John and Martha Storey after receiving the Camp Lifetime Achievment Award

Written by #11904 John Ulin

In June of 2005, I arrived on campus to drop off our son for his junior season and was greeted immediately by #8804 John Storey. He asked me, “how many years have you been connected to Camp Dudley?” I had to calculate the answer and when I did, I gulped. “This is my 30th year,” I told him. That moment captures a lot about John. He was Camp’s development director at the time. And yet there he was greeting campers and families as they arrived. He reached out to greet me and make me feel welcome literally as soon as I walked onto the campus. And he asked a seemingly innocuous question that was intended to impart a subtle lesson that I still remember today. I was a young-ish (then 39) Board member and John had taken me under his wing. Always the teacher, he asked me a friendly question about my longevity at Camp that was intended to suggest that I had accumulated a lengthy history that I should consider. Did it bring wisdom, some knowledge of Camp and its mission, a position in a community that required me to be considered in my thoughts and actions because others were listening to trustees’ words and watching what we did? I later realized the obvious fundraising and development benefits to greeting alums and their kids as they arrived at Camp and that only reinforced how much of John was in that moment. Development, he used to say, was everybody’s business. And he certainly made it his business, always making and building connections between Camp and its community — because it could pay dividends in the future and those connections are, after all, what makes camp “Camp.”

Taken during John’s Plebe year on the back porch of Danielson Cabin

John Storey died last Saturday, November 26, 2022. I have not had time to feel sad about it yet. My thoughts have been preoccupied with appreciation for everything he did for me and for Camp Kiniya and Camp Dudley. John was a Dudley legend in his own right. He arrived at Camp as a second half plebe in 1955 and stayed for a lifetime. He was a well known leader in the early 1960s, Junior Division Head in 1962 and led the German Exchange the following season. John served three terms on Dudley’s Board, spread across the 1970s, ‘80s, and early ‘90s. He was the Board Chair from 1987-88. For many years, John and his wife Martha edited and published Camp’s alumni newsletter (now the Other Fellow First magazine) through the publishing company that John ran in Williamstown, Massachusetts. When I joined the Board in 2003, John was Camp’s development director. He coordinated our first $10 million capital campaign, which significantly enabled us to purchase Camp Kiniya and launch our girls camp in 2006. And, of course, John and Martha sent their kids — Matt and sisters #14002 Jenn and #14504 Jess — to Camp and many grandchildren have followed. In recognition of his enormous contributions, John was named Camp Dudley’s Person of the Year in 2000 and he and Martha are the first and only recipients of Camp’s Lifetime Service Award, which is named for them.

The Storey Family – July 4th, 1988

John was such an important person in my life. A mentor and a hero. I am one of the many Camp people he took under his wing and helped to understand what it means to serve Camp Kiniya and Camp Dudley and how best to use our talents to do that. He taught me how to be a trustee — my finer points are lessons learned from him, the flaws are mine alone — and was always a sounding board on tough questions. John was a seemingly never ending source of important lessons. He used to tell a story about his early employment as a door-to-door encyclopedia salesman. The diligent young man wanted to memorize the pitch and deliver it smoothly in his own way. But the company told him to read from the script because it was more awkward and would engender sympathy and a connection with homeowners who would be more likely to buy encyclopedias. As with all his stories, there was a hidden message about humility and making yourself vulnerable and open to connection with others. It was just one of the lessons he taught us. Your faith (either religious or in something else) may not change the world, but it can change your life, so follow it. Pursue a path you love. Others may be better than you, but it will bring out your best and you will be fulfilled. Seize the day. Remember that from those to whom much is given, much will be required. They echo in my head and fill me with love and gratitude. This community and this Board Chair will miss you dearly, John. Thank you for your lifetime of service to Camp and for your guidance and friendship. Godspeed.

Much love, JU #11904