It is our great honor to announce that the Hallock family has established an Endowment at Merrie-Woode in honor of one of Merrie-Woode’s legends – Alumna, Former Trustee, and Former Interim Director, Ginger Somerville Hallock (1951-1979). The Ginger Somerville Hallock Endowment will support diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts at Merrie-Woode, a cause that Ginger whole-heartedly embraced. She gave so much of her heart to helping Camp thrive, and now her legacy will allow many more girls and young women from underrepresented groups the opportunity to experience Camp and become part of the Merrie-Woode family.
It would be hard to identify any person with more Merrie-Woode P-E-P than Ginger! She was one of four generations of her family to attend Camp Merrie-Woode, beginning with her mother, Virginia Hilton Roller Grasty (1929), a camper of Dammie Day’s era, followed by daughters, Hilton Hallock (1975-1982) and Elizabeth Hallock Andrews (1976-1981), and finally by granddaughter, Madeleine Andrews (2012-present).
While a camper, Ginger especially enjoyed whitewater canoeing, making Captain during her third summer at Camp in 1953. Ginger returned for several summers as a counselor and eventually became Program Director, only to see her Camp summers come to an end (or so she thought) when she married the love of her life, The Rev. Harold H. Hallock. While Ginger supported Harold in his ministry in the church, he too supported her in her devotion to camp, especially during the years she worked tirelessly to ensure that Camp would be in a position to thrive as it does today.
In the midst of Ginger’s tenure on the Board of Trustees of the Merrie-Woode Foundation, Inc., she unexpectedly found herself wearing a green staff shirt once again when she volunteered to serve as Interim Director during the 1989 – 1990 season. Together with staff members Sid Long (1986-2001) and Phyllis Stiwinter (1988-2019), Ginger did “everything that needed doing,” including managing the office, recruiting campers, hiring staff, and even raking leaves. Sid remembers that “The camp office in those days was literally falling down around us, as was the lack of excitement about camp enrollment. But with Ginger’s enthusiasm and energy, she rekindled the spirit of camp and enrollment began to climb once again. She was always a joy and made working in tough times fun!”
And who could forget Ginger at Merrie-Woode’s Centennial Celebration in 2018, proudly wearing her middie and tie, regaling the attendees of the Legendary Luncheon with sidesplitting tales of pranks and other camp highjinks? Always ready to rally the Merrie-Woode family, Ginger provided wonderful advice and support during Camp’s special 2020 fundraising efforts. We are all grateful for the memory of Ginger reading “To An Old Camper” by Mary S. Edgar during the fall 2020 Virtual Alumnae Campfire, which was a great boost to the spirits of all Merrie-Woode girls who participated around the globe. Ginger’s light shone so brightly throughout her life, and it is fitting that she and her family established a permanent endowment in her honor at Camp that will support Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at Merrie-Woode for years to come. The funds generated through the Ginger Somerville Hallock Endowment will support programming, staffing, camperships, and other initiatives advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion at Merrie-Woode. We are enormously grateful to the Hallock family for this most generous gift.
Watch Ginger read “To An Old Camper” at the Virtual Alumnae Campfire in 2020:
The post Ginger Somerville Hallock Endowment Will Support Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion appeared first on Camp Merrie-Woode | NC Girls Summer Camp.