Leadership Team

Lauren D., Stepping Stones Division Head

Lauren is the division head for the 3s, the youngest campers at Elmwood. She is currently a head teacher at Elmwood Day School in the 2s program. Before teaching at Elmwood Day School, she was an elementary school teacher for twelve years in both general Ed and special Ed settings. She has a masters degree in Special Education from Hunter College. Elmwood holds such a special place in Lauren’s heart and returning to camp this summer is a full circle event for her. Lauren was an Elmwood camper in the late 80s and early 90s, went to sleep away camp (Scatico!!), and then returned to Elmwood as a Stepping Stones counselor. Fast forward a few years and Lauren’s oldest son, Jack, started as a camper in 2016, her middle son, Sam, will be starting this summer and her youngest, Mia, will join in all the fun next summer. When she’s not teaching or being a mom, Lauren enjoys cooking, reading and spending time with her family and friends. Lauren is very much looking forward to connecting with her campers, helping each to continue developing their individual skills throughout the summer, ensuring they feel safe, loved, and are having so much fun!

Gabby C., Stepping Stones Division Head

Gabby is a former Elmwood camper and is so excited to be returning for her eighth summer at Elmwood. During the school year, Gabby teaches Pre-K in Manhattan. Gabby received her Masters Degree in Early Childhood Special Education from Fordham University’s Graduate School of Education. Gabby truly looks forward to being at camp all year where she loves partnering with families to support campers make their own lasting memories, create friendships, learn new skills and form independence. Gabby’s all-time favorite day at camp is Carnival! In her free time, Gabby enjoys taking pictures, playing sports, seeing Broadway shows, and learning to cook new recipes.

Shari A., Stepping Stones Division Head

Shari is enthusiastically looking forward to her first summer as a Division Head. Growing up in Westchester County, her summers as a child were spent at local day camps and as a teen at sleep away camps in the Poconos. Following her studies in Rehabilitation Counseling and Social Work at Boston University and Columbia University respectively, Shari combined her knowledge and her passion for helping others - and chose a career where she reached out to make a difference at The National Multiple Sclerosis Society. For the past ten years, Shari has found another love- teaching. At Congregation Bnai Yisrael, Community Synagogue of Rye and Larchmont Temple, she has been teaching students in first through sixth grades. Her family has opened their home to host many international guests, including an Israeli Lieutenant, three soccer players and a woman from Afghanistan who fled to the U.S. for her freedom.

Lindsay R., Stepping Stones Disivion Head

Lindsay is excited to be returning to camp for her tenth summer on staff. She spent most of her summers as a camper at a sleep away camp called Chen-A-Wanda where she was also a camp counselor. She earned her Master’s in Special Education and has been working as an elementary school teacher for the past ten years. During the year, she teaches in Scarsdale. Lindsay enjoys dancing, reading and, of course, summers at Elmwood! She cannot wait to meet all her campers. Lindsay also loves Elmwood cookies and is excited to have one every Friday!

Sarah B., Stepping Stones Division Head

Sarah is so excited to join the Elmwood Family this summer. During the year, Sarah is a school social worker at PS 24 in the Bronx where she works closely with parents, students and teachers to support student success. Sarah loved day camp as a child and is looking forward to helping our campers feel the same way. When not working, Sarah enjoys spending time with her family and friends, seeing live music and navigating the rope courses with her daughter.

Jennifer S., Lower Village Director

This summer will be Jen’s thirtieth summer at Elmwood! She started her Elmwood career as a fourth-grade counselor before becoming a second grade Division Head. Jen has been a school psychologist for twenty-five years and currently works in the Harrison school district. In her free time, Jen enjoys bike riding with her family and being with her dog. Jen is also a big sports fan. She loves the Giants, Knicks, Yankees and, of course, the Irvington Bulldogs!

Adam S., Lower Village Division Head

This will be Adam’s first year at Elmwood. He began his work with day camps, over 25 years ago as a camper, then a lifeguard, waterfront director, director and now will be a Lower Village Division Head. During the school year, Adam is a Special Education teacher working with high school age children and coaching Varsity Track. Adam breathes enthusiasm and excitement into every summer and is looking forward to becoming a part of the Elmwood family.

Becca L., Lower Village Division Head

Becca will be returning for her eighth summer at Elmwood. Becca spent six summers in Lower Village as a G2 counselor and made the move to Stepping Stones last summer. This summer, Becca will be making a new move as one of Elmwood’s Division Heads!! Becca attended the University of Massachusetts Amherst where she received her undergraduate degree in psychology. Last May, Becca graduated from Silberman School of Social Work at Hunter College with an LMSW. She can’t wait for camp so that she can get her groove on at pool dancing and have a blast during special event days. Becca also loves cookies on Fridays. She’s looking forward to seeing all of her campers grow and progress throughout the summer in all activities. She loves seeing their smiling faces every morning; it’s a great way to start each day!

