderful colleague and a dear friend, and they also made him a great counselor. Camp-ers knew LSU as a great listener, an empathic mentor, and a trust-worthy guide. Campers knew they could rely on him, and LSU made sure they knew it.

In the summer of 2009, when the H1N1 virus came to camp, LSU was one of a small group diagnosed with “swine flu” and quarantined for a few days in the counselor building. Several counselors, and a few campers, spent time in the makeshift ward while they conva-lesced. To LSU, though, the coun-selor building was more than a cramped and inconvenient place to spend an unpleasant few days—as long as there were campers who needed taking care of, it was a bunk. So LSU made it his bunk. LSU was a counselor at heart, and a pesky little bout of swine flu wasn’t about to get in his way.

No one who knew LSU will for-get his smile, his laugh, or his imp-ish spirit. That spirit will always be there on the Winnebago swim docks, and will always have a home in our hearts.

2 winnebago alumni newsletter | winter – spring 2013

Uncle Andrew “LSU” Raborn

Conquering Vail ( from left): Doug Thea, Larry Wolk, Andy Simon, David Schanzer, Charlie Modlin

Celebrating Uncle Mike Kadin’s engagement ( from left): Arman Belding, Peter Kadin, Waciuma Maina, Grace Astrove, Aaron Nathan, Mike Kadin, Eric Benson, Winston Clement

THE PHOTO HUT

You too can get into the photo hut. Send pictures to waa1919@gmail.com

Hello, everyone. In each of the past two years we have been able to collect donations that have allowed eight scholarship campers to attend camp for the summer. That’s an achievement we should all feel very proud of. But I think we are close to something even better. With just a little more alumni giving, we can approach the point where the Winnebago Alumni Association can make an even greater contribution to the lives of some great boys.

We have always had the goal of sponsoring 12 campers, two in each divi-sion except our youngest, the Falcons. We think it’s imperative that scholar-ship boys get the entire camp experience—from learning how to pitch a tent to summiting Mt. Katahdin, from rowing around Echo Lake to canoeing down the Allagash River. We want to give boys the summer-to-summer expe-riences that allow them to really take Winnebago along with them for the rest of their lives.

And that’s what we want, right? For all the joys of swimming in the lake or capturing a flag in a patrol game, it’s really what we take home from camp, in-side of us, that matters most. The feelings of loyalty and friendship, the values we hold so dear—these are the lasting, deep roots of summers at Winnebago.

And for these roots to spread, we must continue to give. The school where I’ve worked the past five years has a motto that brings this home for me:

What we keep, we lose. Only what we give remains our own. So let’s give and hold on to this place we all hold so near to our hearts. WWLF,Jim Astrove

REACHING KATAHDIN’S SUMMIT

AnonymousEd AstroveDon Baer & Nancy BardJo & Steve BerdyCharlie BloomAndy BloomgardenJohn BodkinMatt BransonSusan & Mike BrennanMarley & Robert BrodyMarla & Bryan BurroughMichael Buxbaum & Laurel GraeberKim Cheiken Living TrustElizabeth ChumneyCramer Rosenthal McGlynn, LLCDavid EberBruce EhrmannEric FederJesse FriedmanDavid FriedmanLisa Gornick & Ken HollenbeckEliot GreenfieldNancy & Carl GropperLisa & William HaftBonnie Hagerman & Marc SelverstonePeter HahnJamie & Haim HandwerkerDavid HartmanHellring/Arnell FundDavid & Barbara B. Hirschhorn FoundationDeborah & Al HodysJim HofheimerBill & Sandra & Doug HorneJohn IntorcioJanis Min FundTom JanoverJimmy Janover & Marcy SandlerCathy Joseph & Joe GiannasioMarc KaiserAllison & Jeff KarpfMark & Hillary KaplanAndrew & Linda Kaufman

In memory of John KaufmanKenneth KaufmanAdam KindDavid & Susan KirschThe Penelope & Robert Klatell Family FundPam Klein & Tom DubinMax LevySteve, Anne & Gabe LewentSharyn & Jonathan LewisPhil Lilienthal

In memory of Aunt Emmy, Uncle Bennett, Nabby, and Peter Hoffman

Ray LondaTim & Louis MandelbaumRobert & Margaret McNamara FoundationMichael MetzgerShelley Meyers

In memory of Uncle Bennett & Aunt Germaine

Charles B. & Paula M. Moss Foundation, Inc.In honor of Jeff Silver

Aaron NathanPeter NewmanMichael NewmanDavid NewmanPhil & Nicole NobelMichael Otten

In honor of Paul Schwarz’s years as WAN editor

Andew Waldholtz, Frank Pakula, Daniel Per-rault, Dr. & Mrs. Lawrence PakulaCarol & Dick PapperPhil & Dale PerreaultKenneth Proppp & Kelly LukinsAlex & Nick Quill

In honor of Harrison Wladis & Scott Gelman bar mitzvahs

Adrienne RisEthan RisMark & Rochelle RosenbergDebra & Jonathan RosenbloomEric & Fiona RudinDavid Schanzer & Elizabeth LososDouglas SchwarzElizabeth & Peter SosnowRonald StantonLouis SternPaul Taylor, Elizabeth Marks & Gabe TaylorAnn Tenenbaum & Tom LeeAnne West2012 Camp Winnebago StaffMark & Diane Wladis

Winnebago Alumni AssociationBoard of Directors

Officers:President - Jim AstroveVice President - Peter NewmanSecretary - Eric BensonTreasurer - Ethan Ris

Members:Eric Feder, Debbie Hellinger, Dick Lewis, Ben Lilienthal, Peter Sheehy, Paul Schwarz, Bradley Solmsen

A big W-I to the alumni, unks, aunts, family, and friends who have donat-ed since our last newsletter

winter – spring 2013 | winnebago alumni newsletter 3

The Association Pages/ The Gift of Camp

Our DonorsA message from the president

CONNECT WITH US!…Announcing the new, improved, and proudly web 2.0 winnebagoalums.org

Here’s a chance to “follow the money”: to learn how much the Win-nebago Alumni Association takes in and how we use it.

