Category: Alumni & Friends

Alumni & Friends

Feeding Mind, Body, and Soul; One Year on Chewonki’s Kitchen Team

When I was offered a position at Chewonki as a seasonal cook last summer, I hesitated to accept. I’d just moved to Maine and didn’t know anyone else on staff (except my mother-in-law and 19-year veteran of the Chewonki facilities team, Carol James, who’d convinced me to apply). When I finally did accept, I didn’t have high expectations. I thought it was going to be just like any other job. I’d clock in, clock out, and count the days until the weekend. So, I was surprised when, on my first day, I was welcomed by the kitchen team with open arms and big smiles. I felt like I was walking into a family reunion

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Alumni & Friends

A Blossoming Naturalist Flowers

*By Greg Shute, Director of North Woods and Coastal Properties​* Observing the natural world has always been at the heart of the Chewonki experience, and I find great satisfaction in passing this vital skill to the next generation at Chewonki’s Debsconeag Lake Wilderness Camp, where I am based each summer. So, it was truly exciting when Lulu, a young adventurer visiting with her family this August, flipped the script by making a completely unexpected aquatic observation that surprised even this Debsconeag old-timer.

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Alumni & Friends

Catch the Match!

A group of passionate alumni wants you to join them in showing some Chewonki love. Their challenge? If 250 people make gifts of $25, $50, $100, or more by June 30, they will donate $135,000!

So, will you help us Catch this Match?

With only two weeks to pull off this incredible challenge, we will be posting updates every day to our website. Make a donation today and help us meet our goal!

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Alumni & Friends

He Ignited a New Chewonki Era

Tim Ellis’ lifelong connection to Chewonki began in 1937. He arrived in a bassinet when his father, Harwood “Hardy” Ellis, Assistant Head at the Rivers School, was recruited by Chewonki founder Clarence Allen as head counselor. Tim spent every childhood summer at Chewonki, eventually becoming a counselor. After college, he ventured abroad and met his wife, Margaret Ellis, while teaching in Switzerland in the early 1960s.

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Alumni & Friends

Join us in Wishing Tim Ellis a Happy Birthday!

From 1970 through 1991, Chewonki experienced a profound transformation, and in honor of his 86th birthday on October 1, we are honoring the man who steered these monumental changes: Chewonki’s First President, Harwood “Tim” Ellis Jr., by publishing guest-written blogs about Tim over the next few weeks.

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