Hiram House Today

New Heifer Classroom to Greet Hiram House Campers in 2007

Hiram House looks forward to welcoming new and returning Summer Campers and School Camp Groups for the 2007 season!

Among the many exciting outdoor activities awaiting them this year will be the addition of a new Heifer Classroom as part of the camp’s recently expanded Farmstead program, thanks to the efforts of Hiram College students, faculty and staff, led by Associate Chaplain Jason Bricker-Thompson.

Working together with Hiram House staff, they helped convert one side of the Higbee Log Cabin in Pioneer Circle to be used for camper instruction, displays about conservation, animal husbandry, sustainable agriculture, other cultures and countries.

A former Hiram House program staff member and Hiram College graduate himself, Bricker-Thompson and his fellow students and faculty, along with camp staff, were also instrumental in the development of the camp’s popular Environmental Center & Weather Station at Hiram House several years ago. Hiram College is now donating a portion of proceeds from campus fundraisers to support the newly converted facility.

The new Heifer Classroom, a previously added vegetable and flower garden in the meadow, and an assortment of small domestic farm animals are all part of the camp’s Farmstead program. Last summer two pygmy goats joined rabbits and guinea pigs at the barnyard and were a big hit with campers and staff alike.

The program is patterned after the worldwide Heifer Project, with the support of Heifer International and the Garfield Memorial United Methodist Church in Pepper Pike.

Hiram House was established in 1896 by George Bellamy and six fellow divinity students from Hiram College. Although two independent organizations, the camp and college have forged many positive cooperative efforts over the years in honor of this proud legacy.

Hiram House Elects New President, Officers for 2007-‘08

- Five New Members Named to Board of Trustees -
Past-President Recognized for Years of Service

The Hiram House Board of Trustees elected new leadership for the 2007-‘08 term as well as five new members at its recent annual meeting.

Newly-elected officers were John D. Barrett, President, and David B. Moore, Vice President-Finance and Treasurer. Re-elected were officers Susan Walter Cargile, Vice President-Development, and Russell R. Grundke, Secretary. Outgoing President, John M. Fulton, will remain on the Board and also serve on the Finance Committee.

Newly-elected trustees were Dr. Daniel M. Neides, Lawrence A. Kopittke, Jr., Kristy Kopittke, Dr. Laura Gillespie, and Dr. Michael Martinez.

John D. Barrett is Senior Vice President and Division Head for Commercial Banking at LaSalle Bank in Cleveland. Barrett previously served as Vice President-Finance and Treasurer of the Hiram House Board, as a member of the Finance Committee, and has been a trustee since 1993. Barrett is a graduate of Georgetown University. He and his family reside in Hudson.

Barrett, whose term began in January, said he looks forward to “continuing the great work done at Hiram House on behalf of the area’s youth.”

“We have an outstanding staff and a very supportive group of donors and volunteers,” he added. Barrett also indicated Hiram House will continue to “focus on capital improvements to maintain a great camp for the children of this region.”

David B. Moore recently retired after a career in real estate with Prudential Select Properties in Pepper Pike. He is a resident of Shaker Heights. He previously served in the position of Vice President-Finance and has been a Board member since the 1970’s.

Susan Walter Cargile is Chair of the Hiram House Capital Campaign and has been a Board member since 1978. She is a graduate of Laurel School and Denison University and a resident of Beachwood.

Russell R. Grundke is Executive Director of Hiram House, the non-profit organization operating Hiram House Camp. The 111-year-old youth camp was founded in 1896 as Ohio’s first “Settlement House.”

Outgoing President John M. Fulton, a South Russell resident, who has served several terms as President and Vice President-Finance and has been a trustee since 1983, was presented with a plaque from the Board “in recognition of his years of service and dedication to Hiram House and the children it serves”.

Fulton, whose tenure saw the completion of a new residential log cabin and the launch of another one as part of a multiyear, five-million dollar capital campaign to revitalize the camp, its programs and facilities, said he was pleased with the progress made. He recently retired after a career in banking and finance in which he was Senior Vice President of the Commercial Real Estate Division of Charter One Bank, in Cleveland.

In addition to electing new officers, five new members were elected to the Hiram House Board of Trustees. Dr. Daniel Neides is Associate Medical Director of the Cleveland Clinic Solon.

Dr. Neides has been recognized as Outstanding Educator by the Cleveland Clinic Foundation and inducted into Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Society for his teaching at Ohio State University College of Medicine. A Cleveland native, he received his medical degree from Ohio State University. He and his family live in Pepper Pike.

Lawrence A. Kopittke, Jr., and Kristy Kopittke, are also residents of Pepper Pike. Mr. Koppittke is President of Lawrence Industries in Cleveland. He received a Bachelor of Science degree from Miami University. Mrs. Koppittke is Sales Manager of Ryan Homes, in Solon. She is a graduate of Laurel School and received a Bachelor of Science degree from Boston University.

Dr. Laura Gillespie is an Associate Staff member of the Pediatrics Department at the Cleveland Clinic. She is a graduate of Laurel School, holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Bucknell University and earned her medical degree from Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine.

Dr. Michael Martinez is a radiologist in the Radiology Department at South Pointe Hospital. He received his undergraduate degree from Yale University and his medical degree from Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine. Both Dr. Martinez and Dr. Gillespie are Cleveland natives and live in Shaker Heights.

