History
Request InfoThe History of Green River Preserve
While in a foxhole in Italy during World War II, Sandy’s father, Alex Schenck, shared a dream with his best friend, Isadore Scott. He told Scotty, “If I ever get out of this war alive, I’m going back home to North Carolina and buy some land.”
Laurie and Alex Schenck purchased the 3,400 acres, now called The Green River Preserve, in the early 1950’s as a place to spend weekends and summers fishing, hiking, and exploring. Their son, Sandy Schenck, was fortunate to learn the lore of the Green River Valley not only from his parents, but also from the people who had lived in the Green River Valley for generations. Newman Levi, a lifelong resident, taught him about tracking, hunting, and valley customs. Charles and Pearl Cox, an old school mountain couple, introduced him to milking cows, churning butter and cooking on a woodstove. Alfred Heatherly, a logger, and his wife Lori taught him stories of Cherokee people, jack-o-lanterns, and life in the valley in the early 1900s. From these memorable teachers, Sandy learned a reverence for the land, a sense of valley history,and a joy and wonder of outdoor living. These kind and gentle mountain folks were Sandy’s counselors, and he was their camper.
Sandy and his wife, Missy, fell in love with summer camps when they were teenagers and dreamed of owning their own camp. In 1987, Sandy left a career in the business world to fulfill his lifelong dream of sharing the magic of the Green River Valley with children through an innovative, natural science-oriented summer camp. This would be a summer camp unlike any other, in that it would offer a community of bright, curious, and creative children a chance to learn about land stewardship and to grow as young leaders.
Construction of the base camp began in an old cornfield bordered by springs (complete with an old moonshine still). Timber harvested from the site became logs for the camp lodge and dining hall. Cabins were built on an old Native American campsite where artifacts are still found today. The corn patch became the playing field and the spring was dammed to create the fishing pond and swimming hole. From sawyer to carpenter, stonemason to electrician, the people who built the camp were from many of the same families that taught Sandy to love the valley so long ago.
Read more about GRP’s history and archeological findings. This article first appeared in the North Carolina Archaeological Society Newsletter 33(2):1-3.
For Sandy, the reasons for starting a summer camp are rooted in childhood memories, in lessons passed from one generation to the next, and in the simple pleasure of sharing the wonder of nature with young people. Missy grew up spending her summers at summer camp and in the mountains of North Carolina. A camper at heart, Missy knew at a young age that she wanted to spend her life working with children in a summer camp setting. Together, Sandy and Missy have over eighty years of experience in the summer camp industry. Retired now from the day to day operations of the camp, Missy and Sandy continue to reside at Green River Preserve and participate in some of the summer camp activities.
Missy and Sandy have six children with whom they share their love of the outdoors. Everyone in their family finds that going away to camp continues to be the best summer adventure there is. It is a tradition that will happily carry on for generations to come.
In 2006, Sandy and Missy, put 2,600 acres of Green River Preserve in a conservation easement with Carolina Mountain Land Conservancy. This action will preserve the land for perpetuity.
Curious about our camp traditions? Check out this blog.