CAMP AIRY Since 1924 order of the leaf Since 1934

CAMP AIRy - thurmont, maryland

46TH

annual camp airyorder of the leaf

alumni reunion

FRIENDSHIP • LOYALTY • SERVICE

ORDER OF THE LEAFLIFETIME “PASSION”

ACHIEVEMENT AWARDSEPTEMBER 17, 2016

92nd Year 82nd Year

Dr. Steve looks towards Camp Airy.

2 camp airy • 0rder of the leaf • september 17, 2016

camp airy Order of the leaf

“celebration of passion”46th annual alumni reunion

Evening ProgramMaster of Ceremonies: Larry Polen

Greetings Art Drager President, Order of the Leaf Alumni, Inc.

Review of the Summer of 2016 Marty Rochlin, Director, Camp Airy

Hamotzi Dr. Danny Framm

Dinner

Presentation: Introduction By: Art Drager “Continuing the Tradition” Don Kirson (Member, Board of Directors, The Camp Airy & Camp Louise Foundation, Inc.) Jason Smulson

Campus Chapter - News Ricky Lasser

Reading of the Leaf Charter Larry Block

1996 CIT Presentation Eric Goldscher

“Camp in the ‘50s” Joe Band, Artie Besner, Larry Block

Myra Polen Remembered Joe Band

Presentation: Introduction By: “Order of the Leaf Lifetime Mike Schneider Passion Achievement Award”

Acceptance Speech Dr. Steve Thompson “Camper for Life”

Please join us at 9 p.m. to Make Your Own Sundae.

Thank You for being at the Leaf ’s 46th Annual Reunion!Mark your calendar for next year!

September 8–10, 2017!

Keep Coming Back!

3camp airy • 0rder of the leaf • september 17, 2016

“Just rub some dirt in it.”Those are the words of beloved camp

physician Stephen J. Thompson, M.D. (best known as “Dr. Steve”), uttered often to campers presenting at the medical center with a scrape or a cut on the arm and a tear in the eye.

Such is the tone he sets, aiming to elicit a laugh while setting the camper at ease.

It’s about making campers comfortable, whether it was 10-year-old Emmy Tublin this summer at Camp Louise with a scrape, or a teenaged mountain boarder at Camp Airy about to be sent off in an ambulance with an apparent injury.

“He always makes people laugh and I like that about him,” says Emmy. “He knows what to do.”

Steve always has known what to do at camp, and he’s always known that camp was

the place for him. Beginning in 1971, as his first two-week session on the Airy Mountain neared its end, the call went home. The 9-year-old wanted to stay for six weeks.

“We knew from the first day that I was going to be coming to camp for the rest of my life,” he says.

Steve, a second generation camper after his mother, aunt and uncle attended on campership from downtown Baltimore, attended with his brother and cousins. The

next generation, Steve’s son, Ira, and his cousins’ children, continue

the legacy.“For me, his

involvement with camp only makes me want to become more involved,” says Ira Thompson. “His connection with camp has truly made this our

second home. I will never forget how nervous I was

going to a sleep-away camp as a young unit A camper, but

The Order of the Leaf Lifetime “Passion” Achievement Award was established in 2004 as we celebrated Camp Airy’s 80th birthday. This award honors individuals who demonstrate their Airy passion

by embracing the guiding principles of the Order of the Leaf – friendship, loyalty and service – during and following their

active participation on the Camp Airy staff.

Tonight, on the 46th Alumni Reunion Weekend, we honor Dr. Steve Thompson as the 2016 recipient of the “Passion” Achievement Award.

camp airy - order of the leaf lifetime “passion” achievement award recipient for 2016:

dr. steve thompson

“Camper for Life”

lifetime “passion” achievement award

Dr. Steve with his son, Ira, at Camp Airy.

4 camp airy • 0rder of the leaf • september 17, 2016

lifetime “PASSION”

Dr. Steve with Mike Schneider and Unit A Staff. knowing he went here as a camper, and how involved he was that summer, made a huge difference in my first sleep-away experience.

“Fourteen summers later, and I’m still coming back,” notes Ira. “I wouldn’t have Airy without him.”

Ask Steve about camp, and an assortment of memories flood back. He recalls Ed Cohen’s half-serious claims of plans to get a ski lift to ride campers up the Airy hill. He remembers the sound of trains passing in the night, picking wild raspberries along the railroad tracks, and collecting railroad spikes. He loved Friday night movies, Saturday morning junior camp services, and the view of the valley from the old Unit A lineup area. He learned to shoot archery from his then counselor and now life-long friend Mike Schneider. He learned to swim at Airy, which led

him to be a part of his high school swim team in New Jersey. As an older camper, he worked in the drama tech department, perched on a platform, hanging from the rafters of the DSH, working the spotlight for camp’s production of “West Side Story.” The platform is still visible today from the floor of the DSH. As a Unit A counselor, he gave campers piggy-back rides uphill, played with them in the lower end of the pool, and strummed the guitar for them in the bunk at night.

