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In 1939,
a 35-acre site on Lake Erie was
purchased by the Rotary Club of
Fremont for the Fremont Council of
Camp Fire Girls. Four prominent men,
all Rotarians, led the move to
purchase. They were Harry Gottron,
Sr., “Tubby” Caroll, LaMar Christy
and Stan Wolfe.
The site
was named Camp Yukita. “Yu kit a”
translated means “a settlement to
grow and flourish in friendly
alliance”.
The
Rotary Club of Fremont purchased 6
cabins along with the first canoes
and rowboats ever used at Camp
Yukita. By late 1950’s, the Club
funded the building of 2 new
log-type cabins.
Nature’s
devastation, many years of wear and
tear on buildings, wiring,
waterlines and shorelines and a
change in public thinking regarding
camping for kids, made the sale
inevitable. The equity built into
Camp Yukita, through all those
years, became the purchase and
remodeling money for Misty Meadows
in 1976. The new site has more
acreage than the original site.
The
Rotary Club of Fremont continues to
be supportive of Camp Fire. In 2000,
the Club funded new chains on the 6
swing set brought here to Misty
Meadows. It was brought here after
the new owners of Camp Yukita
offered to give it back.
I chose
Schedel’s, at these beautiful
gardens to unveil our local project
which is Camp Fire – Reuniting Kids
and Nature.
Though
the inspiration for this project
came to me this year, the seed was
planted in 2001 when PDG D. LaMar
Christy asked me to put together a
history of Fremont Rotary Club for
our 75th Anniversary. He
had me delve into boxes and boxes of
old clippings at Hayes Library and
Museum. Personally I dedicate this
project in memory of PDG LaMar.
In
2007-08, Rotary Club of Fremont will
direct part of its efforts and
energy partnering with other service
groups, schools and agencies to
bring about an extreme makeover for
Misty Meadows with the goal or
reuniting our youth with nature. Our
children are the first generation to
be raised without meaningful contact
with nature. Our vision is to
establish a Traditional Residential
Camp, Family Enrichment Programs,
Teen Leadership Programs, Grief Camp
and Environmental Education. |
