Transcription of letter from James S. Summers to Laurence L. Doggett (December 13, 1916)
Description:
This is a two-page transcription of a letter from James S. Summers to Laurence L. Doggett dated December 13, 1916. In the letter Summers thanks Doggett for the handbook that came with the last letter that he got. Later on he describes one of his experiences on the front line during an enemy bombardment. To read the original letter, see rg104-01-a-01-02e-005.
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Born in Australia, James S. Summers first heard of Springfield College (then known as International YMCA Training School) while life-guarding as a young man in Honolulu, Hawaii. Impressed by his swimming prowess, Dr. Hand, then the physical education director of the Y.M.C.A, advised Summers to study physical education at Springfield College. He began his studies the same year and graduated in 1911. He then performed Y.M.C.A. work with the Canadian and British armies during World War I, ultimately earning an honorary Captaincy in the British Army. After the war, he established the Physical Department of the Y.M.C.A school in Midmay, London. Eventually, Summers moved to Uruguay, where he founded the Montevideo YMCA (1909) and dedicated more than twenty-five years to serving the country as a Y.M.C.A. secretary.
