Distinguished Service Award — Marla Coleman
Acceptance Remarks
Thank you for this honor, but it is not mine – it is ours. This is the third time I have been on this very stage in Orlando at the ACA National Conference – the first was when I became president-elect; then when I passed the gavel to the next president, and today. Each of those personal milestones for me was tied closely – metaphorically – to our eyesight:
In 2001, we needed glasses – as an association, we were often confused with RV aficionados, and our symbol was a very obtuse (though familiar and comfortable) acorn. Not that anything was wrong with that – It was just a part of our evolution as an association, and that's where we were in 2001, having accomplished so much in so many other areas over the past almost 100 years. Rodger had us poised to see farther.
In 2005, we together had a prescription for change – a new image, identity, influence, and value – also part of our progress as a maturing association.
Today, we truly do have 20/20 vision, striving toward a world where by 2020 20 million children will benefit from a camp experience and where our membership will be 20,000 strong.
A vision, however, is not just a picture of what could be; it is an appeal to our better selves, a call to become something more. And it is owned not just by the board but by each of us. (The board acts on our behalf after listening to us; it is their job to listen and ours to be heard.)
So I challenge us, the enfranchised members of the American Camp Association, to put on our 3-D glasses and see our place in the world through different lenses:
Mao Tse-Tung once observed, "We think too small, like the frog at the bottom of the well. He thinks the sky is only as big as the top of the well. If he surfaced, he would have an entirely different view."
We are incredibly fortunate that the prism through which our path is illuminated is held by our CEO, Peg Smith, who carries this compelling vision for us all, as well as for every person who could benefit from a camp experience. As a great leader, Peg has facilitated our getting in touch with our own aspirations, helping us forge our personal visions into a shared vision, a collective goal.
She reminds me of the eye doctor who asks, "Which is better, A or B?" She is the specialist who puts all the right choices before us.
Peg carried the torch and kindled MY light. That's how I got here and how, I imagine, many of you did, too.
And so we continue on a journey begun by my predecessors and colleagues -- and I ask you to join me, now that we can see so clearly, and can make this 20/20 vision a reality. That means that each one of us will have to find our own way to use our knowledge and our passion in the service of that vision. It is about more than words – it requires action from every one of us.
What will YOU do? Will you help a fledgling camp down the road? Will you open your doors to underserved campers? Will you partner with local schools? Will you speak at a PTA meeting about the value of a camp experience? Will you translate your brochure into Spanish? Will you contribute when asked to support ACA's initiatives? Will you become a member of the Acorn Society (it is not an elite group, rather a passionate group that believes in the value of a camp experience)?
Lord Alfred Tennyson captured my challenge to you in these words:
"For I dipped into the future, far as the human eye could see; saw the vision of the world, and all the wonder that would be."
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