2026 Newsletter #7

Welcome to the penultimate newsletter of the Pemi 2026 season!

We’re down to the final five days of the summer here in Wentworth, but you’d never know it from all that’s still happening. In true Pemi fashion, our final week of camp is probably our busiest stretch of the entire summer, as the boys seek to enjoy every last moment and opportunity that they can. From taking advantage of the waterski boat to finishing up a woodshop project to shooting for an award in archery to taking the nature field test for their Pemi Silver, Pemi campers are doing it all. And those are just examples of what’s going on outside of our Pemi Week schedule! For Pemi Week itself, we have a non-stop slate of activities such as our opening Games Day, triathlon, swimming, Woodsdudes’ Day, pentathlon, cabin soccer, sailing, and archery championships. We’ve also added a couple events to the schedule this year: golf and chess. Campers and staff alike have been getting in round after round on our new nine-hole Pemi Pines Golf Course using over-sized softer balls and modified backyard clubs. The nine tee boxes go back and forth between two greens, each with two flagsticks and cups, allowing for nine distinct holes within a relatively small footprint down in Junior Camp. Based on the early reception, I suspect the course may well be here to stay! We’ve also had the opening the annual art show in the library, and tomorrow curtains will go up on our 2026 dramatic production: The Wizard of Oz. Between those shows plus Vaudeville tonight, it’s a banner week of celebrating the arts at Pemi. We’re about halfway through the Pemi Week events at the time of writing, so this newsletter will provide a recap of the end of Week 6, Pemi Week so far, and a quick preview of what’s still in store as we sprint to the finish.

Before getting into all those details, however, I want to take some time to provide the bookend of our annual staff introductions. Back in June you met the majority of our cabin, program staff, and health staffs, as they’re the folks who campers spend the bulk of their time interacting with. There are two additional staff groups, however, who make everything we do at Pemi possible: our buildings and grounds team and our kitchen crew. These teams work tirelessly and expertly to ensure that our facilities and our food are the best in the business. We’re incredibly lucky to have two stellar squads in these areas, and I’m honored to introduce you to them today. Truly nothing that we do at Pemi could happen without them, so I hope you’ll join me in offering deepest thanks and appreciation to the folks you’re about to meet!

Buildings and Grounds Team

Frank Roberts – Head of Buildings and Grounds: Frank has been a member of the Buildings and Grounds team since 2017 and has been Head of Buildings and Grounds since 2022. Frank’s favorite aspects of Camp are “the incredible and passionate people [he’s] met and worked with,” and he loves, “the interesting, varied, and challenging nature of the work.” A New Hampshire native, Frank was a longtime Boy Scout and attended the University of New Hampshire, where he studied macroeconomics and international affairs. Frank and his wife Erica live nearby Pemi with their daughter Hazel and son Dylan.

Phil Benoit – This is my fifth year back at Pemi, and I am so excited for the season. I love it here and hope to be here for many years. This season on the maintenance crew we hope to work on some of the older cabins and just maintain the beauty it already has here. I personally have many ideas for the future and hope to implement them throughout the upcoming seasons.

Nicole Gagne – Nicole joined the Pemi family this year in the Housekeeping department. An existing friend of camp before joining the staff, Nicole had been to Pemi many times and is thrilled to be a full member of the Pemi team this summer. 

Nik Groleau – My name is Nicholas (Nik) Groleau, and I’m passionate about spending time outdoors whenever I can. I live in Wentworth, New Hampshire, just five minutes from Camp Pemi. I enjoy quality time with my family and dogs, especially during our outdoor adventures. My favorite activities include hiking, paddleboarding, and floating down the river. This is my second year working at Camp Pemi in the Buildings and Grounds Department.

Kitchen Team

 Tom Ciglar – Head of Dining:  During the winter I live in Rindge, NH with my wife Anna, and our son Jon and work as an educator. I’m looking forward to my 25^th Pemi season.

Nancy Cushman – Chef/Baker: My name is Nancy Cushman. I live in West Fairlee, Vermont. This will be my 19th summer at Pemi. The rest of the year I work in a small elementary school with 3rd grade. At camp, I will be helping prepare breakfast and baking all the yummy treats the staff and children get to enjoy.

Michael McMurray – Chef: Hello Camp Pemi ! I am returning to camp for my 9th year in the awesome Pemigewassett kitchen to fuel your summer fun. During the off season I work at Nute Middle/High School in the Special Education department. I live in Milton Mills, NH. It is a small village of about 250 people and is part of Milton, NH. I am looking forward to another great season at Pemi!

Nate Bankester – Chef: I am originally from Alabama and move here in 2022. I live in Ashland with my wife of 5 years and my 14yr old stepson. I love outdoors and camping, and I love to cook and come up with new recipes. I love helping people where I can and I am very excited to be a part of the Camp Pemi team.

