The AYF will host homecoming weekends at Miniwanca Aug. 22 to 24 and at Merrowvista Sept. 12 to 14. Participants can choose to stay onsite in a cabin or dormitory-style housing or find lodging offsite and join each day’s festivities.

Register for Miniwanca Homecoming

Register for Merrowvista Homecoming

“We are so excited to welcome back former campers and their families to our beautiful sites for a weekend of excitement, joy, and camp fun,” said Vice President of Advancement Sandra George.

Homecoming welcomes anyone with connections to Miniwanca or Merrowvista, as well as those who want to learn more about camp. Attendees will gather for three days of fun camp activities, delicious meals, and powerful community moments. They’ll also have the chance to reflect on the AYF’s history and learn what’s next for the storied organization.

“We are growing in so many new ways, and we look to our community to help us build on that momentum as we prepare the next generations to discover and unleash their best for another 100 years,” said AYF President and CEO Liz Marshall.

Miniwanca will also host the next Girls Camp Reunion from Aug. 29 to Sept. 1. The reunion, which takes place every five years, welcomes generations of Miniwanca Girls Camp alums back to the dunes for a long weekend of friendship and connection. While the homecoming weekend is open to anyone, reunion participants must be 18 or older and former Girls Camp participants or staff.

Register for Girls Camp Reunion

“This is one of our most anticipated alumni events,” said Director of Adult Programs Holley Young. “Girls Camp Reunion reunites so many women from across the decades who are connected through their shared camp experiences.”

The centennial festivities wrap in St. Louis this fall when the AYF hosts a BBQ Birthday Party on Oct. 18 in Tower Grove Park, presented by Nestlé Purina PetCare. Tickets are $10 each, and everyone is welcome to join for tasty St. Louis barbecue, AYF-themed games, and birthday cake.

Also in St. Louis on Oct. 18, the AYF hosts the Checkerboard Gala, a fundraiser and awards dinner at the Trolley Room in Forest Park. Guests will don cocktail or creative checkerboard attire as we wrap a year of festivity and connection. Tickets are limited and will be available later this spring.

Register for the St. Louis BBQ Birthday Party

Learn more about the Checkerboard Gala

“We’re so excited to gather so many Founder Friends as we honor our past and celebrate our future,” Marshall said.

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Summer Seminars for Women took place Aug. 4 through 8. This annual event went virtual in 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and staff and participants were thrilled to gather in person on the dunes again.

“It was wonderful to see so many women making real connections and learning more about themselves and each other,” said Holley Young, AYF Adult Program Lead.

Participants spend the long weekend discussing how this year’s theme, Finding Balance, applied to their lives. Presenters Kelly Patterson, Tucker Branham, and Griffin Vogler also shared their insights around this important topic.

“Balanced living is foundational to all AYF programming, and it’s so important to stop and reflect on how we can assess and, if necessary, regain that balance,” said AYF Vice President Liz Marshall. “SSW provided a welcoming, supportive space for participants to reflect and grow as they do this work.”

The following weekend, dozens of Miniwanca Girls Camp alumni returned to their beloved camp for a weekend of fun, nostalgia, and connection.

Former Girls Campers of all ages felt like kids again as they rushed into Lake Michigan for Polar Bear, tried new Interest Groups, played rounds of Deck Tennis and Captainball, enjoyed delicious meals in the Eating Lodge, and reflected together during Candlelight Sing and Something Sacred.

“We have such a dedicated and supportive alumni base. It was a pleasure to welcome them back to camp after having to delay the reunion for two years,” said Molly Mulcahy, Director of Alumni and Community Relations.

Summer Seminars for Women will return in 2023 and Girls Camp Reunion will return in 2025. Sign up for the free Founder Sparks newsletter and be among the first to know when registration opens.

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Last Saturday, Jan. 22, saw the return of YearCompass, a free virtual experience designed to bring intention to the new year. The first session reflected on 2021 in review; all are welcome to join the next session on Saturday, Feb. 5 to focus on the year ahead. Registration is required.

The next free event is a virtual book club to discuss Atlas of the Heart: Mapping Meaningful Connection and the Language of Human Experience by Brené Brown. The book club is an evolution of 2021’s Conversation Circles program. This virtual offering saw 40 adults read and discuss Me and White Supremacy: Combat Racism, Change the World, and Become a Good Ancestor by Layla Saad. The book club will begin Saturday, March 26 at 10 a.m. ET and then meet on the following dates: April 9, April 23, and May 7. Register online.

To help make events like these successful, Summer Seminars for Women participant and volunteer Holley Young has stepped into the part-time role of Adult Programs Lead. Young and Alumni and Community Relations Director Molly Mulcahy will work together to plan and execute Summer Seminars for Women and Girls Camp Reunion this August at Miniwanca.

Her new position feels like a case of “divine timing,” Young said. “I am grateful to have a job in my post-professional life with an organization so foundational to me. This role merges my skillset with my passion, and I look forward to helping offer meaningful program content that supports the AYF mission and provides connection among participants.”

Registration is now open for Summer Seminars for Women (Aug. 4 to 8) and Girls Camp Reunion (Aug. 12 to 15). Young encourages anyone interested in volunteering to help plan Girls Camp Reunion to email her for more information.  

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