Camarada celebrates 65 years of friendship, love, and service

By Cara Miller

An extraordinary thing comes over the AU campus every fall as social clubs open their doors to new members. It’s rush week, and suddenly boys are wearing togas and jousting with cardboard swords in the Valley. Girls, normally quite reserved, skip arm-in-arm and sing their loudest. Everyone is laughing, caught up in the playful spirit of rush. Even the freshmen, at first stunned by this unusual display, watch in awe and anticipation of the next year when they will be eligible to join a social club. They are attracted to the friendships and support they witness within these close groups. They, too, want to belong.

As the largest and longest-running social club still in existence, Camarada has been home to many young women drawn by its mission of friendship, love, and service. Incoming members of all backgrounds and interests are at once embraced by a genuine sisterhood that provides mentoring and a safe place to explore issues of faith and identity. This cycle begins anew each fall as last year’s rushees become this year’s upperclassmen, commissioned to take new members under their wings.

This year marks the 65th anniversary of Camarada. More than 2,000 women have been part of this dynamic group, all with unique stories to tell and examples of how the relationships they formed in club enriched their college experiences and provided memories they will always cherish.

“I think students enjoy college so much more when they have that reference group with which they can identify,” says Karen (Durica) Roller BA ’76, executive director of development. She and Pam (Miller) Shoot BA ’75, director of the Youth Leadership Academy of Madison County, have been joint staff advisers for Camarada since 2003. “Camarada tends to be that group for some women on campus. Every year, I hear similar stories from senior graduates that they don’t know how they would have made it through college without the support of Camarada. That’s a powerful thing.”

Mary Jean Avery BA ’43 was the first to feel the need for a women’s group on campus that focused on service and spiritual fellowship. Originally a member of the Pep Club, she broke away in 1942 to form a new group.

“Pep Club was all right as far as a good purpose,” Avery says. “It was intended to be a boost for sports teams and for the college — just more or less a pep club. But there was nothing for women in order of service, and I felt there should be.”

Camarada’s membership was relatively high its first year, according to Avery, who recalls at least 25 or 30 members. At that time, membership was limited to 35. Additionally, there was no initiation into the club. Women who wanted to take part simply volunteered.

“I thought it was a great club,” Avery says. “We went on hikes and did service projects. We had good fellowship, and I felt like it really fulfilled a need.”

Since that time, Camarada has grown steadily, nurturing close relationships within the group through Bible studies and social events and developing connections with the AU campus and the greater Anderson community through service projects.

Today Camarada has 115 members. Every Monday night, Camarades meet in a classroom in Hartung for a time of fellowship and fun. They push desks out of the way and sit in a cozy circle around the room. Sometimes they play games or share funny stories. Other times they pray and listen to one of the girls share her testimony.

“We try to do things to reach everyone in the club,” says Alicia Weiler BA ’07, last year’s Camarada president. “We have a serious club meeting once in a while, and a fun club. We try to mix it up.”

Key to its growth has been Camarada’s acceptance of all types of women. According to Shoot and Roller, the club has been very intentional about encouraging women to rush and including everyone who wants to join. “When we first got involved, I couldn’t get over how welcoming and inclusive [Camarades] are,” says Shoot.

As club membership has in­creased, Camarada has transformed into a highly organized group with a variety of leadership roles and tasks set forth to further the mission of friendship, love, and service. Annual elections determine who will hold office the following year — 17 offices total, including president, vice president, chaplain, secretary, service officer, treasurer, publicity officer, and rush captains. Officers meet separately every week to discuss club policies and plans for the future.

That Camarada continues to grow and thrive with opportunities to have fun, form close relationships, and serve the community demonstrates what Avery felt in her heart so long ago — there truly is a need among some women on campus for a club such as Camarada.

“We’re a support system,” says Weiler. “I think sometimes it’s really hard for girls to make friends with other girls and to trust them. Camarada provides those opportunities. It also provides awareness through Bible studies and speakers that some of the stuff a girl might be going through isn’t particular to her. It lets her know that she’s not the only one who struggles with this certain thing, and that it’s okay to struggle. We can support her through that.”

Senior member Abby Trueblood agrees that joining Camarada has had a significant impact on her. “It’s been a journey of finding myself,” she says. “I think that before club, I would have said that, yes, I knew who I was. But inside I really didn’t. And it definitely wasn’t just the rush experience. It has been the experiences in club and the Bible studies and those fun times where we get to be goofy and relaxed. It’s been those club meetings where we wash each others’ feet and we open up to each other. Those have been some of the defining moments for me.”

Even the newer members in their first or second year of Camarada recognize that they are part of something that will provide meaning in their lives long past college. Junior Christin Dawson explains, “Camarada isn’t this thing that we do for three years in college. It is something that will be a part of us for the rest of our lives.”

In 65 years, the reasons women join Camarada haven’t changed much. There remains a profound desire for fellowship, service, social activities, and meaningful connections with other women. What has changed is the initiation. No longer can a Camarada hopeful simply volunteer for the club. Rush has developed into a challenging, often exhausting, ritual intended to bond incoming members together and bring a sense of accomplishment when they are accepted.

