I am very proud to introduce the second alumnus of the week. This individual embodies everything that is right about summer camp, and specifically, Camp Ramaquois. Brian Nurse was a model camper for 9 years. He was well known throughout camp for his sense of humor, kindness, friendliness and athletic abilities. Simply put, Brian excelled in every area – from soccer to rocketry to RamaGames.

A few days before my Super Grenadier summer, I found out that Brian was going to be my counselor. I was unbelievably excited because I had always admired him. He turned out to be the best counselor I had in my 11 years at Ramaquois. I always felt as though I was his favorite – and so did everyone else in the group. Brian knew each of us as individuals, and treated us with respect. I remember racing him on Field 1 while he yelled, “Mattyyyyyy!!!” If my recollection is correct, I think I almost beat him…

Brian (AKA Nurse or Nursey) is a humble guy so there’s not a whole lot in his answers about his impact on the staff softball team. Long story short – Nurse was the best player on some of the most dominant teams in league history. I distinctly remember him running behind the three-story jungle gym to catch what should have been a sure home run. It was an incredible play. I remember Brian pulling many line drives into the basketball or tennis court past the right field fence. He was usually rounding third before the ball hit the ground.

When you read Brian’s response, you will notice the one constant about Ramaquois. There is a family here. And like a family, the older generations influence the younger ones. Paul Shapiro modeled the way for guys like Brian Nurse, and in turn, Brian modeled the way for those of us who were privileged to be his campers. We, hopefully, can continue the tradition down through the camp generations… and that is the magic of Ramaquois!

Thanks Brian for the lessons you taught me in the summer of ’92; they stay with me to this day!

- Matt Kaufman

Who are you?
Brian Nurse

Birthday?
July 4, 1971

Where did you live when you were at Ramaquois?
New City, NY

Were you a camper?
I was a camper from 1978 -1986. I went through all the groups on Boy's Side from Rangers through Caps.

Best experiences as a camper?
Wow, best experiences? I was at this camp every summer from 1978 through 1993, so there are so many memories and great times that it is hard to single any out (and remember all of them). But not to totally avoid the question, some of my best experiences as a camper were as follows:

1. Going to lunch and having Sandy (the cook at the time) give out the jumbo size fireballs to us kids;
2. The Pie Man coming out during lunch and seeing the counselors get nailed (though for a summer or two we all thought that campers were able to hit as well, so we would sort of hide to make sure we didn’t get “pied”);
3. Bunt ‘n Steal (back when it was started and played on Field #1, not Portnoy Stadium);
4. Club Getaway;
5. Girls’ Side;
6. Waiting for school to end and camp to start, and seeing the same guys there every summer – it was very much an extended family for many of us (and remains that way today).

Were you a staff member?
I was a staff member from 1987-1993 for the Explorers, Hurricanes, Grenadiers, Super Grens, and Boys’ Side Athletic Director for one year (one of the best jobs ever!!!)

Best experiences as a staff member?
Okay, here we go again with this question, well here you go:

1. Staff parties;
2. Having some of the best campers that the camp has ever seen (outside of the guys that I grew up at camp with of course);
3. Counselor softball – when “Pride” originally started…you guys playing on the staff team now, make sure you ask Arthur, Marvin and Jared about the origins of the team. A ton of great guys, athletes, memories, and oh yeah, championships;
4. Overnight trips;
5. Getting paid to be outdoors all summer with a bunch of kids when I was a big kid myself;
6. Jared Gelb scoring the winning run on an improbable play against Town & Country in the Counselor league semi-finals – one of the best finishes to a game ever!

Who was your favorite staff member(s)?
As a camper?
Are you serious with this question?! This is just asking for me to get in trouble with a ton of folks because I will inevitably forget someone’s name but I will do my best. And, for those I forget to mention, my apologies in advance but remember I was there for so long and can’t remember everyone’s last names. Gary (my first counselor at camp when I was in the Rangers), Glenn Emanuel, Gary (the Animal), Mike Nash, Kevin Sirop, Jerry Manne, Mike Origlia, Mark Katz, Marvin Portnoy, Dave Yaeger, Mike Haber, Jan Unger, Glenn Unger, Fred Weisman, Hal Lechner, Max (my Cap counselor who was a blast for about two weeks…and yes, there is more to that story but I won’t go into it here) and the names go on and on…

As a staff member?
Again with this line of questioning…completely unfair. How about this…every counselor and administrative staff member that I came in contact with (male or female) from 1987 to 1993. I will keep this list simple though there are many more people I can name, so again, for those not named, my apologies in advance but this list can go on forever. But like I said, to keep it simple: Jeff Dorn, Adam Frisch, Marty Grodman, Jordy Hill, David Hill, Steve Brown, Rob Gross, Stephen Shefferman, Andy Furhman, Jared Gelb, Scott Bednar, and Arthur and Natalie (of course). Add to that list all of the guys that I was a counselor with, like Gordon Haber, TJ Mahoney and David Garfin, and all of the guys that played on the staff softball team with me over the years…tons of great memories and stories.