Carolyn P., Lower Village Division Head

After being an Elmwood parent last summer, Carolyn is excited to be joining such a great community as an employee and a Division Head for Lower Village this summer. During the year, she teaches high school physics at KIPPNYC College Prep. Having taught kindergarteners through graduate students over the past 17 years, Carolyn has a great sense of child development and the different stages, skills and character development needed at all levels. She founded KIPP Academy Elementary in 2009, as the Principal, and led the school for 7 years. Her founding kindergartners are now 9th graders in her high school! When she is not with her “school kids” or “camp kids”, she is busy with her “kid kids” who are also both Elmwood campers, ages 4.5 and 7.5. She loves to play soccer, read books, sing, dance, and run. She looks forward to working with Elmwood campers and their families this year, and to become even better at Gaga, which she hasn’t played since she was a counselor at Riverbend in NJ!

Kate W., Lower Village Division Head

Kate is excited to return to Elmwood for her third summer as a Division Head. She attended Elmwood as a camper years ago and is thrilled to be able to enjoy summers at Elmwood again! During the school year, Kate works as a speech therapist in the Mount Vernon City School District. When she is not working, she loves spending time with her husband and two sons, Hudson and Greyson. They spend time together hiking, biking, baking, cooking, camping, crafting, building forts and playing Pokémon. Kate is excited to spend the summer with her oldest son, Hudson, who will be a B2 camper and her husband, Brian, who will be enjoying his time as woodworking instructor at Elmwood! Kate cannot wait to indulge in her Elmwood favorites – pizza, gaga, soccer, morning meetings, and pool dancing! She is looking forward to meeting her campers and having an awesome summer!!

Morgan J., Lower Village Division Head

Morgan is one of the few staff members who has worked in all three of our villages, but she has split the majority of her fifteen years on staff between Lower and Upper Village. During the year, Morgan is a Speech and Language Pathologist at Scarsdale High School and works with Early Intervention clients in the city. When she is not at work or planning for work, she enjoys spending time with her family and friends and especially her nephew and new niece! Morgan is very much looking forward to being a Division Head again, village morning meetings, second grade specialties, and the Tarplin Games!

Molly R., Seniors Division Head

Molly is a former Elmwood camper and is altogether too young for this to be her thirteenth summer at camp on staff. Molly has been a Head Kindergarten teacher at Rodeph Sholom School in Manhattan, where she has also been a co-facilitator of the school’s SEED group, which is a peer-led professional development program designed to promote school change by building capacity for more equitable curriculum and communities through self-reflection and interpersonal dialogue. This upcoming fall, she will be switching to work at Bank Street School for Children. She holds a Master’s degree in Early Childhood General and Special Education from the Bank Street College of Education. Molly is a born and raised Upper West Side and is a proud alum of New York City public schools. Her favorite things are canoeing in the Adirondacks, bird watching in Central Park with her mom, and Beyoncé. As a child, Molly sang the “The End The End” verse in the Bear Song on the original Elmwood cassette tape.

Julie R., Upper Village Director

This will be Julie’s twenty-fourth summer at Elmwood! Julie is the Upper Village Director during the summer and teaches first grade during the year at Carmel Academy. Some of her Elmwood favorites are yoga, art, grilled cheese sandwiches and fudgsicles! She is looking forward to spending time with campers and staff in the “one of a kind Elmwood environment.” Julie’s younger son, Leor, is currently an Elmwood camper and she Julie loves that she gets to see him every day.

Michael B., Upper Village Division Head

Michael (also known as “Berk”) is a special education teacher at Irvington High School and is very excited about returning for another summer with the Elmwood family as a Division Head. As a child, he attended a variety of day camps throughout Westchester County and spent five summers at Camp Wayne in Pennsylvania. Berk enjoys spending time with his family and friends, watching New York Sports (Let’s Go Mets!!), reading, and seeing live music. He likes movies by the Coen Brothers, TV comedies such as The Office and Parks & Recreation and did he already mention Mets baseball? Berk is looking forward to spending another summer at Elmwood and supporting his counselors, campers and their families. He is also happy to be joined by his daughter, Maya, and his son Harrison, who are both campers, as well as his wife Sarah, who will be a Division Head!