In 2011, the WAA received con-tributions from over 150 donors totaling $50,248. We paid Camp Winnebago, Inc. $38,000, cover-ing the 2012 scholarships of eight campers at $4,750 each. We also pay postage for two newsletters each year, totaling just over $700. Alumnus Jimmy Rosenthal and his company, Digital Color, cover the cost of the newsletter. Our web presence is also donated and our social media presence is free.

Next year our price for each scholarship camper will be $5,000, a little less than half of camp’s current tuition.

Aside from covering some of the appetizers at some of our alumni events, that’s how we spend the money you donate.

There are many ways to give, and please know that almost every dol-lar that you give goes directly to our core mission: to keep those boys in Echo Lake, on trips, playing Brown & Green, and soaking up all the ad-ventures and lessons of a summer at Winnebago.

“Follow the Money”Over the years, dozens of boys

have been given the opportunity to attend camp by the Association’s Scholarship Fund. Winnebago itself has always been the fund’s largest do-nor, but we won’t be able to continue and expand our mission unless we as a community also do our part.

Can you help to give a boy a Win-nebago summer?

Please mail in this coupon or visit our website (winnebagoalums.org) to join us in this important effort.

GIVING THE GIFT OF CAMP

2012: Mavis, Mimi, and Caitlin take a moment to rage

2009: 19% off forks! 38% off knives! 57% off spoons!

2003: 88th and 5th-er

(Answers for all clues are camp locations—not names. Submit answers to elbenson@gmail.com by January 31. Winners receive a camp store. Answers posted at winnebagoalums.org on February 1.)

Classic Treasure

Hunts

4 winnebago alumni newsletter | winter – spring 2013

The Association Pages/ The Gift of Camp

Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward, waterskiing counselors in 1962 and 1963

In 2003, a 20-year-old English-man arrived on American shores for the first time, knowing little about the country other than the title of his seasonal job—he was to be a “soccer counselor” at Camp Winnebago. By the end of that summer, the Eng-lishman, Stevie Crossley, had trans-formed legions of Winnebagans into ardent fans of Rochdale F.C. (Stevie’s hometown soccer team, which is, by many measures, the least successful club in the history of British profes-sional football). He’d also sworn to return. When Stevie finished his five-year run at camp in 2007, it was clear to many that he’d fallen deeply in love with camp, Maine, and America. Odds were good that he would settle here, have American children, and one day be an excellent and—dare we speculate—occasionally overenthusi-astic coach of his son’s or daughter’s

youth “football” team. So it wasn’t exactly a surprise

when fourteen Winnebagans of many generations showed up to attend Stevie Crossley’s American wedding. The location, however, could not have been anticipated by even the most clear-eyed soothsayer—Put-in-Bay, Ohio, a small redoubt of utmost cheerfulness in Lake Erie. There are many stories one could tell about the wedding. Most of them will not—in-deed, cannot—be told here. But to give the reader a sense of the joyous occasion, a few events will be noted.

Invitees were asked to wear hats to the wedding—in the English tradition, they were told—and a number of Winnebagans decided to honor the ritual by donning top hats, fedoras, and even a Colorado Rockies baseball cap. It wasn’t until the beginning of the ceremony that

STEVIE CROSSLEY’S AMERICAN WEDDING

the Americans were told that the tradition applied only to women. The hats, even the Rockies cap, still looked pretty classy.

In his camp days, Stevie was celebrated for his skills at imitating Michael Jackson’s legendary moon-walk performance of “Billie Jean.” In a reception hall not far from the wed-ding site, as the opening throb of that hit song sounded, Stevie leapt to the dance floor and was presented with a white glove. This time, we’re happy to report, his pants stayed intact.

Stevie and his beautiful wife, Erika, exchanged vows in a state park overlooking the lake. She, gorgeous in her white dress; he, dashing in a navy blue suit. As the sun set over the lake and a family friend strummed her guitar softly, the two lovers cried, and the assembled Winnebagans gave them a rousing W-I.

winter – spring 2013 | winnebago alumni newsletter 5

What happens in Put-in-Bay…

Traveling unks and aunts: (Back row, from left): Winston Clement, Jason Herzfeld, Elliott Silverman, Alex Ostrow, Hank Langer, Jacob Addelson, David Herson. (Front row, from left): Corinne Coffindaffer, Keith Coffindaffer, Matt Simon, Eric Benson, Ann Astrove, Jim Astrove. (English bloke kneeling in the front): Joe Green

Winnebago Alumni Association12316 Spur Lane

Rockville, VA 23146

Return Service Requested

The tenth annual New York Winnebago Alumni Gathering took place on Saturday, March 24, 2012, as 57 Win-nebagans convened for an afternoon of ten-pin, brews, and nosh at Willamsburg’s Brooklyn Bowl. (Uncle Stephen Schwarz is the general manager and kindly donated the lanes.) The 2013 event is scheduled for Saturday, March 23. Check our website (winnebagoalums.org) for the location and more details.

ROLLING FOR A REASON