But my all time favorite staff member, without question, is Paul Shapiro. Paul was Boys’ Head Counselor during my entire time at Ramaquois (’78-’93). Simply put, there was no one better!!!

Did you ever win Ramagames? Any good memories?
Yes, many times. Ironically enough, my favorite color is red and in the 16 years of Rama-games that I took part in, I was on the red team once. But we won that year, so all is right in the world. I was probably on the gold team more than any other color and finished in every place possible (1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th {though I hate to admit a last place finish}). But one year as a camper I was on the blue team (I think the team name was Blue Venus that year) and Mark Katz was the main general from Boys’ side. That year (no joke), out of all of the events over the 3 or 4 days, we either lost or didn’t finish in 1st place only 3 or 4 events total. I don’t know if there was a full moon or the stars were just aligned, but it was a total massacre…red, gold and white were fighting for second place from the very beginning. It was totally ridiculous but I was just glad I was on the winning team.


Did you ever win Song and Cheer? Any good memories?
Not once. In my later years as a camper we had a couple of second place finishes with great songs (good work Jeff Dorn) that should have won, but what can a bunch of 13 and 14 year old's do against the Bluejays or the Pioneers when they are dressed up looking cute and singing their little hearts out…we didn’t stand a chance.

What was your favorite activity? Why?
Softball on Field #1 as a teenager (either within our group, Bunt and Steal, or an inter-camp game) with the girls coming by to watch us play. Describe why? I think it is pretty obvious, but to indulge you…playing ball with the fellas, girls, teenage years, hormones…you get the idea.

What was your favorite lunch?
Tough one, so many good options…I would have to go with either pizza or chicken nuggets.
And drink?
Was there any other option than bug juice? Well, I guess there were various options like red, green or yellow bug juice, so I guess I would choose red bug juice.
Editor's Note: In later years Camp Ramaquois invented Iced Tea, Lemonade, and Water which were later introduced to the Camp Lunch. Most likely this was after Brian's time.

Did you go on any trips?
Yes, many! The overnights were such a blast…Club Getaway, Dude Ranch, Kings Dominion, Hershey Park, etc.

Any good memories of the trips?
So many memories and stories, but here is one quick story…when I was 13, there was a trip to Hershey Park that everyone was going on, and of course I wanted to go as well. My parents were hesitant about this trip at first, but gave in eventually after my nagging, but you’ll understand why they were hesitant in a second. Well, we’re on the bus and everyone is fired up to get there, and as we were approaching the park (about 3 miles out) you can start seeing the park and the chocolate factory, and the smell of chocolate is emanating through the bus, and I start to feel sick while everyone is jumping around with excitement. My counselors are looking at me and asking what is wrong. Did I mention that I am allergic to chocolate? Well, needless to say I didn’t go on the tour of the chocolate factory and hung out with one of my counselors in the park while everyone else went on the tour. Ironically, I was fine when I was outside and for the rest of the trip, but those few moments on a bus completely smelling like chocolate was torture. You may be saying to yourself, “well, didn’t you realize where you were going on this trip?” Of course I did, but I was 13 just thinking about hanging out with friends, who has time for allergies. Now you can see why my parents were apprehensive about this trip.

Your favorite Arthur and Natalie memory?
Lots of great memories and stories here too since they are like another set of parents to me, but this story is probably the only bad one. I only mention it because it is so vivid in my mind. We were playing a staff softball game against Ramapo Country Day Camp and Arthur was pitching for us that year and in that game. Well, long story short, the batter (who was a very big guy) hits Arthur’s pitch right back at him and drills him in the eye. I played centerfield and heard the pop out there like it was next to me. Needless to say Arthur went down hard and we all rushed over to him. Thankfully he ended up being fine, but at the time it was pretty scary. As you could probably imagine, Arthur didn’t pitch for us anymore after that incident.

10 words or less to describe your experience through the years at Camp?
10 words or less, you’re kidding, right? Fantastic, I wouldn’t replace it with anything in the world. How’s that? ;)

What did you learn or experience at Camp Ramaquois that prepared you for the rest of your life? School teaches you Math and English, what did Camp Ramaquois teach you?
Not to be corny, but the sense of family outside of your immediate family. Being there for as long as I was, you meet a ton of people along the way, and the guys that I grew up with at camp are still close friends of mine to this day. Even though everyone gets caught up in their own lives and families (as they should), we have been able to re-connect, stay close and get together every so often. Now some of us have kids that are playing with each other – kind of strange but very cool at the same time.