Lilli S., Upper Village Division Head

During the school year, Lilli works at The British International School of New York in Manhattan where she heads up the drama department and teaches drama to students from Pre-K through 8th grade. She holds an M.S. in Early Childhood Education from Hunter College. She has spent many summers at Elmwood in a variety of roles, most frequently as a member of the Performing Arts staff. She is excited to return to Elmwood for her 16th summer as an Upper Village Division Head.

Sean M., Upper Village Division Head

Sean is back for his ninth summer at Elmwood and is excited to be returning to Upper Village. During the year, he is a school psychologist for the NYCDOE at a District 75 school in the Bronx working with children with autism or emotional disturbance ages three to twenty-one. Sean has a Doctorate in Psychology, Master’s Degree in Education, and is a nationally certified school psychologist. As a child, Sean attended sleep away camp in Massachusetts where he later worked for a summer teaching snorkeling. He is an avid comic book collector and worked for over ten years at a local comic book store. Sean’s favorite camp activities include hiking, soccer and carnival. He is looking forward to having both of his sons attend camp this summer as well.

Leora C., Elmwood Specialties Director

Leora grew up in Hartsdale. She spent her summers attending various performing arts camps and even spent a summer in mime camp where she didn’t speak for an entire month! After receiving her Master’s Degree from Hunter College, Leora was a social worker in Brooklyn for ten years. She co-directed the Life Lines Community Arts Project blending her love of performing arts and social group work. In addition to working at Elmwood, Leora spends her school year as a puppeteer, drama teacher and runs youth programming at her local temple. In her free time, Leora loves to do yoga, improvisational acting and any kind of dance. Every year, she looks forward to the amazing energy that is created when all the kids and staff come together!

Allie T., Program Director

Allie is spending his seventh summer as the Program Director! Overall, this will be Allie’s 32nd summer at Elmwood! In that time, he has been a group leader, Upper Village Division Head and Athletics Director. Allie is most proud of the activities he has created over the years for Elmwood campers and staff. Elmwood has not only been “A Great Place to be Me” for Allie, but also for his father Ralph, brother Rich, son Cyrus (Seniors) and daughter Juniper (Lower Village). Allie just completed his 20th year as a 5th grade teacher at William B. Ward Elementary School in New Rochelle where he has also coached their successful basketball teams. In his spare time, Allie is a comic book collector, a published author, and a frequent visitor to baseball stadiums around the country. For this summer, Allie looks forward to planning Elmwood’s Special Events, morning meetings, Upper Village Bowl, Tarplin Games, K Club and other exciting surprises with the talented and creative staff of 2019!

Lindsay G., Assistant Program Director

Lindsay’s love for camp goes as far back as she can remember. Growing up attending both day camp and sleepaway camp, Lindsay quickly learned what the power of camp can do for a child and realized her true passion in life. Prior to joining Elmwood’s year-round team as the Staffing Director, Lindsay graduated from the University of Delaware and became the Family Relations Associate at a nearby camp, where she later grew to become their Director of Staffing. Her love of all things camp makes it easy for her to dedicate her life to ensuring every camper (and counselor) has a memorable summer experience. During the summer, Lindsay will be working on the programming team, helping develop incredible summer experiences for everyone!

Vinny G., Athletics Director

Vinny is excited to be a part of the Elmwood community again. He is returning for his sixth year as the Director of Athletics. Vinny majored in physical education at Manhattan College and then went on to earn his Master’s Degree in physical education from Canisius College. For the last 12 years, Vinny has been a physical education teacher at Springhurst Elementary school. He also coaches football, lacrosse and indoor track for the Dobbs Ferry school district. He is excited to bring his years of experience and enthusiasm to Elmwood this summer. Vinny is very excited to have his son, John, back at Elmwood.

Jerry Raik, Hiking Director

Jerry has been a teacher for 47 years, most of that time operating the Havurah School, an after school program in Jewish education through the arts, on Manhattan’s Upper West Side. He’s been married to Barrie for even longer than that and they have three children, Becky, Joe and Molly, all of whom love Elmwood. This summer will be Jerry’s 25th at Elmwood. Jerry loves walking in the woods with all of our campers and also loves, during each hike, telling them stories of his own long experience with nature and the wilderness.

Jessica M., Performing Arts Director

Jessica is the Performing Arts Director and a Music Specialist. This is her fourteenth summer at Elmwood. One of her favorite things about the summer is directing the Performance Intensives. She loves watching the kids grow throughout the whole process and finally shine up on stage. During the year, Jessica teaches kindergarten at a public school in the Bronx. She loves that the summer provides her the opportunity to be creative and silly. This summer, she is looking forward to seeing her family, Josie and Riley, about camp.

