Helen Herz Cohen
Encyclopedia
Helen Herz Cohen was the Director of Camp Walden, an all-girls residential summer camp
located in Denmark
, Maine
. She founded The Main Idea, an annual nonprofit camp for economically disadvantaged girls.
Helen Herz Cohen died on March 23, 2006. She was 93 years old. Her husband, Edwin S. Cohen, tax expert and former Assistant Treasury Secretary
for Tax Policy
during the Nixon Administration
, had died in earlier that year in January. The Cohens were survived by their two sons, Edwin C. of Manhattan and Roger of Denmark, Maine; their daughter, Wendy S. Cohen of Charlottesville, Virginia
; and their two grandchildren.
on national television.
camp and Camp Fire Girls
camps began, at the very end of the Progressive Era in the United States. American summer camps were part of a trend in the country to return to nature, which included the rise of the national park system
, the growth of urban park
s, and the spread of the American suburbs.
Helen Herz Cohen's camping philosophy encouraged confidence, feelings of self-worth
, and independence in the decades of campers that attended under her leadership. Affectionately referred to as "Miss Herz" and "HHC" by Waldenites throughout the years, she built a deeply connected alumnae group through her strong influence. She maintained contact with Walden alumnae for decades, often acting as a role model
to former Walden campers. Miss Herz taught her Waldenites that all females have opportunities for education and leadership. She believed that an all-girls camp "helps you develop confidence in making decisions."
Still today, Waldenites (as Camp Walden alumnae are known) often recall the profound influence Miss Herz had on them. One former camper wrote, "I thank you for sharing your wonderful Walden with me--then and now--for it still remains the one place I want to be when summer comes." After receiving a touching gift from Miss Herz, another Waldenite wrote:
Miss Herz's goal in establishing The Main Idea was "to try to give [the campers] a new window in life, see something different, inspire them to do something with their lives."
Summer camp
Summer camp is a supervised program for children or teenagers conducted during the summer months in some countries. Children and adolescents who attend summer camp are known as campers....
located in Denmark
Denmark, Maine
Denmark is a town in Oxford County, Maine, United States. The population was 1,004 at the 2000 census. A number of recreationally-used ponds and lakes are located within the town.-History:...
, Maine
Maine
Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...
. She founded The Main Idea, an annual nonprofit camp for economically disadvantaged girls.
Biography
Helen Herz Cohen was the niece of one of the founders of Camp Walden, and spent many summers working there as a camp counselor and then head counselor. She became the Director in 1938, at the age of 26. She later became the owner of Camp Walden and remained its Director until 1995.Helen Herz Cohen died on March 23, 2006. She was 93 years old. Her husband, Edwin S. Cohen, tax expert and former Assistant Treasury Secretary
United States Secretary of the Treasury
The Secretary of the Treasury of the United States is the head of the United States Department of the Treasury, which is concerned with financial and monetary matters, and, until 2003, also with some issues of national security and defense. This position in the Federal Government of the United...
for Tax Policy
Tax policy
Tax policy is the government's approach to taxation, both from the practical and normative side of the question.-Philosophy:Policymakers debate the nature of the tax structure they plan to implement and how they might affect individuals and businesses .The reason for such foitution effect]],...
during the Nixon Administration
Richard Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon was the 37th President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. The only president to resign the office, Nixon had previously served as a US representative and senator from California and as the 36th Vice President of the United States from 1953 to 1961 under...
, had died in earlier that year in January. The Cohens were survived by their two sons, Edwin C. of Manhattan and Roger of Denmark, Maine; their daughter, Wendy S. Cohen of Charlottesville, Virginia
Charlottesville, Virginia
Charlottesville is an independent city geographically surrounded by but separate from Albemarle County in the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States, and named after Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, the queen consort of King George III of the United Kingdom.The official population estimate for...
; and their two grandchildren.
Awards and honors
The Maine Youth Camping Association presented Helen Herz Cohen with the Halsey Gulick Award in 1991. She received many other awards and honors throughout her lifetime and was even interviewed by Barbara WaltersBarbara Walters
Barbara Jill Walters is an American broadcast journalist, author, and television personality. She has hosted morning television shows , the television newsmagazine , former co-anchor of the ABC Evening News, and current contributor to ABC News.Walters was first known as a popular TV morning news...
on national television.
Camp Walden
Camp Walden was founded in 1916, shortly after the first Girl ScoutGirl Scouts of the USA
The Girl Scouts of the United States of America is a youth organization for girls in the United States and American girls living abroad. It describes itself as "the world's preeminent organization dedicated solely to girls". It was founded by Juliette Gordon Low in 1912 and was organized after Low...
camp and Camp Fire Girls
Camp Fire USA
Camp Fire USA, originally Camp Fire Girls of America, is a nationwide American youth organization that began in 1910. The organization has been co-ed since 1975 and welcomes youth from pre-kindergarten through age 21. Camp Fire was the first nonsectarian, multicultural organization for girls in...
camps began, at the very end of the Progressive Era in the United States. American summer camps were part of a trend in the country to return to nature, which included the rise of the national park system
National Park Service
The National Park Service is the U.S. federal agency that manages all national parks, many national monuments, and other conservation and historical properties with various title designations...
, the growth of urban park
Urban park
An urban park, is also known as a municipal park or a public park, public open space or municipal gardens , is a park in cities and other incorporated places to offer recreation and green space to residents of, and visitors to, the municipality...
s, and the spread of the American suburbs.
Helen Herz Cohen's camping philosophy encouraged confidence, feelings of self-worth
Self-esteem
Self-esteem is a term in psychology to reflect a person's overall evaluation or appraisal of his or her own worth. Self-esteem encompasses beliefs and emotions such as triumph, despair, pride and shame: some would distinguish how 'the self-concept is what we think about the self; self-esteem, the...
, and independence in the decades of campers that attended under her leadership. Affectionately referred to as "Miss Herz" and "HHC" by Waldenites throughout the years, she built a deeply connected alumnae group through her strong influence. She maintained contact with Walden alumnae for decades, often acting as a role model
Role model
The term role model generally means any "person who serves as an example, whose behaviour is emulated by others".The term first appeared in Robert K. Merton's socialization research of medical students...
to former Walden campers. Miss Herz taught her Waldenites that all females have opportunities for education and leadership. She believed that an all-girls camp "helps you develop confidence in making decisions."
Still today, Waldenites (as Camp Walden alumnae are known) often recall the profound influence Miss Herz had on them. One former camper wrote, "I thank you for sharing your wonderful Walden with me--then and now--for it still remains the one place I want to be when summer comes." After receiving a touching gift from Miss Herz, another Waldenite wrote:
The Main Idea
Helen Herz Cohen founded The Main Idea at Camp Walden in 1968. The Main Idea is a nonprofit camp for economically disadvantaged girls. Camp Walden hosts the Main Idea on its property for ten days in August every year, at the close of the regular camping season. Every Main Idea camper attends for free. The Main Idea's budget is funded primarily through private donations from Camp Walden campers and alumnae.Miss Herz's goal in establishing The Main Idea was "to try to give [the campers] a new window in life, see something different, inspire them to do something with their lives."