Our Commitment
We strive to make it possible for every member of our Camp family to feel welcome, valued and a sense of belonging at Wawenock. We believe there is no place for discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, gender, age, sexual orientation or disability. We commit to actively working toward being a bias-free community that embraces diversity and affirms the individuality of the members of our Camp family, so that each person at Wawenock feels comfortable to be themselves.
Our Journey Thus Far
- Creation of the Camp Wawenock Scholarship Fund
- In 2004 Wawenock partnered with the American Camp Association to create the Camper Scholarship Fund. The Fund strives to expand and enhance the camp experience by reaching a broader spectrum of children from diverse geographic, ethnic, and socioeconomic backgrounds. Throughout the years, our scholarship campers have come to us through a variety of means. We have worked with the Lower East Side Girls Club of New York City, Prep for Prep in New York City, Focus for a Future, Baco Boys Fund, and several private and public schools around the country for recommendations on girls who will both benefit from the experience and positively contribute to our camp family. These partnerships have been very successful in helping us find campers who become an integral part of the camp family.
- Working toward a more respectful acknowledgement of Indigenous Americans of Maine
- In 2014 we welcomed David Lonebear Sanipass to Camp. Mr. Sanipass is a Native American Elder and storyteller form the Mi’kmaq Nation. He is a mathematician, scientist, traditional storyteller, master flute maker, and Star Teachings Archivist. Our staff helped prepare campers for hosting him at our weekly campfire, with a few girls learning how to light our fire using no aids like matches or newspaper. We have also been working on addressing some of Wawenock’s cultural appropriation of the Indigenous Americans of Maine, specifically through the traditions of our Teams, which we formally called Tribes. As an example of addressing these issues, with camper and staff input we modified our annual Council Fire tradition. We transitioned away from wearing feathers and headbands and changed the name of the ceremony to reflect the intent of the ceremony – to welcome first time campers and to show our commitment to our own personal growth, to each other, to our Teams, and to the whole camp family. Hence the new name, Commitment Ceremony.
- In 2022 Catriona participated in an interactive training with Wabanaki Reach called “Interacting with Wabanaki-Maine History”
- Resources we’re learning from: Dawnland – A documentary on “the untold story of Indigenous child removal in the US through the nation’s first-ever government-endorsed truth and reconciliation commission, which investigated the devastating impact of Maine’s child welfare practices on the Wabanaki people”, Wabanaki Reach, Maine Historical Society – Holding Up the Sky, Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer, The Abbe Museum, Ambassador of the Penobscot Nation to the State of Maine – Maulian Dana (Listen to her TEDx talk here)
- Our goal is to help educate our campers about the land we live on and the people who lived here before colonization, as well as the current day Tribes still living in what we call Maine – the Wabanaki, encompassing the Abenaki, Maliseet, Micmac, Passamaquoddy, and Penobscot people.
- Learning more about Gender, Gender Identity, Gender Expression, Sex and Sexuality
- In 2015 we attended a day-long Maine Summer Camps workshop with panelists including Jeff Perrotti, Director of the Massachusetts Safe Schools, Bob Ditter, M.Ed, LCSW, as well as parents and advocates for trans youth.
- In 2019 we attended a day-long Maine Summer Camps workshop on gender roles and gender role stereotypes presented by noted psychologist, educator, and camp professional Dr. Chris Thurber.
- In 2022 we participated in a workshop with Chris Rehs-Dupin of Transplaining, exploring the concept of gender identity in an all girls’ camp. Chris also facilitated a workshop with our staff on the topic of Identity and Inclusion in June 2022
- Resources we’re learning from: Beyond Pink and Blue by Christia Spears Brown, Transgender 101 by Nicholas M. Teich, Gender Born, Gender Made by Diane Ehrensaft
- Examining Race and Privilege
- In 2018 we attended a Maine Summer Camps workshop led by Niambi Jaha-Echols, aimed at helping camp Directors create more culturally inclusive camp environments. Niambi is an Author, Inspirational Speaker, Cultural Agility Strategist, Cultural Intelligence Specialist, and Spiritual Alchemist and has spent the past 30 years working as a Transformation Advocate. She trains, coaches and consults individuals and corporations on issues supporting cultural intelligence and new pathways to inclusion.
- In July 2018, Wawenock hosted Dr. Christopher Thurber, Ph.D., and Doug Sutherland for a workshop entitled “Courageous Ignorance.” The workshop gave staff participants from camps around Maine the opportunity through activities and conversation to examine how they approach diversity and differences, bias and lack of information.
- In July 2020, Wawenock hosted Bob Ditter, M.Ed, LCSW via Zoom for a workshop on Race, Privilege, and Diversity. The session also addressed how to have difficult conversations, with an emphasis on guiding young people how to navigate these topics at Camp.
- In June 2021, Wawenock hosted consultants/trainers Simone Gamble and Elizabeth Ramirez of OAAARS to work with our staff on the topics of identity and race, and how we can best support all campers at Wawenock and beyond in feeling and creating belonging.
