Every pioneer has a life story and a life lesson. In 1989, 40 young women, aged 13-16, stepped onto Clinton’s campus and unknowingly forever altered the course of CRS and their own lives.  They were courageous settlers of a new home, a new spirit, and new opportunities that reached hundreds of young women in the years following. Where are they now? Thirty years after CRS first started the girls’ programming, 6 of those pioneers shared a glimpse of their Camp experience, post-Camp life, and of the lessons they carry with them! Each pioneer from 1989 was interviewed by me, Monica Janvier, one of the over 1,600 young women who have followed in their footsteps! 

Meet Lenore Graham

Born and raised in New York City, Lenore considers the Upper East Side of Manhattan to be her hometown. She grew up with her older brother and parents in an Italian-Catholic family. As a teen at Brooklyn Technical High School, she was a Chemistry major involved in Varsity Tennis and Student Government. She currently resides in Redondo Beach, California with her husband and two daughters. Lenore is now a Global Market Manager for Aircraft Engines. Working in this industry, Lenore began to recognize the understated, significant confidence and strength that CRS provided young female campers such as herself. 

CRS Memories

Some of Lenore’s favorite Camp memories were the late-night talks in the girls’ locker room and celebrating her 16th birthday on the night of a summer production:

 “My cousin had sent several boxes with lots of candy in it…And it’s kind of funny cause you think about it now as a mature adult. At sixteen, we just basically got drunk on sugar that night at my Sweet Sixteen….”

Amidst these gleeful Camp moments, each camper embraced the sentiments of being a female pioneer of CRS:

“There was beauty, and there was a new hope. There’s this new organization and we felt like we were these pioneers of women who were part of this old-school boys club.” 

The CRS Strength

Despite already being strong pre-CRS, CRS had made Lenore stronger. 

Lenore recounted an obstacle she faced soon after CRS: 

“My father had a very successful career and he had his own sweater company… But then, unfortunately, when I turned 18, his sweater company went bankrupt and he had no money- literally, for me or for college…He ended up driving a New York City taxi cab and had gotten into a very bad car accident. He broke his leg and his femur... It was pretty intense. And David Ives (the former Executive Director of LAJF) went to the hospital to see him…It was probably 5 years post camp….”

CRS supported Lenore and her family during such a heart-rending time. The presence of CRS alongside her and her family during such a tragic event enabled them to more deeply understand the importance of Camp. 

“The Camp Rising Sun experience only gave me a bigger foundation and a stepping stone to ‘stand up tall’ to deal with every single thing I had to deal with in my whole life.”

The CRS strength that she inherited was illuminated shortly after this difficult period as she courageously moved to California for college, worked two jobs, and took the bus everywhere when most students drove. Lenore graduated from the University of Southern California with a degree in Psychology and minors in Chemistry and Italian.

Launching to Sucess

CRS was not the only “old-school boys club” that Lenore entered. Nearly a decade post-Camp, Lenore began working in a male-dominated industry. In 1998, she began to work in the Aerospace and Industrial field. Since 2003, she worked solely in the Aerospace field and is now a Global Market Manager for Aircraft Engines.

In Lenore’s experience, some have viewed her achievements as a form of luck. The success of women is often undermined and seen as luck. Lenore combats these judgments as she believes that working hard leads to luck. And to this, she replies, “I have always worked hard”. 

Lenore believes that CRS influenced the confidence that she attained overtime: 

“I think Camp Rising Sun gives a unique silent confidence to young women- a very understated confidence...I think Camp Rising Sun gave me this underlying strength that I probably never even knew I had...It helped me four hours ago even during work and daily life.” 

Women often face unrealistic expectations, a lack of respect, and/or have to further prove that they deserve their own position in male-dominated industries. Luckily, Lenore’s CRS experience as a 2nd year has prepared her with confidence to overcome challenges and be a leader in her field as she is able to be her true, authentic self in the workplace. 

In the Future….

Despite the glass ceiling that covers our reality, Lenore hopes for a future where her daughters’ generation breaks this ceiling.

“My hope is that my two daughters are a better version of me….”