Yes, campers, Sue Haaga is actually a real person.

There’s a canoe activity called “The Sue Haaga” where campers get on opposite sides of the canoe and rock it. Imagine a seesaw on the playground in elementary school, except in the lake.

Here’s how it works. When one camper goes up into the air, she says, “SUE.” Then she goes down and the other camper goes up and says “HAAGA.” They go back and forth yelling “SUE - HAAGA - SUE - HAAGA” until someone falls off. The challenge is to see how high you can rock.

Campers have been doing the “Sue Haaga” since camp re-opened in 2005. They thought of her as a legend like Hortense. Imagine their surprise when Sue got up to speak at Council Ring at the Centennial. I was sitting across from a group of 20 somethings that had grown up spending their summers at camp. I saw a collective jaw drop. Then they looked at each other with big eyes and open mouths said things like “She’s alive?” “She’s a real person?” “THAT”S Sue Haaga? She’s here?” After she spoke, Sue, who is now Sue Haaga Craig, was surrounded by campers of the new era. Some asked for her autograph. 

Now, Sue’s granddaughter is a camper. Kate Collins gets to do the “Sue Haaga” in canoeing and tell people that her grandmother is the real life Sue Haaga.

Tell us, have you ever spent time down at the lake doing "The Sue Haaga?"