Greg Buckhalter, II – Chef: Greetings My name is Greg. I am a Traveling Chef. I have traveled many places to work in summer Camps. I love being in camp and making great food for everyone in camp.

Valeria Mopan Giraldo – Hi! My name is Valeria, I’m from Colombia. This is my fifth year at Pemi, and I can’t be more excited

Carlos Flores Leon – My name is Carlos, I’m 21, and I’m from Mexico, where I study 3D animation. I love going to the gym and try to work out 5 days a week. This is my first time working at a camp, and I’m excited to join the Pemi team! Another hobby of mine is cooking because I find it very relaxing. That’s why I’ll be working in the kitchen this summer, ready to bring a touch of Mexican flavor!

Luna Hernandez – My name is Luna, I’m 21 years old, and I’m from Colombia. I’m studying Veterinary Medicine, and this is my first summer at Pemi. I’ll be part of the kitchen staff. I’m excited to meet new people, learn about different cultures, and share a little of my own. My goal is to help create a positive environment based on respect, teamwork, and responsibility.

Ruby Márquez Esquivel – Hi! My name is Ruby Márquez Esquivel, and I am from Mexico. I am 23 years old and currently studying Law. One of my favorite hobbies is playing basketball, and I enjoy staying active and working as part of a team. This is my first summer at Pemi, and I am excited to meet people from different cultures, share my experiences, and learn from others. I look forward to helping campers have a fun and memorable summer.

Mars Marsh – Hi i’m Mars, I’m from L.A and I am currently studying history, English, and education at Bennington College. I’ve been working at camps all my teens and have had the privilege of sharing my love for comic making, and ceramics to kids and my fellow counselors! I also love to cook and can’t wait to transfer my prep cook skills to Pemi!

Emerson Muñoz – Hi! I’m excited to be part of the Pemi community this summer. I’m originally from Colombia, and I’m passionate about cooking and creating meaningful experiences through food. At Pemi, I’ll be involved in the kitchen, supporting meal preparation and helping bring people together around the table. I enjoy exploring new flavors, learning different techniques, and sharing the joy of cooking with others. This is my first time at Pemi, and I’m really looking forward to contributing, learning, and making this a delicious and memorable summer for everyone!

Santiago Villamil Mendoza – Hi! My name is Santiago Villamil, and I am from Colombia. I am currently studying International Business and have a strong interest in cultural exchange, communication, and working with young people. This is my first summer at Pemi, and I am excited to learn from campers and staff from different backgrounds. I enjoy sports, languages, social media, and outdoor activities. At Pemi, I look forward to supporting campers, building meaningful connections, and helping create a fun and positive camp experience.

Thank you once again to all of our B&G and kitchen team members!

End of Week 6 & Pemi Week

At the end of last week, we wrapped up our activities program, intercamp sports, overnight hikes, and nature field trips. One of the highlight trips from the nature program took place right at the end, as boys from “The Way Pemi Works” activity went to the farm just down the road from us to learn more about what happens to Pemi’s food leftovers. Rather than throwing out our extra food, it’s picked up by folks from Scheller Farm who bring it back to give to their pigs. The boys got a tour of the farm from its owner, learned about how our food helps sustain the pigs, and saw a variety of farm animals. It’s a great example of how connected we are at Pemi to our local community and how our nature program offers boys such a wide variety of topics to learn about. It was a fantastic summer in all of our program areas, as Pemi campers explored the full breadth of our program, learning new skills, improving in existing areas of strength, and developing passions that will last a lifetime for many boys.

Week 6 concluded with an exciting day out for our 15-year-olds. On Friday afternoon they boarded vans and headed over to FunSpot in Laconia, NH, the largest arcade in the world (as recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records!). They enjoyed an afternoon of games, bowling, and spending time together, and then went out for pizza and a movie. This trip serves as a fun celebration for our 15s and a chance to bond together as a full age group before heading into Pemi Week.

Pemi Week kicked off on Saturday morning with Brad Jones Day. It’s the one day of the summer where boys and staff are allowed to sleep as late as they want (or at least until noon…), and many took advantage of this opportunity to catch some extra rest. Others were up bright and early, perhaps even before the officially sanctioned time of 8am for when boys could leave their cabins and line up for the buffet breakfast on offer at 8:30am. While some boys slept in, many more were up and moving all morning, taking advantage of open program areas and making the most of a beautiful Saturday morning at Pemi.

Saturday afternoon kicks off the actual Pemi Week competitions with Games Day. Consisting of a variety of individual and team events, Games Day is always one of the most fun and popular days of the summer. One boy from each cabin competes in the cold-water musical chairs, Skittles eating contest, and cookie face-off; while teams from each cabin take part in the crabwalk relay, the sack relay, and the egg toss.

