I’m sure all of our campers and most of our parents and alumni noticed but… WE HAVE A NEW HEALTH CENTER. This was the first summer we got to put the new Mashikki (medicine in the Ojibwa language). The new design has private rooms for those who are ill or need rest, allows for better storage and dispensary of medications through windows, better space inside and outside to meet individual needs, a room giving campers privacy to self-manage their needs with support from our registered nurse, and more space for our nurse to serve the mental health needs of our campers. We would regret it if we did not mention the generosity of our camp community and lakeshore neighbors, who donated around half of the estimated costs for the renovations of the Health Center. We were amazed by the amount of support we have received throughout the past year and a half! We are excited for the versatility the new building will give us for all the health needs of our campers for 2021 and beyond!
Check out the Building timeline of the Health Center and behind the scenes pictures below…
September 2020: Marie draws up the blueprints for the new Health Center and a construction is hired, under Maintenance Mike’s strict supervision.
October 2020: Demolition begins and half the building is torn down. Foundation is built for new part of building.
November 2020: Construction begins in earnest and the bones and layout of the building are contracted. Walls go up and old nails must be stripped from the floor before the new flooring can be installed.
December 2020: The siding was completed, the deck had been built, the new walls for each room had been completed and painted by Mike, and the floor was set to be installed too.
January/February 2021: Building continues, slower due to cold weather.
March 2021:Walls are painted and the flooring is finally due to arrive after shipment delays due to covid.
April/May 2021: Construction is finally complete! Furniture is moved in and the place is cleaned in preparation for Outdoor Ed to begin.
June/July/August 2021: Camp Foley is in Operation and The Health Center is fully functional! Here’s a huge shout out to all our nurses this summer… Laura Lapczynski, Mary Schmid, Traci Haglund, and Chris Boder and Molly Hagerman!
September 2021: On September 20th, Mike finished staining the last of the outside of the building and it became officially done!
We operated and used the building all summer to help kids who weren’t feeling well and to distribute daily medication. We were blown away by the success of the new building, and know it will continue to serve many campers over the years to come.