We closed out the month of March and said goodbye to the winter doldrums with a wonderful, productive, really inspirational Volunteer Work Weekend. There is a deep truth in the old mountain expression “Many hands make light work.” We had fun and accomplished so much and we sincerely thank all who participated. This is an annual tradition at The Mountain. We encourage you to join us next year.

There was a spectacular sunrise this morning on top of Little Scaly Mountain. Despite the fact that it is still the middle of February, this is the kind of day that makes spring feel so tantalizingly close. We hope that you are enjoying a mild winter as well, and beginning to plan your next visit to The Mountain. Although my responsibilities here revolve around organizational leadership and financial accountability, I am a program director and educator at heart. The Mountain needs to function with a very lean staffing structure as we stabilize our financial condition. We are committed to programming quality and integrity and our core UU values will continue to be the foundation from which all of our programs and services will be delivered. This reality is critical to our future success and I hope this gives you confidence in us as well. What follows are some suggestions that may help you to decide when to come join us for a special event in your life. There are links to our website that will lead you to additional information and how to register.

Since this is the last month of 2011 I would like to reflect back on the achievements and milestones of the past year as well as take a look ahead to 2012, one that promises to be an exciting and memorable year for The Mountain. 

Two key words that best describe the past 12 months must be transition and survival. I want to give a big call out to our hard-working, talented and dedicated staff - they have simply been terrific in their performance. We have had to ask each member of our team to be flexible and go above and beyond their normal job duties due to our lean staffing levels. We have had leadership transitions in nearly every department this year: Julie Brooks started in January as Finance Director; Beth Witte moved rapidly from YAR to Associate to Youth Coordinator in Programs, and Brian Buckley in the Kitchen, who started as a cook and baker in June, became Head of Food Service in August. I began my role as Interim Director in March. I am planning on continuing in this capacity until March 23, 2013. Penny Youngblood, our first shift cook, will move into a new role as Head of Housekeeping starting in January. Finally, Bill Posey, who first came to The Mountain as a volunteer in 2010, will become Head of Maintenance in January. We express true appreciation to Ian Denham, who is retiring this month after 22 years of service to The Mountain.

Although the Autumnal Equinox occurred just a few days ago, Summer 2011 seems like it ended a couple of months back in time. As more and more school districts start classes in early August the camping industry has been forced to shrink their summer season. The Mountain’s last session, Senior High Camp, ended on July 30th. I believe we honored the wonderful traditions and legacy of MountainCamp. Many great memories linger on.