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LETTER FROM SAM KENNEDY
In the spring newsletter, I wrote that losing my grandmother marked the end of an era for Kieve Wavus Education. She spent 65 summers on Damariscotta Lake, caring for campers and setting a loving tone at this wild place.
In July, we gathered at Kieve chapel to say goodbye to Nancy “Laa Laa” Kennedy, on what would have been her 90th birthday. At her service, I read a note I’d found on Laa Laa’s desk a couple years ago. In her famous handwriting, she wrote:
You can always tell who is a Kieve boy because he is warm and wonderful, and he knows how to cheer loudly.
Isn’t that the truth?
An era may have ended with Laa Laa, but I’m profoundly grateful for her generation’s lasting legacy of kindness, respect, and positive cheer that remains at the core of KWE culture. To me, counselor announcements after camp meals at our dining halls stand for much of the goodness we hope our community projects back out into the world beyond Kieve and Wavus. Campers chant for “bars” from Skylar “SkySky McFly” Porter and for Will “Sloot” Slootmaker to “get loose” (after Bruce blazed the trail). SkySky freestyle raps with words shouted out from the Jewell picnic tables. Bruce — and, now, his protégé, Sloot — act out ridiculous yoga moves with flip-flops on their hands and upside-down sunglasses on their faces. They’re rewarded with the kindness and cheers of hundreds of adoring camper fans. Comfort zones are stretched, and this in-camp silliness makes us braver as we head out into the wilderness and back home to our communities. The world could use more of that KWE kindness.
In that spirit, you can imagine how proud I was to receive the following message from a stranger who encountered Wavus’s Juniper cabin on Mount Washington this summer:
I climbed Mount Washington today and crossed paths several times with a group of about a dozen girls from your camp. One of the leaders was guiding a couple of the youngest girls up one of the diciest pitches on the Tuckerman’s Ravine headwall, and it was a pleasure to see her encourage them as they worked their way through a really challenging climb. The rest of the group was just ahead and they exuded positivity and pride. We saw them again at the top, and they were bubbling with delight in their accomplishment. I have not seen that much joy in a long time. It was truly inspiring. I told the leaders briefly how impressive they were on the trail, but it wasn’t enough, so I am sending this note.
That’s what it’s all about: courage, perseverance, overcoming obstacles, adventure, kindness, pride, cheer, and joy — the same qualities Laa Laa recognized in our campers all those years ago.
It is extraordinary that the first 100 years of KWE are coming to a close. The same ethos and values Laa Laa observed (and helped to instill in our community for six decades) remain just as strong today. At Kieve and Wavus, at The Leadership School, and at every KWE gathering we host here on Damariscotta Lake and beyond for folks from all walks of life, there’s a magic that has carried across generations — from a small camp for boys in 1926 to the expansive education nonprofit Kieve Wavus Education has evolved into today. I can’t wait to celebrate that magic and our future at our centennial celebration next August.
Gratefully,
Sam Kennedy
President & Chief Executive Officer