Life-Long Friends

by Paula (Bush) McElwee
My best guess is that I attended Junior Girls Week as a first-time camper in 1962. That year I was going into 4th Grade and Debbie Fritz was going into 5th, and both our moms were on the faculty and our siblings were on hand as faculty kids. And somehow, that week, we became friends. And we are friends still. It is weird to us that this is the only camp picture we can find of us together. If anyone has one, we would LOVE to see it. In the hundreds of pics and negatives we have not yet uncovered such a photo. We weren’t just campers together. Once we were old enough we were camp workers together, too. And that meant long walks in spare time, swimming while campers were in class, getting up early to work and then having time off to talk some more.

I’m not sure that most people realize how amazing our friendship is. We didn’t live in the same town until Deb had graduated from college and I was a senior. I moved across the country – Illinois to Western Nebraska to Kansas to California – and that didn’t present any more of a barrier. Deb joined me for a year in Western Nebraska, stayed on for a few when I married and went to Kansas…

We attended each other’s weddings. Deb’s two children are close to my daughter in age – Josh just older, Libbi months younger but in the same grade.

We have always been close. We wrote letters in the early days, and visited each other in between youth rallies and camp. We talked on the phone rarely – the most memorable the day her grandfather died. We have talked each other through all kinds of life events and supported each other as well. Today we IM or call on cell phones (we are in the same calling plan). I get to Illinois on business from time to time, and she and Libbi were here in California for two GREAT weeks this past summer.

All because we met at Bond Christian Service Camp.

Life Recruit Week 1969

How many campers can you identify? Some of these names are on the tip of our tongues but we can't pull them out. Help! Double click to make the picture bigger.
Back row: Carol Jackson, Nancy Minder, ??, ??, ??, Cindy Long, ??, ??, Greg Heavner, Scott Cain, Lynne Gurley, Candee Barton, Michael Bush.
Row 5: Kevin Hayhurst, John Heston, Rick Walston, Steve McFadden, Christine Schmidt, Linda Thomas, Cathy Opperman, Janet Thornburg, ??, ??, ??, ??
Row 4: David Berthold, ??, John Sarno, Tom Plog, Gwen Heavner, Connie Combes, Paula Bush, Debbie Fritz, Martha Sefton, DeeDee Williams, Debbie Seal, Gwen Schmidt, Prisilla Leitze, ??
Row 3:??,??,Tom Smith, James Graddy, Evan Mac Lockwood, Joy Whited, Beth Crane, Steve Roodhouse, ??, ??, Janet Boyle, Cindy Rasler, ??
Row 2: ??, ??, ??, Dick Jorgensen, Jim Strauss, Glenn Bourne, ??, Kathy Roodhouse, Vickie White, Charlotte Stowe, ??, Joy Carter, ??, ?Stark, ??
Row 1: ??, ??, Tom Booth, Steve Underwood, Rob Fritz (w/dog), Bridget Mullane, Robin Rewerts ,??, ??, Melissa Sefton (with missionary's son on lap), ??, ??

Rob Fritz had a copy of this picture with some signatures not identified including Jo Beth Boaz, Beth Crane.


Row 1:6 Briget Mullane
Row 2:6 Glen Bourne, Prof SLCC; 2:9 Vicki White
Row 3: 3 Tom Smith; 3:4 James Graddy, Minister at Bethalto; 3:7 Beth Crane
Row 4:1 David ? O'Fallon
Row 5:6 Linda Thomas; 5:7 Cathy Opperman

Any chance that 2:3 is Norman Toney? (he had red hair)

recent years at bond camp - 2005

Rachel Jumper and Libbi Monroe @ High School Camp 2005 having fun by the lake. Anyone else who has photos from this or other recent weeks at camp feel free to email.

PreHigh Friends 1967

Help fill in the names!
From the left: ?? Arburn, ?? Jaske, Teresia Schmidt, Christine Schmidt, Mark Thomure, Chuck Northcutt, Rob Fritz and Steve Mueller. The five on the right were all from First Christian Belleville. Christine and Rob are still active with the camp and attend Family camp on a regular basis.
Please post a comment if you know any of these campers or have a memory of any.

Early 1960s

Kay Wiseman from Greenville -- not sure about the Ramsey rep, Dolly Black and Mellisa Sefton from Brownstown. Comment from Sandi Heston Rinderer: "The girl from Ramsey is my dear friend, Janet COTHERN Eckhardt. Jan and I worked together (along with my brother Mike and Dan Williams) on the '99 BCSC Reunion for campers who attended 1960 -1964. Jan now lives in Altamont, IL."