Steve was a camper from 1971-74, and 1977-78. The last was his CIT summer, when he was hired as a counselor for the last few weeks after unexpected vacancies arose. He was a counselor for two more summers and joined the Order of the Leaf in 1980. That was to be his last summer on staff as he took a research position in New Jersey while applying to medical school. Steve was away from Airy while in medical school, and while training as a pediatrician, pediatric neurologist, and neuro-oncologist. After his training, he moved to Memphis, Tenn., where

he spent six years as a neurologist for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.

While living in Tennessee, Steve sent an eight-page,

single-spaced letter to Schneider, then director of Camp Airy, chronicling his love for camp. In 2003, Steve returned to the mountain, serving as a physician for a week

as Ira became a camper for the first time. The

Thompsons had returned to New Jersey and Steve used his vacation time to leave his practice for a week to work at Airy. He became licensed to practice in

Maryland, and served under the mentorship of renowned camp medical director Dr. Ira Tublin, for whom the medical center is

Dr. Steve playing at the Ott House with the Counselor band.

5camp airy • 0rder of the leaf • september 17, 2016

co-named. This was something very special for him, Steve says, recalling his times as a camper being cared for by Dr. Tublin in the old infirmary, then located on the second floor of the White House.

“His goal was to give campers everything he could to help them grow and have a meaningful experience,” says Schneider, who was his counselor and unit leader early on, and watched him grow from a little boy to a mensch. Schneider today rattles off so many glowing adjectives describing him – caring, nurturing, loving, outstanding, empathetic, and appreciative. “He doesn’t want to say no to anybody. Being a physician is all about being there to heal.”

Tublin remembers Steve leaving his practice of caring for neurologically-disabled and cancer-afflicted children to come to camp each summer. And, although Tublin advised him to leave their care to the physicians covering for him, Steve did not. He kept in touch with his practice, maintaining the level of care he always provided to his patients. The two physicians spent a lot of time in clinic together, swapping stories about medicine. Later, Tublin’s advice transferred to the archery range, and ultimately Steve bested his mentor.

“He knew the ropes – he was a very confident guy,” says Tublin. “He got along great with the kids at camp. He’s a good person and a good pediatrician. He had a good way with kids and still does.”

Eventually, Schneider asked Steve to become doctor-in-charge, also called medical director, and he accepted, humbled to be included in the same conversation with Tublin, a camp legend.

“He brings a different personality and energy to everything he does,” says Schneider. “He loves the place so much.”

If you know Steve, you know what means most to him: family, medicine and camp. His Facebook posts reflect his love for his family, his current and former patients, and his happy place – Camp Airy. His body art

features many pieces of camp lore on his left arm: from Route 550 to the train that passes through camp, the Airy-Louise logo, and an archery target. His right arm details his life, including an adoption tattoo for Ira, and his profession is outlined in the form of two reflex hammers on his clavicles.

“It’s a weird thing to be bitten by this camp bug and have it affect you so,” he reflects. “It becomes part of who you are. It’s definitely part of who I am. It’s a huge part of the fabric of my life.”

Today, as the director of medicine for Camps Airy and Louise, Dr. Steve’s volunteer weeks are too many to count, as he spends a combined four weeks on the hill at Airy and Louise every summer, all check-in days and open houses at Airy, and countless hours during the offseason reviewing policies and procedures, consulting with parents, and hiring summer staff. He doesn’t take a penny for his work with camp. It truly is a labor of love.

“As long as I still work as a physician, I expect to work at camp,” says Steve, who just completed his 22nd summer on the mountain. He works to give back to the camp that helped his mom and her siblings, himself and his siblings, and his son. “It’s where I grew up, where my son grew up. It’s important to me to give back. It’s my happiest place on earth.”

– Written by Linda L. Esterson

ACHIEVEMENT AWARD

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order of the leaf charter - 1934

charter members:

Grand Patron: Aaron Straus Grand Councilor: William Pargman

High Councilor: David LovettHigh Council:

Jerome Cohen, Jerome Feldman, Donald Frankel, Julius Halpern, Morton Kramer, Hy Lichtenstein, Leo Platt, Ben B. Rosenberg

Our heritage will never be forgotten through all who have passed before us; their spirit remains with us at Camp Airy, Forever.

Morris BohrerJoseph Cahn

Jerome CohenJerome FeldmanDonald Frankel

Herbert FriedbergCharles FriedmanNathan Goldman

Richard Hahn

Julius HalpernMorton KramerHy Lichtenstein

Aaron LevinDavid Lovett

William PargmanLeo Platt

Ben B. RosenbergLeonard Sackerman

Herb SchmidtMilton Seidman

Jack ShapiroAaron Straus

George WeinsteinHugo WeisgalSamuel Woal

Be it known to all on this 29th day of August in the year 1934, the Brotherhood of the Order of the Leaf has been duly organized

by the senior members of the counselor staff of Camp Airy for the purpose of promoting the spirit of friendship among each other and of loyalty to the institution of which they are a part.

our history... The Order of the Leaf was founded in 1934 by the counselors of Camp Airy for the purpose of promoting the spirit of friendship among each other and of loyalty to the institution of which they are a part.