In other business, the Board announced construction is in progress on the third of four new residential log cabins to be built as part of the Hiram House master plan and capital campaign. The cabin is due to open in the spring and will be available for School Camp, Summer Camp, and Retreat Groups.

Hiram House School Camp Gets High Marks from Kidder Elementary

Take eighty inquisitive children, an enthusiastic faculty and staff, mix in dozens of exciting, interactive daily activities, 172 acres of scenic outdoor classrooms and you have the makings of a “fabulous educational experience.”

Just ask Principal Mark Mabry and 5th grade students, teachers and parent chaperones from Walter Kidder Elementary School, in the Brunswick City School District, who visited Hiram House School Camp last spring.

The school incorporated the camp’s 4-day educational program as part of its regular curriculum to tie into the students’ science and environmental studies. This was Kidder’s first time at Hiram House School Camp, although other schools in the Brunswick District, such as Towslee Elementary, have been coming for the past several years. They chose Hiram House School Camp because they wanted to be directly involved in the teaching program and found they were delighted with the results.

According to Principal Mabry, Hiram House “designed the School Camp curriculum to fit our needs and we really relished that aspect of the program.” Executive Director Russell Grundke and Program Director Rachel Fredrick were “more than accommodating.” He observed that Grundke has done an outstanding job in building “great new facilities at the camp, such as a new Climbing Wall, Environmental Center, Log Cabins and much more.”

Mabry said Fredrick did “a wonderful job working with the school to plan its schedule and activities at School Camp. She and her program staff were very good to us. They even came to Kidder Elementary to do an advance presentation for our faculty and parents to show them what to expect and put everyone at ease prior to our visit.”

During their stay at Hiram House School Camp, students enjoyed a variety of academic and recreational activities each day, such as: stream, pond and swamp studies, orienteering, survival skills, pioneering skills like candle and butter making, nature hikes, low ropes challenge course, climbing wall, archery, canoeing, sensory awareness, camp arts & crafts, even learning how to build a birdhouse. “The kids loved it – they could take part in so many things you just can’t do anywhere else,” Mabry said.

Students were broken into small groups of 10-12 for more individualized attention. Each child rotated through the one-hour and twenty-minute daily periods so that everyone got to experience every activity scheduled during the course of the week. Hiram House School Camp Outdoor Education Instructors and Kidder Elementary teachers shared the instructional program. Even the downtime and evening programs were “structured recreation” such as campfires, skits and games with the children, staff and parent chaperones.

Many of these activities and the group dynamics they provide offered the added benefit of developing the students’ selfesteem, confidence, leadership, and communications skills. “This was also a great bonding experience,” said Mabry, “not only for the children but for the adults as well.”

An educator for some 27 years, Mabry was a former teacher himself and has been the principal at Kidder for the past 14 years. He was actively involved in the School Camp program at Hiram House, on site, not as the principal, but as just another staff member, very hands-on. “It was really great to be able to relax and be at ease with the students, staff and parents,” he said, “whether singing songs over the campfire or talking about our day in the residential log cabins at night – it was a very good environment for team building.”

Mabry cited many other benefits, including Hiram House’s policy of exclusive use by one group at a time. “We loved having the whole camp and its facilities to ourselves with no other distractions or scheduling conflicts, we used everything,” he said. “The rustic, year-round lodging and dining accommodations were great and the food was good too.”

Also, because Hiram House is centrally located in Moreland Hills in the Greater Cleveland area, near major highway routes, it is easily accessible for school districts throughout Northeast Ohio. That proximity saves transportation time and costs, according to Mabry, and leaves more room and funding to devote to the program itself. Not only is the camp easy to reach, but it is also close to medical and other vital facilities. Yet, while you are there it seems like you are “completely surrounded by nature’s serenity, amid its lush woods, meadows, streams, ponds, and wildlife.”

Overall, Hiram House School Camp was a resounding success, Mabry said. It received ringing endorsements from Kidder ’s staff, parents and students too. The school surveyed them all and each group said they “absolutely loved it and were completely satisfied”. Asked what might be changed to make it better for the future, their uniform response was “don’t change a thing.”

In fact, in their year-end survey, over half of the 5th graders cited Hiram House School Camp as their “favorite thing of the entire school year.” It had the highest participation among all of the school’s annual programs.

“The kids had a great time and learned a lot in the process, “ Mabry said, adding he and everyone at the school were very pleased, “We tried something new and different. It all came together and worked out very well. We can’t wait to go back to Hiram House School Camp again next spring!”

“Horse Around” at Hiram House this Summer

- Annual Benefit to be Held on July 21 -
Families of All Ages Welcome!

Hiram House will host a fun-filled “Horse Around” evening at camp for families of all ages, on Saturday, July 21, from 5:00 to 9:00 p.m., to benefit its Horseback Riding Program and annual Campership Fund for youth in need.

The event’s festivities will feature a barbeque dinner buffet by the Winking Lizard and cocktails, as well as a Silent Auction with many fabulous items for guests to bid on, donated by area businesses and individuals.

New this year, will be an exciting “Gold Rush” game with great prizes. Back by popular demand will be the amazing Zap Entertainment with “The Bubble Lady” and Magic by “Zap the Wonder Chap.”

Children can also make an arts and crafts project to take home, which will be supervised by the camp’s staff.

Reservations are required and space is limited. Tickets are $35 for adults and $15 for children. Sponsor tables are also available. For more information, please contact Hiram House at (216) 831-5045. Casual attire.