Recreation & Fun

San Francisco Supervisor Margaret Mary Morgan, the first female elected official in City history, introduced a resolution at the Board of Supervisors in 1923 that required the camp be created. Mather first opened in 1924 and has continued to operate since – even through the depression, World War II, Vietnam, the Gulf Wars, a big Yosemite fire in 1991 and a devastating earthquake in 1989.

Today, the Camp remains much as it has for its 85 years of existence. Its swimming hole, bunk houses, dining hall, talent shows, 300-year-old Ponderosa Pines, sierra mountain hikes and bears wandering through camp are timeless memories for generations of San Franciscans.

I brought my family up for the week and I was told by staff and Friends of Camp Mather patrons, that I was the first permanent General Manager to do so for as long as they could remember. We schlepped four bikes on the back of our car which we used each and every day. Mather is a bicycle oasis. When bike advocates speak of car-free space and a push for healthier transportation alternatives than driving, I will forever conjur up hundreds of people cris-crossing Mather’s campus using pedal power. I will also never forget the site of my 5-year-old daughter, Sarah, confidently and independently pedaling around from lake to dining hall like she was a cab driver. “It’s a two-wheeler, you know,” she would tell us as she sped off. Sarah ate and slept in her purple and pink bike helmet all week. Precious.

The Camp has a ridiculously small staff of about 35. Under the remarkable leadership of Claudia Reinhart, the camper-to-staff ratio of about 13-1 feels much smaller than it should. Essentially, we have Claudia, an aquatics director (Kathy Matias), two maintenance leads (Vince and Paul), two recreation directors, a staff nurse, kitchen and administrative staff and volunteers. Claudia works 18 hours a day while up at the camp, seemingly everywhere in her golf cart. Always smiling and very often filling in wherever she’s needed, Claudia is the glue of this remarkable staff.

Highlights throughout the week included tie-dying, soccer and softball games, outdoor ping-pong, outdoor movie night, horseback rides, archery, the general store, Scrabble by the lake while fellow campers played bluegrass music…the list goes on and on. I spent a morning with Commissioner David Lee and the kitchen crew washing 500 dishes, cups and silverware – I was covered head-to-toe in wet scrambled egg bits….I’m gonna keep my day job.

And, oh yes, the talent show. The Camp Mather Talent Show happens on Thursday night and includes spirited performances from lots and lots of guests. After a glass of wine or two, our friends Geoff and Jean challenged me to get up on stage in front of 250 people and perform. I challenged them to raise $1000 for Friends of Camp Mather – the camp’s very passionate and devoted stewardship partner. The mission of FOCM is to promote, enhance, and support the recreational, social, environmental and aesthetic aspects of the Camp. Through membership dues, contributions and fundraising at Mather (check out the new coffee mugs, t-shirts, caps and Mather history books), FOCM has helped fund mattresses, new archery and fly-fishing equipment, bear-proof recycling cans and lots of other important stuff.

Anyway, 30 minutes (and another glass of wine) after our friends’ dare, Jean and Geoff had raised about $1250 dollars (mostly from Geoff and Jean as it turned out), and Emily and I did a stirring duet of the classic hit “Rubber Duckie.” Again, I think I’ll keep my day job (and my kids were horrified). As I sang I thought about Tony Patch – FOCM’s longtime leading advocate who passed away earlier this summer. I never had the pleasure to know Tony, but as I made an idiot of myself, I thought “Tony, this one’s for you…..”
While up at Camp I met or spent time with most of the staff and I also arranged meetings with the producers of the Strawberry Music Festival (which happens at Camp Mather on Memorial and Labor Day weekends) and with PUC staff. We have a very close and valuable partnership with the PUC at Camp Mather for historical and practical reasons (we are only nine miles from the Hetch Hetchy). We are partnering on a variety of capital projects and all Camp Mather lovers should feel very grateful for the PUC’s ongoing support and investment.

I loved my stay and my head is full of ideas on how to support this incredible institution to keep it robust, vibrant, beautiful and fun for the next 85 years. If you’ve never been there, you’re missing out. Trust me.