Anne T., Stepping Stones Music Director

Anne is at Elmwood all year long. She will be back at camp for her 30th summer! During the year, Anne teaches music and enrichment for the Elmwood Day School. Growing up, Anne never went to a day camp but did attend sleep-away for a few years. She has a Bachelor of Arts and a Master’s Degree in Music. She brings all of her musical talents to Elmwood, teaching music to our Stepping Stones and Lower Village campers and also leading the whole camp in many songs throughout the summer. Anne is in charge of picking our Songs of the Week. When she is not making music, Anne enjoys playing tennis, cooking and taking care of her 15-year-old twins, Rachel and David.

Liane T., Club Director

Liane has spent 21 summers of her life at Elmwood. According to her mom, it has been her “favorite place on earth” since age seven. During the year, she works as a theatre teacher and director at Hunter College High School. She holds a B.S. in Educational Theatre and an M.A. in Arts-based Community Development and Civic Engagement from New York University. At camp, Liane coordinates the club (elective) program. Some of her favorite past clubs include Spy Training, Winter Wonderland, Elmwood Press Patrol, and Tie-Dye Zumba Dance Party. When not dreaming of camp, Liane enjoys baking and making theatre with young people.

Luisa O., Food Service Director

Luisa has been the food service director at Elmwood for twenty years! During the rest of the year, she works at a limousine company as a dispatcher and reservationist. She loves talking to different people throughout the day. Luisa always gets excited when it’s time to return to Elmwood because she gets to see her Elmwood family and catch up. She also loves to cook. Cooking is a really big passion of hers. She used to own her own restaurant and currently also does catering.

Janet M., Specialty Programs Director

Janet is returning for her twenty-fourth summer at Elmwood. She is looking forward to spending the summer with her grandchildren, Madison, Elizabeth, Bella, Carlee and James who are all campers. During the year, Janet is very busy with her family. She has a retired husband, four sons, eight grandchildren and a very large extended family. When she is not spending time with her children or grandchildren, Janet enjoys fishing with her husband, gardening and taking her dog, Molly, for walks. Janet is excited to continue running our gardening program this summer. She can’t wait to introduce her passion to the Elmwood Stepping Stones!

Kate W., Co Pool Director

Kate is returning to Elmwood for her fourteenth summer, all of which she has spent at the pool. She started out as a lifeguard and swim instructor and was a Swim Division Specialist for eight summers before becoming our Co Pool Director. Kate has just completed her fifth full year working on the year round team at Elmwood. She has really enjoyed learning about all that it takes to get camp up and running every summer.

Frances H., Co Pool Director

Frances is joining us for her eleventh year on staff. She started as a Stepping Stones counselor and moved to the pool seven years ago as a Swim Division Specialist. She is now one of our Pool Directors and has no intention of ever leaving the pool! Frances is a kindergarten teacher at The Sacred Heart School in Hartsdale. In her free time, she loves traveling, reading and of course swimming! One of her favorite parts of camp is pool dancing on Fridays. She loves hearing the new popular songs each summer and watching our campers dance along.

Diane R., Nurse

This summer will mark Diane’s twenty-third summer at Elmwood! Diane just recently retired from Greenville Elementary after being the school nurse for twenty-five years! Diane is looking forward to spending another summer with the Elmwood family and campers. She loves hearing the sounds

Directors

Gregg L., Director

Gregg was an Elmwood camper and began his career as a staff member 25 years ago. In 2003, Elmwood became his year round home. Gregg sits on the board of the the American Camp Association and was the former Program Chairperson for the Tri-State Camp Conference. He is currently the President of the Rockland Westchester Day Camp Association. Gregg was the creator and founder of a highly regarded not-for-profit organization which focused on the performing arts. Its mission was to foster understanding and acceptance amongst children and adolescents. Gregg and his wife, Rachel, are parents to Elmwood camper Emilia and future camper Zoe. Gregg’s booming presence and voice have been resounding throughout Elmwood for over 25 summers.

Hillari B., Director

Hillari has been an integral member of the year round Elmwood team for the 30 years that she has called Elmwood home. She began her Elmwood career following several years as an educator at a private school in Manhattan. Hillari holds a Master’s Degree in Education and gained her expertise in child development both in and out of the classroom. She is passionate in her devotion to her family, her community and to Elmwood. Hillari’s son, Harrison, and daughter, Becca, are both Elmwood alumni. Her dedication to the core values of Elmwood is an inspiration to our entire camp community.