Camp Crosley has been a staple of Kosciusko County in Northern Indiana for over 100 years. Serving thousands of campers every year, Camp Crosley brings kids and adults together in order to live for others. Camp Crosley is a long-time friend of MudLOVE, so we recently chatted with Priscilla about why they choose MudLOVE.
MudLOVE: What's the story behind Camp Crosley?
Camp Crosley: In 1915 the YMCA of Muncie started a boy's summer camping program in Kosciusko County, Indiana. A few years later, in 1921, a little boy from Muncie, Crosley Ball, died suddenly and tragically, and his mother and father wanted to do something for the children of Muncie to honor his memory. They bought and donated the original tract of land on Little Tippy Lake that is now Camp Crosley YMCA, and that summer about 300 boys came to Camp Crosley. Over 100 years later, we have expanded to 400 acres of camp land on Little Tippy, and every summer we serve 2400 campers from 30 states and overseas with a staff of 90 young people from all over the world. We also serve families, community organizations, church groups, schools and sports teams throughout the year.
M: What is your mission?
CC: Our dining hall fireplace holds the original plaque of dedication that reads, “May the light of this glowing fire reflect in the hearts and mind of boys, who, like Crosley Ball, live for others.”
Live for Others, is more than a motto for us; it’s at the heart of all we do with our staff and our campers. It embodies our cause and the cause of the Y, which is to strengthen communities. This is why partnering with MudLOVE is a perfect fit for us!
M: How has selling MudLOVE Products helped you accomplish your goal?
CC: Every summer we sell our campers bracelets that carry our four core values of Caring, Honesty, Respect and Responsibility. We also give the leaders who bring groups throughout the year, Connect bracelets. We hope during their time here every person can connect with God, with nature and with one another. Our summer staff all receive Live for Others bracelets as a reminder throughout the summer of why we do what we do in our work with children.
Just like Camp Crosley is more than a camp with super fun activities like waterskiing, swimming and high ropes, MudLOVE is more than a company that sells attractive, personalized products. The people at MudLOVE exemplify a mission that is to serve others and strengthen communities through its clean water initiative. We love partnering with MudLOVE to remind our campers that they are connected to something bigger than themselves, and that they are not alone. When the Ball family established camp, they thought they would help out a few hundred boys. They could never have imagined how, over 100 years later, their gift has made an impact on thousands and thousands of lives worldwide. Live for Others is more than a slogan…it’s a mission, and we are grateful to MudLOVE for helping us spread that mission to all we serve.
