The death of a Timbers icon

This has taken about a week to both write and post, sorry for the delay and for the lack of postings over the last week but as tends to be the case when things like this happen in my life, the writings have not been things I wish to post in the public domain. So last week as some of you loyal readers may know, a friend, an acquaintance, someone I use to know passed away after a lengthy battle with cancer. She was the director of Camp Timbers in Traverse City, MI when I was a camper there back in junior high and high school and not someone I ever knew well, or thought much about over the years that have passed since becoming an adult. When I learned of her passing, I spent a little time reflecting on some of those memories from camp and have realized a few things I never noticed back then.

I suppose it is typical that we overlook those who manage to stand in the background and oversee events in our lives. SAK was management, in charge of making sure we campers, and the staff she hired to care for us, followed every rule. She was an authority figure in my life and at that age it placed her squarely on the side of the enemy a lot of the time. Now that I am a little older and a lot wiser, when I think back over my years as a camper at The Timbers, SAK was always there. She was the first face I saw every summer at check in. She always greeted me with a smile, knew my name, what program I would be in without looking at her clipboard, and was genuinely happy to see me arrive each session. While I was at camp there were moments I spent alone in quiet conversation with her, not many in the first two years but certainly more than once in my final two. I had forgotten about those. I had forgotten how concerned she was the year I was removed from my GTST trip due to injury, and eventually sent home Friday morning for another much darker reason. I had forgotten that she called my house the day after I went home that year to find out both how my hand was doing and how my “other” appointment went. I had forgotten that she called the house to speak to me the following spring when my camper registration came across her desk for the Isle Royal trip. She wanted to see how I was doing and make sure that it wasn’t a mistake in registration since I had always been a sailor. And, that year when I arrived at camp for my session, it was SAK who took time out of her day for another quiet talk and asked my permission to share some info with my counselors, one of which had been a staff member the previous year and remembered me as Shane The Klutz.

As director of The Timbers, it was also SAK who had the final say in what staff would be hired each summer, what groups they would be assigned to each session, and as a result of that, what staff I would get the opportunity to spend two weeks with. Those decisions, while seemingly insignificant, impacted the direction my life would take form the first moment I set foot at The Timbers. My first year there SAK hired a short and spunky college girl who went by the camp name of Kool-Aid to be the waterfront director. It took a few days at camp, and one evening of Frisbee football, for me to warm up to her but that relationship is one that never went away even with a large age difference and hundreds of miles separating us. Most of you would know of her as Stacey, her name appears here on occasion. The following year I did two sessions of camp and found myself in a Windjammers group with Tigger as a counselor. There is a much longer story behind my connection to Tigg but suffice it to say, she too has remained a part of my life since. The Timbers, under the direction of SAK was a safe place for me during a rough time in my life. Each summer I loved every moment I spent there and the remainder of the year, I looked back upon my summer with fond memories and forward to what the next summer would bring. There were times when the hope of returning to The Timbers to reunite with friends from previous summers was all that kept me going and it was with a heavy heart that I walked out of camp on the last day my final year. I knew an era of my life had just ended and I would be leaving behind my carefree camper days in search of something to fill that void the next summer. And, with one exception I have not been back to The Timbers since.

So much of my memories of sun drenched days on sailboats and hiking across Isle Royal have faded over the years. It is a sad fact of getting older and creating new memories to fill those creases of my brain. But one thing remains even after all these years, the friendships I made over those years, the songs we sang each night after dinner and on our trips around the campfire, the sense of belonging someplace in a world I never felt a part of most of the time, and the people who made all of that possible. Joann downing, SAK, was a big part of that both in her management and her personality. She has forever left an imprint on my life and in many ways has succeeded in sending me in the right directions, one of her goals for all of those she worked with over her lifetime.

Below is the obit from the flint journal, an entry I made to her Virtual Guest book, and a photo i "borrowed" from someone who uploaded it to that guest book.

Joann Arlowyn Downing
She was preceded in death by her mother, Arlowyn (Terry); aunts, Joann Owen, Jeanne Carlson; uncle, Don Carlson; cousin, Byron Owen. The family would like to thank all of her extended family and friends and the staff at McLaren CCU unit for DOWNING, Joann Arlowyn - Age 53, of Flint, died January 7, 2009 after a 13 year long courageous battle fighting breast cancer. Funeral Service will be held 3 PM Sunday, January 11, 2009 at the Hill Funeral Home, 11723 S. Saginaw St., Grand Blanc, MI. Visitation will be Saturday 3 to 8 PM. Joann was born November 7, 1955 in Detroit, daughter of Kenneth D. and Arlowyn (Terry). Joann graduated from Grand Blanc High School in 1973, and earned a Bachelor of Science degree with honors from MSU in 1978. She resided in the Flint and Ann Arbor areas for most of her life. She worked for the Greater Flint Arts Council as Development Director. Worked for Big Brother, Big Sister as Marketing & Fund Director, the Girl Scouts Fair Winds Council as Properties & Outdoor Program Director, YWCA of Metropolitan Detroit as Program Director. She was a City of Flint Human Relations Commissioner, and was involved in Rotary, Kiwanis, and the Gender Equality Committee of Genesee County. She is survived by her father, Kenneth; sister, Karen (Earl) Downing, Michelle (Rick) Wright, Suzanne McVey; brother, Kenneth II; nieces, Zana Downing Cook, Nicole (Dave) Read, Andrea Wright, Rachel Downing; nephews, Rich Wright, Seath (Nicole) McVey, Shane McVey, Seamus (Kelly) McVey, and Joshua Downing; great-nieces, Haley Wright, Jillian McVey and Erin McVey. their care and compassion. In lieu of flowers donations may be may be made to the American Cancer Society or the Greater Flint Arts Council.

The guest book entry ...
When I sat down to write this I was at a loss for words. Joann Downing is a name I haven't heard much over the last 13 years and have only run into once or twice in that time. It's safe to say I didn't know her all that well, yet the news of her passing has struck a chord deep in my soul.

I am a Timbers Kid and had the blessing of growing up a Timbers Kid while Joann, SAK as I knew her then, was the director. Every summer I was greeted at check-in with a warm smile, a friendly hug, and an enthusiastic "Hey Shane great to see you again!” As a camper I knew her from a distance much of the time, though there were a few quiet camper-to-staff chats over the years that allowed me a glimpse into who she really was and, I always knew that she had the best interest of those she worked with at heart and cared deeply about each and every one of us. However, it wasn't until I got older that I realized how much being a Timbers Kid, particularly one under the direction of SAK, actually affected my life and just how many lessons I took away from those experiences. Though I didn't spend much time with Joann directly, she was influential in my life in other ways. It was her choices of what staff to hire that had the most direct impact on my day to day life and allowed me to befriend some who are, after 17 years, still a part of my life. Her rules may not have been appreciated by all, particularly by some of the staff who had to abide by them against their better judgment, but they were a necessary part of the job. It's the staff and campers I spent my time with during my camp years that I remember most, but Joann was always there in the background making things run and allowing kids like me a special place to go for two weeks each summer where we could be ourselves.

In the few times I have run into Joann since my last year as a Timbers camper, she always recognized me and greeted me with that same warm smile and a "Hey Shane great to see you again!" Her legacy will live on for generations to come by those of us who know she touched our lives in some way and, in far more cases, by those who have no idea who she was or how hard she worked to make programs and places like the Timbers run smoothly. It was her life's work to touch the lives of others, and for thousands more just like me, she did exactly that.