The Camp of All Mothers

The thought nagged Myra Peck: Why is something as fun as going away to camp limited to those too young and unharried to genuinely appreciate getting away from it all?

Peck decided to start a camp for the people she feels need it most: moms.

“Women need an opportunity to get away for the weekend and do all the crazy things we did as kids, and then some,” says Peck, 46, of Laguna Hills.

“I got the idea about three years ago when my daughter had gone away to summer camp and had a fantastic experience. I thought, “Why does it have to stop with kids?” says Peck, founder of Camp Mom and mother of two girls.

After some research, Peck found some weekend hotel getaways, but that wasn’t what she was interested in running.

“I decided I really wanted a camp environment, where moms could horseback ride, do arts and crafts . . . have good food,” Peck says.

It took Peck nearly a year to finalize the arrangements for the first camp, which was held in May 1996. Once the facilities and staff were arranged, Peck sent fliers to doctors’ offices, dentists, gyms, beauty shops--any place moms frequent.

“It worked. The first camp was sold out with 86 women. My goal was 75,” Peck says.

The second camp was held that summer and drew 100 women. (Peck does allow some non-moms, and there have been several mother-daughter pairs.)

Peck works as an analyst for a medical center in Irvine and figures planning the camps adds 20 or more hours to her workweek. “Up to this point I’ve been doing it alone, but for the next camps I’ll have administrative help.”

A camp held this May was also a success and the one planned for Oct. 17-19 is sold out.

The Friday-to-Sunday camps in the San Gabriel Mountains cost $179. That price includes food, room, canoeing and other camp activities. Horseback riding is an additional $20 an hour. There are also fees for pampering such as manicures, pedicures and massage, but all are bargain-priced. “We tried to keep the costs down so the camp is available to moms of all incomes,” Peck says.

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The Verdugo Pines camp facility in Wrightwood that Peck rents does not require roughing it: The carpeted cabins sleep eight and have private baths.

Although she still sends out fliers, word of mouth is the way her camps fill up. The October camp sold out even before fliers were scheduled to be sent out.

“There are 150 women on the mailing list who are going to be unhappy campers when they try to register. I’m thinking of expanding to holding four camps next year,” Peck says.

The camp program is similar to that of traditional kids camps. There are canoe races, campfires with s’mores and sing-alongs, skits and hiking. “The skits can get pretty funny--not quite ready for ‘Star Search,’ mind you, but maybe ‘America’s Funniest Home Videos,’ ” Peck says.

Guests also have the option of doing nothing at all.

“One woman took a book and headed for the forest, telling us to call her for meals,” Peck says.

There are no cafeteria lines to stand in for chow--all meals at the camp are served. On Saturday night there is a candlelight dinner and on Sunday a brunch.

The first year, Peck had speakers lined up to conduct seminars on relationships and parenting. But the only seminar that was well-received was on color analysis. “I found out that the women didn’t want anything related to mothering or being a wife. They wanted seminars that focused on them as individuals,” Peck says.

So now she offers “feminars” on beauty, health and self-esteem.

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Jeannette Haggag of Orange was seven months’ pregnant with her fourth child when she attended Camp Mom last year. “I went to camp once with the Girl Scouts when I was a kid and always wished my parents would have sent me again,” she says.

Haggag says some of the campfire antics were too silly for her, but, she conceded, given a few more days at camp she probably would have joined in.

Although she couldn’t participate in some activities, such as horseback riding, Haggag says the camp was a much-needed diversion from a decade of parenting.

“The relaxation of the mind alone was worth it,” she says. “And I didn’t have to wash a single dish, and no one cried in the middle of the night because they wet their bed.”

* For information about Camp Mom, contact Myra Peck at (714) 470-4751.