History of WeHaKee Camp for Girls

The dedication of the Sisters of the Dominicans of Sinsinawa, who maintain a strong and endeared presence at WeHaKee Camp for Girls, is interwoven throughout camp. Their life's work has been, and continues to be the care, nurturing, and advancement of girls and young women, helping them grow to become strong, confident, independent, and caring leaders.

WeHaKee Camp for Girls is a sponsored institution of the Dominicans of Sinsinawa and has always been open and welcoming to girls of all faiths and backgrounds since its inception in 1923.

With the help of two nieces and their friends, Sr. David O'Leary opened WeHaKee Camp for Girls in 1923 on the shores of Green Bay, near Marinette, Wisconsin.

In the early 1960's, as the camp was outgrowing its Lake Michigan location, Sr. Marie Karen Hawkinson began to search for a new site. In 1964, WeHaKee Camp for Girls moved to its current site on Hunter Lake, near Winter in northwestern Wisconsin.

WeHaKee Camp for Girls is located on a site rich in history and legend. The location was originally a logging camp. As a result, it is home to a large concentration of beautifully tall, virgin white pine. Beginning in the early 1920's, legendary Notre Dame football coach, Knute Rockne operated a football camp here for a number of decades. It later became a Jewish girl’s camp named Camp Chicagami. In the late 1950's, the St. Louis Hawks (now the NBA Atlanta Hawks) ran a basketball camp at this location. And in 1963, then WeHaKee Director, Sr. Marie Karen Hawkinson moved the camp from its location in Marinette, Wisconsin (on the waters of Green Bay) to this current site on the shores of Hunter Lake.

WeHaKee Camp for Girls is named after Mary WeHaKee La Batte, a young girl raised by the Dominicans of Sinsinawa in Sinsinawa, Wisconsin. Mary's mother was a Sioux Indian and her father was of French descent. After her father was killed, her mother confided her child to Sr. Alberta Duffy, who brought her to the Sinsinawa Mound.

WeHaKee Camp for Girls continues today at its site near Winter, Wisconsin. Girls and young women from around the country and the world attend camp each summer where they begin lifelong friendships, develop new skills, increase their confidence and self-esteem, grow in their faith, and have great fun!

If you have stories, pictures, or anything else to share about your experiences at WeHaKee Camp for Girls, we'd love to hear from you. Perhaps we can even include what you share here on our website. Click here to let us know.

Since 1923, WeHaKee Camp for Girls continues today in the tradition of the Dominicans of Sinsinawa. The program at WeHaKee Camp for Girls is based on social justice principles and universal Gospel values. Each summer, several of the Dominican Sisters volunteer alongside our skilled camp staff to help each girl realize her uniqueness as an individual person while understanding and striving to reach her own potential. Living among girls from diverse religions, cultures, races, and economic backgrounds, allows each girl to grow and develop in an atmosphere of acceptance and encouragement. Girls of all faiths and spiritual backgrounds have always been welcome at WeHaKee Camp for Girls.

Located at the base of the pristine Chequamagon National Forest along the shores of Hunter Lake, WeHaKee Camp for Girls is noted for a wide array of quality activities where each girl creates her own individual program based on her choices. Campers will develop skills and make life-long friendships while thriving in a positive and supportive community, all while having great fun. Come join us at the finest of the premier all-girl summer camps!