In the fall of 2006, a group of PremierCamps facilities personnel attended an annual meeting in Freeport, Maine. After a day of meetings and touring the extensive renovations done at Camp Cobbossee for boys, the group enbarked on a community service project renovating two area homes in conjunction with Habitat for Humanity.

The projects received front page coverage in the local newspaper. 

 

Following is an excerpt reprinted from the local press:

 

Kennebec Journal, October 26, 2006

A Chance for Giving Back

LITCHFIELD – Ray and Jeane Bruder haven't been able to wash their dishes in the kitchen of their 1800s farmhouse for at least two years. Instead, the couple has been washing dishes in the bathroom. On Thursday, a group of volunteers arrived to change that. The workers came from CampGroup, a large operator of for-profit summer camps. 

"We started remodeling a while ago," said Bruder, a soft-spoken man with closely-cropped, gray hair. "But I've been through some medical problems, which forced me to stop. And this group said they'd come in and be willing to complete the work."  CampGroup teamed up with the Southern Kennebec County chapter of Habitat for Humanity to find two projects—the Bruder house in Litchfield and a home in Wayne.  Habitat for Humanity identified the two projects and supplied the insurance needed for the work. CampGroup volunteers—25 from Camp Cobbossee and [from other PremierCamps] camps in New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Michigan and New York—attempted to complete all the repair work in just two days.

 

Work at the Bruder house included installing kitchen cabinets, leveling the floor and appliances, insulating walls, plumbing a sink and dishwasher, knocking down part of a crumbling chimney and repairing a leak in the roof. Meanwhile, a second crew working on a home in Wayne was busy repairing siding, replacing windows, putting in some handrails and fixing insulation. Hancock Lumber donated siding and other supplies. Sherwin Williams in Augusta supplied the paint. And Marden's in Lewiston also sent supplies.

The couple, said the Bruders' daughter, Chani Mitchneck, just hit a string of bad luck, which prompted her to write to Habitat for Humanity for help. "We all were just ecstatic when we found out they would help," Mitchneck said. "I got an e-mail while I was at work—working the third shift—and I was crying when I found out. Then I called my parents and my mother was in tears.

 

The day after the work began, this e-mail was received from Chani Mutschnick:

To the staff of Camp Cobbossee and Habitat for Humanity,

 

I just wanted to let you know how very thankful we are for the help and support you have given my family. Although you have donated time, materials, and labor, you have given so much more. At a time when all hope seemed to be exhausted, you renewed our spirits. Your generosity has greatly enhanced my parent's quality of living. Our faith in people, in community service, has been restored. What is so refreshing, is that it is obvious to me how the spirit of giving is so real. In speaking with my mom tonight, after their first day of work at the house, she sounded so happy! I said to her we're happy and right now the men and people who have helped to make this possible are feeling so happy and proud to do something so giving, so wonderful. It is a win/ win situation! How very fortunate we are! How very fortunate are those of you who are able to be a part of such a wonderful organization, one that can make such a difference in people’s lives.

 

My mom said to me, It doesn't seem real I thought it could never happen... You made it happen!