- In 2022 we attended a Maine Summer Camps workshop featuring Racial Justice Educator and writer Debby Irving, Educator and social justice advocate Claudia Fox Tree (member of the Iukaieke Guainia Taino Tribe), and Attorney Erick Giles (a citizen of the Mvskoke – Creek – Nation of Oklahoma)
- Resources we’re learning from: “Seeing White” podcast from Scene on Radio, “1619” Podcast from the New York Times, “Code Switch” podcast from National Public Radio, Whistling Vivaldi by Claude M. Steele, How to Be an Anti-Racist by Ibram X. Kendi, Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates, Waking Up White, and Finding Myself in the Story of Race by Debby Irving, White Fragility by Robin Diangelo, Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria by Beverly Daniel Tatum, lots of sessions facilitated by DEI facilitators and our professional colleagues at our annual American Camp Association conferences.
- Understanding and Acknowledging Identity and What’s Important to You
- In Summer 2019, Wawenock partnered with other area camps and worked with High Resolves on trainings on identity and bias for staff and senior campers. Younger campers had the opportunity to think about what was important to them and craft a message to share through High Resolves’ Videos for Change program.
- In 2022, joined Maine Summer Camps Book Club in a conversation about the book Overcoming Bias by Tiffany Jana & Matthew Freeman
Our Future Steps – We know there is more work to be done to continue to learn, grow, and make meaningful changes to our Camp environment. Below are a few ways we’ve identified to move forward.
- Hearing from our Camp Family – In our ongoing efforts to be a welcoming and inclusive Camp Family, we acknowledge that there is work to be done to ensure everyone feels a sense of belonging at Wawenock. To learn more, we created a survey and asked asked members of our community to anonymously share their thoughts regarding their experiences at Wawenock. Complete the survey here. If you’d like to continue the conversation or share your thoughts with us, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us at office@campwawenock.com or (207) 655-4657.
- Expanding the Owaissa Library – One small way we’ve identified that we can improve our diversity and inclusion is by expanding the Owaissa library to include more young adult and children’s books with diverse protagonists and storylines. If you’d like to help us with this project, we’re happily accepting any books you’d like to gift to Camp. You can mail them to 33 Wawenock Rd., Raymond ME 04071. If you’re unable to make a gift of this kind, let us know what titles we should consider in the survey linked above. So far, we’ve generously received the following titles:
- White Fragility by Robin Diangelo
- The Tradition by Jericho Brown
- Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson
- If You Come Softly by Jacqueline Woodson
- Harbor Me by Jacqueline Woodson
- Behind You by Jacqueline Woodson
- What Lane? by Torrey Maldonado
- American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang
- Dreams from My Father by Barack Obama
- Becoming by Michelle Obama
- How to Be An Anti-Racist by Ibram X. Kendi
- Stamped by Ibram X. Kendi
- Uncomfortable Conversations with a Black Man by Emmanuel Acho
- The Undefeated by Kwame Alexander and Kadir Nelson
- Rebound by Kwame Alexander
- The Crossover by Kwame Alexander
- The Other Boy by M.G. Hennessey
- Whistling Vivaldi by Claude Steele
- Wade in the Water by Tracy K. Smith
- Life on Mars by Tracy K. Smith
- The Unbreakable Code by Sara Hoagland Hunter
- With the Fire on High by Elizabeth Acevedo
- Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi
- In the Key of Nira Ghani by Natasha Deen
- Charlie Hernández and The League of Shadows by Ryan Calejo
- Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus by Dusti Bowling
- Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz
- The Unwanted by Don Brown
- A Good Kind of Trouble by Lisa Moore Ramee
- Why are all the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria? by Beverly Daniel Tatum
- Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds
- the Track Series by Jason Reynolds
- The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo
- American Street by Ibi Zoboi
- Dear Martin by Nic Stone
- Front Desk by Kelly Yang
- New Kid by Jerry Craft
- On the Come Up by Angie Thomas
- You Should See Me In a Crown by Leah Johnson
- The Black Kids by Christina Hammonds Reed
- Furia by Yamile Saied Méndez
- It’s Trever Noah: Born a Crime by Trevor Noah
- I am Malala by Malala Yousafzai
- Hidden Figures by Margot Lee Shetterly with Winifred Conkling
- P.S. Be Eleven by Rita Williams-Garcia
- One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia
- Black Women in Science by Kimberly Brown Pellum
- When Stars Are Scattered by Victoria Jamieson and Omar Mohamed
- The Stars Beneath Our Feet by David Barclay Moore
- The Girl Who Drank the Moon by Kelly Barnhill
- Black Heroes by Arlisha Norwood
- I Am Enough by Grace Byers
- Juneteenth by Floyd Cooper
- After the Fall by Dan Santat
- The Most Magnificent Thing by Ashley Spires
- Say Something! By Peter H. Reynolds
- The Invisible String by Patrice Karst
- Happy Dreamer by Peter H. Reynolds
- Ping by Ani Castillo
- Scribble Stones by Diane Alber
- Goodnight Stories for Rebel Girls by Elena Favilli and Francesca Cavallo
- Hello, Universe by Erin Entrada Kelly
- We Are Not Free by Traci Chee
- Everything Sad is Untrue by Daniel Nayeri
- When You Trap a Tiger by Tae Keller
- The Light Between Us by Andrew Fukuda
- A Wish in the Dark by Christina Soontornvat
- Apple Skin to the Core by Eric Gansworth
- Displacement by Kiku Hughes
- The Total Eclipse of Nestor Lopez by Adrianna Cuevas
- The Sun is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon
- The First Rule of Punk by Celia C. Perez
- Number the Stars by Lois Lowry
- The Hill We Climb by Amanda Gorman