Mowglis Memories: staff

Showing posts with label staff. Show all posts

Thursday, January 12, 2023

EP 83: Judd Kendall Reveals the Truth about "The Full Walbridge".

Judd Kendall

"You're not at the top until there's nothing above you." That's what his mother told Judd when she took him to hike Prospect Mountain in Lancaster NH as a 3 year-old. He's loved hiking his whole life, so becoming a Mowglis man was just par for the course for him.

Listen here:
https://feeds.podetize.com/K4mZw9Mwy.mp3

Jud first came to Mowglis because his uncle - after whom he was named - had been a Mowglis man in the late 1930s, though Jud never knew him. His uncle Judson Bemis Conant was killed in action only months before the end of WWII.

Jud would be followed by his brother Harry. Both of them learned archery from ionic Cheyenne brother and teacher Jim West, though Jud makes sure to note that Harry was the rock star when it came to the bow and arrow.

2 years as cox of the winning red racing crew, Mout Washington Squad, Inner Circle and Wolf's Paw Award were among Judd's achievements, not bad for a fellow who was only two years as a camper!

Many a boy from the ensuing years remembers Judd Kendall as a staff member that they admired deeply.

Here's my conversation with Judd Kendall - if you have never heard the full story of "The Full Walbridge" you have to listen to this podcast, Judd Tells ALL!

Show notes:

https://mowglismemories.blogspot.com/2023/01/ep-83-jud-kendall-reveals-truth-about.html

Here was CWAL's response

Judd's story is true! It was on the "Pemi Peaks Trip", an honor squad for strong hikers. I was pretty clumsy, but this turned out OK thanks to the pool at the bottom! The only correction: the boy's name was Gary Studwell, not Dudley!

We were stuck at Ethan Pond for two nights because of heavy rains, but then it cleared up. The day we hiked through Zealand to Mount Bond, spent the night at Guyot Shelter, and continued the romp across the Twin Range to Garfield was one of my favorite all-time Mowglis trips. WE had crummy weather that thwarted our plan to climb Lafayette and we hiked out from Garfield Ponds. I wrote a howl about it!

Thank goodness for football! I could never do soccer, baseball, or basketball but I could smack into people, grab them, and tie things up!

I was "kind" to Chuck Goehring at Shining Rock Cliff because I was scared he was going to be seriously injured and relieved that we could walk him out! He didn't have the advantage of a pool at the bottom, and was pretty banged up. It could have been worse!

Good hunting,

Charlie Walbridge

Judd also shared with me two Wah Pah Nah Yah paintings that were given by Dick West to his late uncle

here's a screen capture of one of them.

To view Wayne's Art Gallery click here.

If you purchase a signed original from the Mowglis Gallery your entire purchase will be donated in your name to Mowglis.

Dreaming in Gold - Signed Originals

Flames Along the Asquamchumaukee - Ltd Edition

Monday, January 9, 2023

EP 82 Gaius Merwin III: How the Biggest & Strongest Camper and Counselor of Mowglis became a Little Buttercup

Gaius Merwin III

Gaius Merwin III: How the Biggest Camper and Counselor of Mowglis became a Little Buttercup

Emblazoned into the memory of every Mowglis, who were contemporaries, are a few images: Jeff O'Rourke or Eric Love as Bubbles, wife of Zep the lead Zamboni Brother and Gaius Merwin as Little Buttercup in a Jerry Hakes production! The mystery of Little Buttercup is finally solved as Gaius Merwin comes clean about just how he was talked into dressing in a beautiful yellow dress and singing "I'm a little buttercup" before a packed Grey Brothers hall on a Saturday night.

Gaius forms one part of the third Generation of Merwins - in addition to cousins Russ and Mike - to play his part in the Mowglis pageant. Younger Mowglis of course will know his son Jason, who we'll soon be interviewing for the Mowglis Memories Podcast. Gaius was Tripmaster in 1969 for an iconic Mount Washington Squad that included Charlie Walbridge as his fellow staff member and Bob Bengtson, Stu Carothers, Ed Mitchell, Dave Scott, John Woods, John Chisholm, Jim "Iggy" Westberg and Wayne King.

Chapel of the Woods, Camp Mowglis

Chapel in the Blue Lupine

Zion Canyon Crossing - Originals

Crawford Notch Cascade - Original

Camus Aspen Puddle - Fine Art Poster

Flying into a Gathering Storm

Swing Together

Clouds Over Crawford

The Daffodils

Little Flume Originals

Wednesday, March 2, 2022

Abe Unger

Call him Rabbi Unger, Dr. Unger, Professor Unger if you will but Mowglis brothers and sisters refer to him simply as Abe.

Listen here:

https://feeds.podetize.com/ep/aAv18pOuR/media

In 1977 Abe Unger joined the Cubs as a young movie celebrity - coming one week late because he had been starring in and shooting the "Bad News Bears in Japan" movie. Abe was barely aware of all the hubbub that occurred before his arrival, Mr. William Hart, Mowglis Director had manufactured that with newspaper clippings and promo photos but everyone at camp was aware that they were about to be joined by a "celebrity". Abe, however, treated the whole thing as just another life experience and he was soon fully immersed in the Mowglis experience, including starting the "Holt Elwell Memorial Band" with Tomo Nishino and Ian Brown, accompanied by Mr. Hart. Their first performance was "Hello Dolly" and though we don't know if they were joined by Mr. James "Iggy" Westberg doing his famous imitation of the great Satchmo Armstrong, I'm guessing that at some point it all came together.

I caught up with Abe recently and our conversation was filled with fond memories and a good deal of the life philosophy as written by Kipling: "We be of one blood, brothers (and sisters) all."

Bayonne's Rabbi with a Plan https://jewishstandard.timesofisrael.com/bayonnes-rabbi-wit