While some sensed a certain freedom in that detachment, others were a little insecure. But eager minds were ready to try new things, and taste buds were primed for foods somebody else's mother would cook.

Becky Cahoon is that person. Her warm demeanor suggests a ready shoulder for homesick campers to cry on. Her sturdy Merril hiking shoes—spattered with the soup of the day—give her avocation away. She's the volunteer head cook at the Felton church camp that draws children and adults from nondenominational Christian churches in Los Gatos and Saratoga and from as far away as Tennessee.

Every summer Cahoon packs up her RV and her children and leaves her husband Ted, a Lockheed engineer, to fend for himself for two weeks while she crosses over the mountain from their Los Gatos home to live and cook at the camp. She's been cooking there since 1974—right after her graduation from Campbell High School—and just four years after a group of fellow church members banded together to buy the 175-acre camp, part of which Hewlett-Packard once maintained as an employee retreat. Her children have grown up there—Teddy, now 19, Thomas, 16, and Katie, 12.

"This camp was paid for with the nickels and dimes of families," says Cahoon, a professional accountant who also serves as a camp board member.

The most recent acquisition at the camp is an Olympic-size swimming pool; squeals of laughter from the pool are heard at a distance. Teens huddle at tables of crafts under a big tent, while others play a guessing game involving the quick and noisy rotation of plastic glasses.

Cahoon's domain is the cookhouse. Clean and orderly in the midafternoon quiet, the long kitchen area features a 120-square-foot walk-in refrigerator where a two-week supply of food is kept. A 12-burner gas stove has a griddle wide enough to accommodate scores of Cahoon's "big, high-protein pancakes." Two, 10-level gas convection ovens, still warm and sweet-smelling from the baking of several sheets of chocolate cake, and a 3-by-7-foot freezer ("we need to get a walk-in next") complete the essentials. They are the tools of mass feeding.

Cahoon and eight helpers, including Los Gatans Cheryl McCoy and Debbie Oswald—who also serves as the camp nurse—cook and serve a maximum of 4,500 meals during two weeklong camp sessions. Twenty tables set up under the trees outside seat 300 campers. Beginning at 7:45 a.m., the young children start their day with something from the oven or the griddle.

"I've always had the philosophy that children need to start their day with a hot meal," Cahoon says. "They need the protein to work on." While the teenagers who stay up late to complete their stage shows may sleep in an extra hour until 8:45 a.m., they share in the hearty fare. Cahoon is known for her sausage gravy served over biscuits and scrambled eggs. French toast, breakfast burritos and crustless quiches are features on subsequent days.

But there are no standard meals for everyone. There are vegetarians to consider and allergies to accommodate. Allergies run the gamut—from fish, soy, nuts, milk, melon, bananas, orange juice, food additives and chocolate to galactacemia (milk sugar). And tastes vary according to age groups. "Younger kids like really plain food—no veggies and lots of cheese and corn dogs," Cahoon smiles. "Teens like more variety—more veggies, spicier foods and desserts. I can actually have onions and peas!" she laughs.

Daybreak Camp is located at 6676 Rose Acres Lane in Felton. For more information, call 831.335.2756.