The cold-water musical chairs kicks things off, and as has become an inexplicable yet entirely predictable phenomenon, the Vitale brothers Marcus and Michael found themselves in the final three alongside Senior 2’s Micah Tolbert. Micah was able to outlast them this year, earning the overall victory in the event. Boys across all ages turned in great performances in the subsequent events, and every single boy in camp participated in at least one of the games throughout the afternoon. The egg toss finished the day off, and it was so impressive to see the great distances (and bounces, deflections, and rolls) that those eggs survived. In the end it was Senior 3’s team of Sam Chapin and Gray Axel who earned the overall victory, tossing their egg nearly half the length of our full-sized soccer pitch. They even managed to outlast all of the staff teams; it was a dominant performance. After free swim and dinner, boys headed into the Senior Lodge for the 2026 feature movie, Cool Runnings. 

On Sunday morning we had our final Sunday Meeting of the summer, and it was given by the participants from Pemi West who have stayed on for the Counselor Apprentice Program. These 16-year-olds spoke to the full camp about their trip to Montana, sharing details of canoeing down the Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument and backpacking in the Tobacco Roots mountains. The group of Alf Andersson, Will Bixby, Manfred Creane, Alex Fernandez, Vikram Jay, Sam Wasinger, and Mason Winell did an excellent job of presenting and undoubtedly inspired many boys to participate in this special trip down the road. The guys are here at camp for the rest of the summer, and younger campers will have the opportunity to ask them even more questions about Pemi West throughout the week. Additionally, the boys will get to learn more about what it’s like to be a Pemi staff member, help out around camp, and engage in a number of their favorite Pemi activities and traditions while here.

On Sunday afternoon we held the Pemi Week triathlon.  Pemi’s triathlon differs from the traditional format by replacing the biking portion with a two-person canoe leg to end it. The first two boys from each cabin to finish the swim and run sections jump in a canoe and race to the finish. The top finisher and runner up for each age group were:

Lower-Juniors: 1^st place – Thomas Sullivan; runner-up – Russell Follansbee

Upper-Juniors: 1^st place – Owen Goobic; runner-up – Griffin Sears

Lower-Lowers: 1^st place – Walker Seidel; runner-up – Andrew Ramich

Upper-Lowers: 1^st place – Felix Grant; runner-up – Declan Donohoe

Uppers: 1^st place – Julian DeLisle; runner-up – Michael Vitale

Seniors: 1^st place – Emmitt Baggish; runner-up – Zach Pierson

It should be noted that for the individual swim and run combination, the Uppers and Seniors complete the same route at the same time, and it was actually 13-year-old Julian DeLisle who finished first across both divisions! In the canoeing portion the winner cabins were Junior 3, Junior 6, Lower 2, Lower 5, Upper 4, and Senior 3.

On Monday we had divisional swimming championships along with the kickoff of cabin soccer, divisional tennis semifinals in singles and doubles, archery shoots, and the debuts of golf and chess for Pemi Week. Results are still pending and/or haven’t yet been shared, so you’ll have to wait for the next newsletter on those ones. We also had the art show opening on Monday afternoon, a fun opportunity to display much of the incredible art that boys have produce this summer. Our head of art, Mike Herrod, brought a whole host of new, creative, and fun activities to the Pemi art building this summer, and the results spoke for themselves at the show. We also had a chance to see a wide array of wood shop creations that were made under the tutelage of Jon Taylor, Henry Moore, Josh Scarponi, Ry Dean-Slobod, Megan Spindler, Luke Young, and others. The works on display across all medium were a fantastic tribute to the hard work and talent of both our campers and staff this summer.

Today (Tuesday) was Woodsdudes Day which consists of a series of challenges related to the trip program. Events include a fire building contest, a tent-rigging challenge, a canoe race, a nature identification test, an emergency response quiz, and different trip preparation tasks based on age. It’s a fun day that requires a different set of skills from many other Pemi Week contests, allowing boys to thrive in new ways. Today also included more cabin soccer, archery, sailing championships, and a number of divisional tennis finals. Tonight is the second session Vaudeville which had a long and impressive set list, so I can’t wait to report back on it. More details and results from these various events will be forthcoming next week.

For now I’m off to enjoy time out and about witnessing all of these incredible events. The spirit and energy have been through the roof so far this week, and I have no doubt that this enthusiasm will carry all the way through to Saturday. We have so much to still look forward to in the coming days, with pentathlon, more cabin soccer, wiffle ball championships, a showcase lacrosse game, USA v. the World soccer, The Wizard of Oz, Final Banquet, final Bean Soup, and final Campfire. It’s going to be a jampacked, bittersweet set of days coming up, and just like that, when the next newsletter is published, campers will be home to read through it and begin reminiscing about the magical summer they just had. I look forward to sharing all of the details of the final days along with some end-of-summer thoughts with you next week.

Pat