Camp Centennial Milestones

Aloha Camp

Fairlee, Vermont
Established: 1905
Camp Details

"Imagination necessary. The very fabric of human civilization depends on it." Harriet Farnsworth Gulick wrote these words in a notebook of ideas for assembly talks at Aloha Camp, a camp for girls, which she founded with her husband, Edward Gulick in 1905.

Next, the Gulicks turned their imagination to opportunities for women "age eighteen to eighty," opening Aloha Club in 1910 on the secluded shore of Lake Katherine in Pike, New Hampshire. The success of Aloha Camp and Aloha Club inspired the Gulicks to imagine how camp could benefit younger girls. Having purchased 400 acres of farmland on Lake Fairlee in Ely, Vermont, they developed Aloha Hive, which opened in 1915.

After launching Hive, the next question for the Gulick's imagination was "what about all the little brothers of Aloha and Hive campers?" Far from the military camps that prevailed for boys in those days, they envisioned Camp Lanikila, a camp that promoted a spirit of adventure, discovery, creativeness, respect for others, and individual growth.

After Edward Gulick's death in 1931, Harriet Gulick continued for twenty years as the central, caring presence for all the camps. She passed away in February 1951 at the age of 86. In the mid 1960s, the camps faced a major challenge as members of the Gulick family's next generation followed pursuits other than the management of Aloha, Hive, and Lanikila. The Aloha Foundation was formed as a nonprofit organization that would continue operating the camps and endeavor to sustain the Gulick traditions.

(Adapted from "Aloha Family Celebrates 100 Years" by Kathy Christie, Camping Magazine, July/August 2004)