2013 marks the 30th Anniversary of the First Boxwell Staff Reunion. Unlike other reunions which have marked anniversaries (1989-30th, 1999-40th, 2009-50th), the 1983 reunion was simply a reunion.

The idea was born of former staff members from the 1960s and early 1970s.  The group planned and advanced the money to make event happen themselves.  Perhaps the biggest hurdle to overcome was an assumption.  The group believed that the Council kept records on all former staff members.  Thus, all that would be required would be to go to the Council office, gather the records and then update them.  Imagine their surprise when they discovered no such comprehensive record-keeping exists!  Thus, a large part of the 1983 reunion planning involved tracking down (and remembering!) every staff member from 1960 through 1983!

This week’s photo notes one of these former staff members who helped plan the Reunion: Perry Bruce.  Perry was a Parnell Staff member from 1971-1975, then briefly a District Executive, and returned as Parnell’s Program Director in 1980 before heading back into the real world.  He returned to Boxwell Staff in 2012 as Camp Craig’s Camp Commissioner and is back this year in the same role.  Parnell-Craig staff members in the 1980s might remember Perry Bruce as “The Bandito.”

Former Program Director Perry Bruce at Camp Craig during the 1983 Reunion. Perry was one of the former staff members who helped plan Boxwell’s first Staff Reunion. All reunion staff wore green and white hats.