Beginning the Devey Years
By Dave Devey, Director/Owner
About this time forty years ago in October of 1984, I had the privilege of becoming the owner of Falcon
Camp by buying camp from Jack Hardman. After beginning as a camper in 1964, I had moved through
the whole line of progression from camper to staff to program director to assistant director in the late
70’s. Some ownership decisions within the Hardman family in the early 80’s didn’t leave a real place for
me, so I left the camping world and got a ‘real job’ for several years. Who would have thought that by
spring of 1984 Jack would be calling with an inquiry about buying Falcon!
With assistance from my family, I was able to make the deal and get started on a true adventure. My
father was a good mentor, and my sister Carole was a huge help as the assistant director for the first few
years. So many other people have been a part of the success of Falcon over the years and it has been a
tremendous pleasure to see how many of them are still involved in camp or have passed that love of
Falcon on to their children and grandchildren. Bruce Buzza would be the first to mention as I’m not sure
Falcon would be here if not for his help. Countless hours of hard work, financial advice and occasional
aid, and maybe most of all just being there through everything good and bad. Many people think the
best thing Bruce ever contributed to Falcon was sending his daughters to camp. Nici Buzza Mahen is a
huge part of what Falcon has become and sister Steph ran the office for years. Now the grandchildren
are starting to grow into staff.
Many more names come to mind from the early years – Nurse Jackie’s grandfather brought campers
down to Falcon for weekends and I worked for her father over a few early winters just to keep paying
the bills. Debbi Lange-Supple was a ‘camp mother’ for years as her children grew, Fred Fargotstein has
always been a help, Tony Pirraglia and family, Laurel and Lefty, Kirk Mauro, Joe Nardozzi, Todd Lennig
and the whole Mizen clan. Louise Nelson was the cook and more with her daughter Vickie now a good
part of the stables staff and her great grandson a camper. Pam Fisher was the barn manager way back
then, left to raise a son, then returned again as barn manager. Many more people to name in future
writing.
The success of Falcon has been created by many and the goals remain the same -to create an
environment of healthy fun and learning where young people can grow in meaningful and responsible
ways. I have always viewed myself as the caretaker of Falcon more than the owner of Falcon. The
current administration of assistant directors Nici Mahen and Tali Cornblath, nurses Lynne Rodrigues and
Jackie Finch and barn manager Pam Fisher are an outstanding group of professionals who put together
an award winning program that we can all be proud of.
This summer we will celebrate 65 years of Falcon Camp as well as 40 years of Devey ownership.