Where do you live now?
After living in NYC and Westchester since college, I moved back to Rockland almost 4 years ago…specifically Pomona, about 2 miles from camp – go figure.
Editor's Note: It's been a while since he's been to a staff game...
Brian Nurse's Note: Correction, though I haven't been to a regular season game basically since I left camp, I have been to several of the championship games over the years since I left to cheer on the squad. How else would I know that the tradition of late inning drama/heroics continues to this day?

High School: Ramapo Senior High School…go Gryphons!!!

College: University of Pennsylvania (The Wharton School)

What did you do in college?
Not exactly sure what you are looking for here…I played soccer and baseball at Penn, but like most other college students, I chased women, participated in fraternity life, partied, hung out with friends, and tried to mix in some study time.

What did you study?
I double majored in Decision Sciences (computer science and management combined) and Actuarial Science. Clearly I have done a lot with both of those since I’m a lawyer now.

Where do you work?
PepsiCo, Inc. I have been there for almost 8 years now, and I’m responsible from a legal standpoint for our North American beverage business – so drink your Pepsi, Gatorade and Tropicana products.

Where have you worked?
After leaving camp, I worked in the legal department at the American Stock Exchange and then at two New York City law firms before landing at Pepsi.

Family? Significant others of importance? Children?
Mom, dad, aunts, uncles, cousins. Okay, that was probably not the answer you were looking for exactly. I am single, never been married, but I have a girlfriend. No kids yet, but hopefully one day there will be a bunch of little Nurses running around Camp.

Anything else exciting to share?
I’ve shared enough. Just kidding. The only other thing is that I think it is great that someone had the idea and put this site together. And kudos to Brian and Matt for populating this thing…great work fellas (I taught you well).
Editor's Note: Thank you! Stories like this make it worth it!

Have you been back to Camp since you left? What did you think of Camp then?
Yes I have, many times for random visits during the summer or for get-togethers with some of the guys that I went to camp with (what’s up fellas!). The camp looks fantastic!!! I hope the kids there now can appreciate to some degree what they have. The fact that Field #1 stays green for the entire summer is a small miracle (that sprinkler system does wonders for that grass). When I was at camp (boy, that makes me sound old), the grass out there was completely burnt out by Week 3…but it did make for a fast track which I didn’t mind at all. But overall, the camp gets better and better every time I stop by for a visit. I’ll have to go back as a counselor one day so I can enjoy it for an entire summer!

Do you still have Ramaquois clothing?
Yes, no doubt… got to have it for nostalgia value at a minimum. I have some counselor t-shirts as well as some staff jerseys still. Oh yeah, tell Ricky that the Steinhouse jersey he has is for Brian Steinhouse. He was on the team back in the early 90s.

Do you still wear it?
Not too often, but I definitely break them out for camp visits.

How soft is it?
Very! I’m just surprised that they haven’t fallen apart by now.

How many people ask you what is Ramakwaaaa?
Too many! I actually think it is pretty funny though. I question where they grew up or went to school, and then follow up with “Do you say Irokwaaa or Iroquois?” They usually realize how ridiculous Ramakwaaa sounds right away…I just laugh!

Where do you see yourself in five years? Ten years? Twenty years?
Well, the only thing I can honestly say is that in 20 years I hope I am retired and playing golf everyday. Besides that, I like to take each day as it comes. I am sure wherever life takes me, I am going to have a great time.

Is there anything else you want to tell us that you think we'd like to know?
Now you are just getting nosy! Nothing else really, just keep up the good work with this website, and hopefully more and more folks will help keep this thing going. And, get going with planning that reunion that I have been hearing about for the past couple of years – it would be such a great time.

I give you a word, you give me the first word that comes to mind! Camp: Ramaquois
Counselor: Friend
Lake: Noah
Softball: Championships
Boy's Side: Pride!
Girl's Side: Loud
Junior Camp: The little ones
Bus: Represents the end of the day (as a counselor). :)
Shirts: Marvin
Sports: A necessity
Crafts: Quiet time
Movies: Rainy day
Music: Sheff
Friends: The best
Ramaquois: Memories
Our Website: Fantastic!

Thank you Brian for participating in Alumni of The Week! I think you can understand why we selected Brian! Stay tuned we have more features coming soon!

If you'd like to contact Brian Nurse use this link!

If you have an ideas, questions or suggestions contact Brian Murray using this link!