A Message from Nancy Kennedy
Celebrating Those Who Carry us Forward + a Campaign Update
Dear Friends,
As we move deeper into December, I’ve been thinking about the people who make Chewonki feel like Chewonki. One of them is our new Camp Director, Ben King, who arrived last summer with his wife, Linsey, and their two little ones.
When you read the story below (featured in this fall’s Chronicle Alumni Magazine) you’ll seetThe Kings were embraced instantly and quickly became part of the rhythm of life on Chewonki Neck.
Stories like this remind me that Chewonki isn’t just a place, it’s a family. And that includes you.
Your support keeps this legacy moving forward, ensuring that new families and new leaders find their place here just as you once did.
_____
Campaign Update
Our “Ring in the New Match!” campaign is making steady progress:
- 182 gifts toward our 500-gift challenge
- 34 leadership gifts, unlocking $70,200 in matching funds
If you haven’t made your gift yet, now is a wonderful time to join in. Every contribution brings us closer to unlocking the full match and reaching our 500-gift goal.
Thank you for being part of this work.
With gratitude,
Nancy Kennedy
Chewonki President
Camp as Family: Introducing Ben King
From our Fall 2025 Chronicle Alumni Magazine
For Ben King, Chewonki’s new Camp Director, camp has always meant family. The friendships he formed around campfires and cabins have stayed with him for life — and in one case changed it entirely, when he met his wife, Linsey, while they were both summer camp counselors years ago.
Family has always been at the center of Ben’s story. He grew up as one of six siblings in Ohio, in a household where education was the family business. His parents were teachers, several siblings followed suit, and one sister even became a camp director, too. In many ways, Ben was destined to see camp as an extension of family — a place to learn, to care for others, and to grow together.
His own camp journey began at age seven, when he left behind the farm fields of central Ohio and jumped into a world of cabins, creeks, and canoe paddles. Those summers set him on a path that would take him across the country — guiding whitewater rafting trips, teaching environmental education, farming, leading ropes courses — but always with the same throughline: bringing people together through transformative experiences in the natural world.
Ben’s first summer at the helm was nothing short of a whirlwind. He arrived just one day before camp opened, working closely with former Camp Director Katie Goodman during the transition. Thanks to the strong systems Katie left in place — and the deep bench of experienced staff who returned this summer — the season ran smoothly, giving Ben the chance to dive right in and begin building connections with campers and counselors alike. One of his favorite memories came during the opening campfire of Session 1, when campers and staff sang familiar songs like Peace, Country Roads, and Crowded Table.
“A feeling of calm came over me,” Ben recalls. “Even though there was much to learn about what makes Camp Chewonki so special, there is an invisible thread that seemingly connects all of us who choose to spend our summers immersed in camp.”
That sense of connection extended to his own family. Ben, Linsey, and their children, Lyra (3) and Arlo (8 months), quickly became part of daily camp life.
“Regularly my kiddos came to meals and were greeted by campers and staff,” Ben says. “There was a group of girls who would invite my three-year-old daughter to eat at their table with their cabin every time we joined. The smile on Lyra’s face while she got to eat with the ‘big girls’ warmed my heart.”
Now, with camp wrapped up and Maine Coast Semester underway, the King family is settling into life on Chewonki Neck. They’ve joined a lively on-campus community of staff and families who share meals, pitch in at workdays, and mark the seasons together. It’s a busy time of life — and with a toddler and an infant, “relax” is a relative term — but Ben sees only opportunity ahead.
“It will be an amazing day when my eldest kicks off her camp career as a Puffin here in a couple of summers,” he says.
As alumni know well, camp friendships often become family for life. Ben has already heard stories from Chewonki alumni whose laughter and joy still light up decades later.
“Even though camp may look a little different in 2025 compared to 1975, all of those same things were happening this summer,” he reflects. “The more alumni tell stories of their time at camp, the more new campers will come to Chewonki Neck to write their own stories here for years to come.”
We are thrilled to welcome the King family into our Chewonki family, and excited to see how Ben will continue to grow the camp community in the years ahead.
