Your Help Needed for Camp Vatra History

Those visiting Vatra Românească this year will notice the return of Camp Vatra photos on the walls of the Avram Iancu Dining Hall.  For those who are not familiar, these are the group photographs of every camp at the Vatra going back to the first camp in 1953 -- well over 100 photos so far.

The original photos that had been hanging there, after being moved from the second floor of the main residence in the 1990s, were in deteriorating condition and in need of attention.  Moved by the feeling that these photos are an important part of our history, the National A.R.O.Y. Board a few years ago undertook a project to carefully remove the photos from their original frames, have them professionally scanned and copies replaced back on the walls so that the originals can be kept in the archives.

At the end of last summer, after much effort, the new photos were put in place.  The new photos have been reduced to a uniform 8x10 size (to help provide wall space for the many years of photos) printed on professional photo paper, are in matching frames and are clearly labeled with the name and year of each camp depicted.  As a result of this project, we hope members of our camp family will have the pleasure of seeing themselves and family members for many years to come.

Such a project does not come without a cost however.  The total cost, including scanning and frames, was over $900.

We kindly ask former Camp Vatra campers and staff members, or even their family and friends, to consider sending a donation to help cover the cost of this project.

Please send your donation (checks payable to "National A.R.O.Y.") to:

A.R.O.Y. Camp Photo Project
c/o 625 Centralia St.
Dearborn Heights MI 48127

Thank you in advance for your kind support!