Aloha Foundation

The Aloha Family is proud to celebrate more than 100 years of camping history!
 

In the summer of 1897, while on a leisurely bicycle ride, Edward and Harriet Farnsworth Gulick discovered a charming cottage on the shores of Lake Morey. The Gulicks were part of a small cohort of forward-thinking individuals who, at a time in which corsets, tight waists and high-button shoes were the norm, believed fervently in educational opportunities for young women. The Gulicks were convinced of the intrinsic value -- for girls as well as boys -- in having the opportunity to explore mountains and rivers, try their hands at crafts and carpentry, and discuss intellectual topics. They purchased the little lakeside house, rolled up their sleeves, and began to think with love and imagination. True to their Hawaiian missionary roots, they named their new summer cottage Aloha. Summer after happy summer, they brought their own children to Vermont to enjoy the sweet air and outdoor adventure.

In 1905, after having been encouraged by friends, Mother and Father Gulick (as they became known to their Camp family) invited a small group of 23 girls to join the family for the summer. Aloha Cottage became the Main House, tent platforms were errected and docks built, canoes purchased and an adjacent dairy barn converted for arts and crafts. Camp Aloha was born!

The Gulicks sensed the need to bring this same quality of experience to younger girls. They envisioned woods and hills, hammocks and swings, a green for dancing and games, and a cool lake for swimming. Aloha Hive opened in the summer of 1915 on the glistening shores of Lake Fairlee. Like Aloha, summers at Hive taught young girls that love, laughter, and imagination, combined with a spirit to be your best self, make the world go around.

The next question to occupy Mother and Father Gulick was, “What about all the little brothers of Aloha and Hive campers?” While their first passion was to meet the need for girls’ camps, the Gulicks knew the Aloha Spirit should be offered to boys as well. They imagined a camp that promoted a spirit of adventure, discovery, respect for others, and individual growth. Camp Lanakila, meaning “victory” in Hawaiian, opened in the summer of 1922 just down the road from Camp Aloha. Lanakilans have delighted in imaginative adventures for more than 80 years, acting in plays, singing music, and crafting structures such as a wooden railroad with a functioning engine, a lighthouse, a mill house, a Spanish galleon, and the landmark Castle that endures today.

The mid 1960s saw a time of change for the Aloha camps, as members of the Gulick family’s next generation followed pursuits other than the management of Aloha, Hive, and Lanakila. Understanding that the Camp mission was too valuable to abandon, a dedicated group of parents and friends imagined alternatives to the family-owned business structure, formed a nonprofit foundation, and then bought the camps from the family. The Aloha Foundation, Inc. was formed in order to ensure that the camps had a future, and to sustain the Gulick traditions of creating fine people and promoting service to others through teaching.

The Foundation saw the need for excellent and innovative adult and youth programming and launched the year-round Hulbert Outdoor Center, named for Mother and Father Gulick’s daughter, Mrs. Carol Gulick Hulbert, in 1978. Just as at the summer camps, participants in Hulbert outdoor education programs discovered their own inner resources, the meaning of a community, and how to be conscientious stewards of the environment. Hulbert continues to provide a fine and eclectic mix of environmental studies programs, a high ropes course, adventure challenges, and team-building activities

Like the Gulicks before them, the Foundation's leadership was receptive and sensitive to new opportunities to serve children, in particular, seeking a way by which to meet the needs of local families through creative programming. Summer Horizons, as the day camp is called, opened in 1997 on Lake Fairlee, south of Aloha Hive. In each two-week session, Horizons offers the best of the Aloha experience, with time to make friends, learn new skills, explore natural beauty, act, dance, swim and have fun!

For more than a century, alumnae and alumni have been devoted to the Alohas, and to the enduring Aloha Spirit pioneered by Mother and Father Gulick so many years ago. One alumna recently expressed her love of camp with these words: “The spirit of Aloha has truly been with me on life’s journey. It’s the importance of community, of listening, of laughter and play, the gift of nature, the central place for compassion, the need to speak up for justice and to build on faith. In a changing world, it is comforting to hear of Aloha’s continuing vitality.”

For more detailed information on the history of the Aloha Camps, you might enjoy our book The Aloha Family Celebrates 100 Years!

To give a tax-deductable donation to The Aloha Foundation, Inc., please see our Give to Aloha page.