The Order of the Leaf is the Camp Airy organization that all staff members are welcomed into after three years of service. The activities of this non-profit organization include providing Campership assistance to children, who because of economic need, cannot pay all or part of camp fees. Additionally, Order of the Leaf contributes toward the enhancement of camp facilities for the benefit of campers and counselors.

Learn the history of Camp Airy by visiting www.orderoftheleaf.org/history.html Uncle Airy and Aunt Lillie, 1920s

7camp airy • 0rder of the leaf • september 17, 2016

2004-2016 passion achievement award recipients

2005 “Swim Staff”NORMAN LAND*

2005 “Dr. Who Gave Back”DR. PHIL BAND*

2004 “The Airy Spirit”LEO PLATT*

2004 “First Camper, 1924”JERRY COHEN*

2008 “My Cherished Roots”HAROLD J. FALCHICK

2007 “Airy, My Family”SHELDON S. COHEN

2007 “Dr. Who Gave Back”DR. ARNOLD MICHAEL*

2006 “LeChiam”DR. DANNY FRAMM

2012 “You Haven’t Lived Until You’ve Gone to Camp Airy”

DR. IRA TUBLIN

2011 “Helping Kids Grow”LARRY “COACH” CANTOR

2010 “Friendships Grow Here”MARV AND SANDEE

ROSENSTEIN

2009 “Airy Was In Our Blood”MOLLIE*, BEN*

& JERRY GORAN

2016 “Camper for Life”DR. STEVE THOMPSON

2015 “At Home at Camp Airy”ART DRAGER

2014 “A Life Altering Experience”IRV B. DENT

2013 “Building Better Campers”RICK AND PAM FRANKLE

* Deceased

in memoriam

order of the leaf campus chapter officers:

2016 order of the leaf alumni officers:

President: Ricky Lasser • Vice President: Jake Greenberg Secretary: Ira Thompson • Treasurer: Marilyn Riffkin

Executive Secretary: Eric Bloom Alumni Liaisons: Sybil Kessinger, Caryn Lasser

President: Arthur L. DragerVice President: Harold Falchick • Secretary-Treasurer: Sheldon S. Cohen

order of the leaf

mike loucas by Eric Tublin

Mike Loucas, Unit Leader and Hikemaster from 1979 until 2001, passed away December 5 at age 81. You wouldn’t normally use the word “giant” to describe someone standing 5’2” and 119 pounds, but there was no better word to describe Mike’s heart and spirit. He was a man of few words,

often conveying far more with classic facial expressions of approval and disgust, or just putting his hand on your shoulder to lovingly tell you “Great job, kid.” In addition to his career as a high school physical education teacher, Mike was an accomplished Golden Gloves and Army champion boxer who was inducted into the Maryland Boxing Hall of Fame. Mike was pre-deceased by his wife, Airy banker Ann, and is survived by daughters Lia (current Airy Nature head), Michelle, and five grandchildren.

ben wenglin by Eric Tublin

Ben Wenglin, Airy Postmaster from 1978 until 1992, passed away February 3 at age 92. Ben’s numerous friends at Airy remember him always smiling and sharing bits of wisdom acquired through years of proudly raising a family, a distinguished

career with the Postal Service, and decorated military service during World War II. Campers and staff alike felt like family to Ben as they were comfortable sharing the good and not-so-good news in all those letters. In addition to three daughters, numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren, Ben is survived by his wife, Irene, who served as camp’s secretary during their many summers together at Airy.

Al Mason, considered among the greatest Airy athletes, passed away on March 17. Old timers still talk about his legendary performance when neighboring Camp Pioneer challenged the Airy basketball counselors in 1957. Along with Mert Lynn, Phil Eisenberg, Mike Folb and Stu Viess, Al led the team to a decisive victory. The Pioneer team featured Jack Sullivan, who averaged 33 points per game at Mount Saint Mary’s and was the 14th overall pick in the NBA draft.

Humble and unassuming, Al rarely acknowledged his athletic accomplishments, which earned him All-City honors in basketball and baseball, and selection as the outstanding athlete in his graduating class at Wilson High in Washington. He remained a lifelong avid

sports fan and was relentless in his efforts to bring major league baseball back to the nation’s capital. Over 100 articles Al submitted to sports editors of local and out-

of-town newspapers were published. His name now appears on the Washington Nationals

Dream Foundation’s “Wall of Dreams” on the main concourse at Nationals Park. The inscription reads “Alan D. Mason The Nats Are Back!!” The Foundation supports baseball for at-risk youth and other local charities.

Al is survived by Toni, the devoted wife of 57 years that he met at Camp Louise, their

four children and nine grandchildren.We are grateful to have had Al in our lives. May

his memory be a blessing.

al mason by Artie Besner