Dishwashing late 1960s

Any familiar faces here? Email us of post a comment if you recognize any of these campers -- the team that pulled dishwashing this meal, obviously. Becky Huck in background.

Camp Directors in approx 1956

Here are some of the early directors of the camp. Back row L to R; Don Hargrave, Paul Morisson, Max Pope. , Dick Thayer, Bill Griffin, Pop Smith, Bill Schroder. Front row: Dan Diamond, Ralph Elsworth, ???, Frank Bush, Alvin Thompson, and Bob Kinney. Frank Bush recalls that, "My first association with Bond Christian Service Camp was the summer of 1954. At this time it was called Bond County Christian Service Camp and the only buildings on the grounds were a kitchen/dining hall, boys’ and girls’ dorms with three-hole outhouses behind, another outhouse by the kitchen, and a dean’s office building. There was another older building that later was used nurses or missionary quarters. Water was always a problem. Charles Altom and Don Paine, deacons of the Greenville Christian Church, spearheaded the effort to dig a well.

"We began a ministry in Greenville on Palm Sunday of 1955. Soon after beginning my ministry I met with the other preachers of Bond County to plan the summer camp program of 1955. It was during this and other meetings that I began to realize that this camp would never reach its potential the way it was organized. After the 1955 season the preachers met and we discussed opening up the membership of the camp so that more churches could be involved. I had two previous camp experiences – one with the Lake Springfield Christian Assembly whose camp was owned and operated by the West Side Church of Christ in Springfield and the second, Hanging Rock Christian Assembly, owned and operated by area churches. In order to have sufficient funds and campers I felt the camp organization needed to be opened up to the area churches, which in turn would provide campers, funds and workers. In the fall of 1955 we contacted all the area churches and offered them the opportunity to join the camp organization and be equal partners with the churches in Bond County. We got a positive response from many of the churches. "

Here's Charlie Greer in 196?

Does everyone remember Charlie Greer? And singing Happy Birthday?

Bell tower and faculty, early '60's

Here are some early faculty at the bell tower in the '60s -- Bob Kelley, Max Whited, Danny Williams.
An email from Mike Heston has brought an interesting story around this picture....

The picture of Bob Kelly, Max Whited, and Dan Williams (who has on a sleeveless T-shirt) standing in front of the bell tower, has a story behind it. On several occasions when he visited the Arm Prairie Church (“Chickenfoot”), Dolly Black’s home church, Danny had noticed that Dolly’s brother, Denny, was always wearing a sleeveless T-shirt. He was, as some of you know, somewhat of a body-builder. Danny and I decided to buy a week’s supply of these T-shirts and wear them every day of Life Recruit Week that year as a way of infuriating Dolly. As I recall, it worked.

Mike Heston

early '60s - chess, best campers, registration and meal for Jr. girls

Jan Rostivitt, Mike Heston on left, Art Jordan and Dick Applegate on right.

Howard Thomure on left. Pat Heston second from right. Roger ??? beside him. Maybe Best Campers and runners up receiving awards?

Can you tell us who besides Stella and Bob Kinney is at this registration? Opposite Stella Kinney is Kathy (Mueller)now Morgan of 1st Christian, Belleville. To Stella's right is Juanita Blankenship, now Juanita Nick.

We know Karen (Bush) Williams, second from left. Is that Carla Pickett next to her. Anyone else?

Whiteds in early days; Family camp and fun night circa 1965; trio

The Whited family hasn't changed a bit, huh?

Lois Fritz is teaching. Is that Steve Underwood, Robin Pickett, James Kelly, and on the end Joe Schmidt?

We identified Holly Harden and ??? on the left, Leroy Thompson and Scott Cain on the right helping dress Art Jordan.

Melissa Sefton and the Steele twins, but not sure which is Anita is on left and Sandy on the right. (Thanks to Sandi Heston Rinderer and Kay Wiseman Dobson.)

Family Camp 2006

Frank and Marilyn Bush came from Lincoln, IL to attend the anniversary/ reunion celebration during Family Camp.

Both were involved in camp from its beginning in 1954 along with 2-year-old Paula and baby Michael, even though they were living in Catlin, IL that first year. The family went to Greenville Christian Church in March of 1955 for Palm Sunday, the first of their 16 years of ministry there.

Max and Norma Whited also attended this celebration. Max was at Landsdown in the early years of camp and during the '60s was at Mulberry Grove, the church closest to camp. We remember well -- Jane, Joy, Jill, who shared some of our camp years.