Rush activities during the day are minimal. Pledges follow a strict dress code, report for meals together, and collect signatures from existing members. Evening rush activities are a bit more interesting, yet highly secretive from the rest of campus and the rushees themselves, who are never sure what to expect. What they can count on is the support of their “big sis,” a senior member assigned to mentor and encourage them. Additionally, Roller and Shoot are always around to supervise the activities and cheer them on. And, of course, the rushees have each other, whom they learn to depend on as the week becomes more challenging.

“It gives a sense of pride in what you’ve accomplished,” says Weiler. “We make rush difficult so the girls don’t know if they can accomplish it, but after they do, they feel like they’ve really finished something. And they didn’t do it by themselves. I think that’s what bonds them is that no matter how much one girl tries to do things herself, there’s just no way. At some point, she needs the other girls to help her.”

Senior Kristy Evans was one of two rush captains last year, giving orders and helping to move the rush activities along. “I had done theatre for 15 years, so it was easier for me to get into the role that I needed to be,” she says. “And it was definitely hard. By the end of the week, I was really drained from trying to be mean all the time. … I got voted the meanest, which is kind of funny. In my role, I couldn’t really support the girls by being encouraging, but I could still pray for them. One of my roommates was the chaplain, and so we had completely opposite roles in rush. If someone was upset about something, I’d tell my roommate to talk to that person. So, I got the chance to help the girls, just not directly.”

Dawson was one of the girls in last year’s rush class who needed the extra encouragement. Just two hours before rush started, she dislocated her knee, and then got sick off the medicine she was given. “Rush week was one of the times that I grew closest to God and to the other girls,” she says. “I found myself coming to a point where I realized that I wasn’t designed to do this alone. The experience made me realize how God wants us to do this life. He wants us to come to a point where we realize that we can’t do it without him, and rush helped all of us realize that we can’t do life or this club by ourselves. We each need all the other parts.”

Once rush week is over and Camarada has eagerly accepted its new members, the entire club participates in a foot-washing ceremony as a way of connecting with and celebrating one another.

For Trueblood, the foot-washing experiences have brought her even closer to some of the girls. “There was a distinctive experience about washing a certain person’s feet that just broke down barriers that had been built up. I’ve really cherished that. It’s such an important aspect of our club, knowing that we can become vulnerable to one another.”

> As they serve and support one another, Camarades are also committed to serving the outside community. Monthly service projects might include painting or cleaning at the Wilson Boys and Girls Club, stuffing bags with toiletry items for the Mustin Women’s Shelter, or making dinner for the Ronald McDonald House.

“This year, we cut down Christmas trees and brought them to people in the area who couldn’t get out to get one themselves,” explains Evans. “We decorated the trees for them. Some of the people were just so overcome with joy that anyone would spend the time to be with them. We did Christmas caroling in the neighborhoods, too, and people would come out and talk to us. It was really cool.”

The major service project Camarada does every year is PraiseFest, a free carnival for children in the area. Club members spend nearly the entire school year raising money and planning for this spring event, which attracts hundreds of families wanting to play games, eat food, and win prizes.

For their own fun, Camarades often get together to watch movies or go out to dinner. There are sleepovers and long nights spent talking and playing games. The last several years, some of the girls have joined together to form an intramural basketball team. “We’re absolutely terrible,” says Weiler. “But we’re having fun.”

There are many different reasons for the longevity and success of Camarada. But most significant are the girls themselves, who drive the club forward with their desire to be part of something great. “I think that in Camarada, you spend your first year learning about the club, and then the next year learning what you want for the club,” says Evans. “By your senior year, it’s sort of the club you want it to be. You make it for what you want and you gauge it to the needs of the girls who are coming in. I think it’s been around for so long and really thrived because it’s unique to every group of women who are in it.”

However, Camarada remains faithful to the traditions that have been set over the years, including the secret initiations of rush and the tender moments in each foot-washing ceremony. There have long been “big sisters” around to mentor incoming members. It’s also tradition for Camarades and their Dativus brothers to dress up in formal attire once a year and spend the evening dancing. And the most well-known of the Camarada traditions occurs during Homecoming when club members get together to make and sell caramel apples.

This year’s Homecoming holds a unique opportunity for all Camarades to connect during the club’s 65th anniversary celebration. Current members will host a special tea party for the Camarada alumni. Additionally, there will be a special dinner Friday night that will include alumni speakers and a slide show. It will be a time to share stories and to celebrate the special friendships Camarada has developed over the years.

“It’s so neat to look at old pictures and to know that I’m part of a legacy,” says Trueblood. “For us to put on this tea party and dinner for the ladies is our way of honoring them because they laid the groundwork for us. It’s part of the friendship, love, and service. We want to cherish and honor them.”

Dawson agrees that the Homecoming reunion will hold special significance for her. “I am most excited about seeing past Camarades and hearing their stories about how club has affected them. It is always amazing to meet and connect with other women who are a part of the same family.”