Ursa Award

Mission: The Ursa award honors individuals whose selfless contributions and exemplary dedication have profoundly impacted the Wabun Family.

Speech: Julie and Sarah introduced section logs and we were transported by the stories we heard. Julie spoke of the power of stories. In front of us are four people whose power has grown from story to legend. For a cumulative 250 years, Dick Lewis, Nibby Hinchman, Marg Lewis and Ann Hinchman have been Wabun. As many of us know, time at Wabun can be a funny thing – minutes can drag like an untied stern line or dart like a diving loon depending on how stuck your feet are in the muskeg or how strongly the river pulls your paddle at the top of a “V.”

Things like stern lines and paddle pulls may seem small. But isn’t it all the small things that make up a journey? That make up a life? The unseen pieces that might not draw attention on their own but, when carefully pieced together, combine to more than the sum of their parts and create a meaningful mosaic of moments and memories that, when viewed from distance, takes our breath away.

For 250 years, these four mosaicists have gathered grit and grace, cedar and canvas, love and labor, strength and struggle, patience and perspective, and pieced them all together to build the Wabun program. They are the spiritual ambroid that has held us all together. We are here, in this moment, to honor them. Each of us knows what Wabun looks like from different perspectives and appreciates the beauty of it’s whole picture – today we invite you to zoom in and appreciate the work these four have done in procuring and positioning the pieces. There are millions of them.

The parenting pieces: Ann, Marg, Nibby, and Dick have welcomed, fed, encouraged, nursed, parented, comforted, cheered on and sent off  thousands of campers.

The visiting pieces: They have visited homes, schools, camp fairs, community centers, campsites, Walmart, Canadian Tire, hotel rooms, emergency rooms, and between them all, Tim Hortons.

The repairing pieces: They have patched up footwear, rainwear, tumps, knees, canoes, curtains, roofs, paint, doors, windows, spirits, and pants. They have repaired plumbing, gas, electrical, motors, engines, relationships, blenders, printers, and canoes.

The worrying pieces: They have sat up nights together worrying about campers, staff, roofs, food, storms, flights, and water levels.

The postal pieces: They have licked over 50,000 stamps and memorized nearly as many zip codes. They have received countless bills, checks, invoices and itemized receipts to be cataloged. They have mailed countless camper postcards, staff gifts, holiday cards, Open House fliers, birthday cards, graduation cards.

The support pieces: They have written countless letters of recommendation and have proofread 1,000’s of college entrance essays. Please raise your hand if your college application essay was about Wabun.

The driving pieces: For hundreds of thousands of miles they have driven cars, boats, busses, tractors quads, vans, snowmobiles, barges, and freighters. They have transported canoes, campers, staff, visitors, sick and injured, food, snacks, wannigans, and dogs to airports, train stations, Open Houses, campsites, and countless remote logging road coordinates by map and compass and GPS with chainsaws, spare tires, and thermoses at the ready.

The town run pieces: They have purchased maps, food, gear, staff watches, shoes, Dickies, staff watches, shoe goo, Dickies, staff watches, crocs, socks, and more staff watches. And all-dressed chips.

The attendance pieces: They have attended, Ontario Camp Association Meetings, Canadian Camp Association Meetings, AYCTL meetings, and countless Sunday Morning off-season Zoom’s. They have attended graduations, funerals, engagement parties, baby showers, bat-mitzvahs, bush-mitzvahs, and have attended and officiated weddings and commitment ceremonies.

The giving pieces: They have given help, handshakes, hugs, laughs, they have given up their weekend, their own salaries, time, holidays, family vacations, the shirts off their backs, the hats off their heads, the socks off their feet, their raincoats, their sleeping bags, their seats at the table.

The smiling pieces: They have cheered for us in the sun, the wind, the rain, the cold. They have smiled, and smiled, and smiled, and smiled.

The changing pieces: They have ushered in women at Wabun, nylon, freeze dried foods, and have taken us from mimeograph to xerox to fax to email to airdrop. Not to mention the evolution of Wabun swag.

The other pieces: They have headed out in the dark and arrived in the dark. They always remember to turn the lights off. The phones are answered because of them. The tables are set because of the them. The forts are stocked because of them. They have volunteered their time, heart, love, caring, and wisdom. They have raised thousands of children alongside their own. They have woven an unseen web that is supportive enough to hold us all and strong enough to set us free. We rarely see them swim, but they always keep their cool. They are our heroes. And for them, we have created the Ursa award.

The Ursa award honors individuals whose selfless contributions and exemplary dedication have profoundly impacted the Wabun Family.

Guided by those who came before them, the four people sitting in front of you have taken strokes that have created ripples that will impact generations yet to be born. From now forward Camp Wabun Leadership will periodically give this award to those individuals who represent the strength of character, work ethic, and boundless love that those of us around you have been fortunate enough to know. Thank you. We love you.