Meet the Team!
Have you ever wondered what Pokemon different camp staff would be?! Well our beloved George breaks down the year-round team below. Read on! - Ray
Since its beginning in 2015 Stomping Ground has been a Figure the Damn Thing Out as You Go organization. It started with two recently graduated camp enthusiasts eager to talk to as many people as they could and learn everything there is to learn about summer camp programs. Their goal was to create the space and the experience they always wished was there for them and to make it an available (and *affordable*) reality for any young person who was interested in joining them. On their two year trip, traversing over 200,000 miles 47 states, visiting almost 300 summer camps in a beat up Honda Civic affectionately called “Hondo” they were like me at a holiday potluck, filling their plates with delectables and leaving undesirables.
This is our team, with our architect Ryan (far right).
Pile on inclusion, magical moments, and macaroni and cheese, skip conflict aversion, power-over dynamics and green bean casserole to make the most equitable and impactful camp experience they could imagine. No offense to GBC or those who enjoy it. People like what they like.
The last five years of growth at Stomping Ground have proven it’s on its way to becoming that camp. What started in 2015 as a one week experiment at a rented facility in New Jersey, where we trusted 64 young people to come together to form a community around our mission of radical empathy, conscious decision making and so much fun has become a full 8 week summer camp program running on its own site serving hundreds of campers each year. Last year we had five year round staff members. So let’s take a minute to meet these individuals.
Ray Mahar - Community Engagement Director - Arcanine
Ray might be the ideal college roommate. Imagine yourself, freshman year. You get to your dorm full of anxiety, high hopes but really no idea what to expect. And there’s Ray. You immediately become nervous because he’s strumming away at an acoustic guitar but while you fumble through a “Hello”, Ray slaps you up like you’ve known each other for the past six years. You start to relax and think things might be alright. Because Ray talks to everybody he meets, he asks if you want to join him to a party he heard about from somebody down the hallI. You go out and have a few beers and a great time. Okay, I don’t know if any of this is how the first day of college works.. It’s been a long time since I was there. But I do know that Ray is so welcoming and good humored and cares deeply about people and after the party is over he’s ready to get to work.
Over the past two years Ray has helped Stomping Ground partner with dozens of other nonprofit organizations in Rochester and further afield, he’s organized fundraisers and a capital campaign that have brought in over $800,000 to make camp possible and he’s spent countless hours writing letters making calls and (until last March) shaking hands to secure people with the knowledge that they are part of the Stomping Ground Family.
Ray’s spirit Pokemon is Arcanine because he’s fiercely loyal, dependable, and capable. I know he’s a giant fire-dog, but some reason I bet Arcanine is very comforting to have around, just like Ray.
Allison Klee - Camp Director - Nidoqueen
Every week at our round up Monday morning I’m blown away by Klee’s summary of all the things she got done the week before. Like the rest of the team, but I think to a further extent, she’s multi talented. While one minute she’s helping parents with registration paperwork, the next she’s running a full virtual camp program on Zoom. Thirty seconds later she’s editing a youtube video while simultaneously packaging sweatshirts from a merch sale, all the while she’s preparing and facilitating trainings for other camp professionals, constantly driving the industry forward. During the summer she is incredibly skilled at making campers feel heard and safe. Klee’s organizational skills are unmatched. One look at her planner makes me hang my head in shame to which she would assure me, very kindly, that - hey, you’re really good at other stuff.
Klee would be Nidoqueen because she’s nurturing and encouraging and so caring to every camper she meets and is an absolute powerhouse at getting things done.
Jack Schott - Co Founder - Alakazam
What I appreciate most about Jack is that he’s a More is Possible guy. After years of googling around he found a property and found a way to make it ours. Jack’s attitude towards his work doesn’t include what if’s, he does things and if they work, that’s great. If they don’t he learns and moves on and does the next thing. As an agile logistical thinker Jack is always pushing the team to the next thing: building cabins, producing podcasts, breaking traditional fundraising models. If none of these things were true Jack would still be a great camp leader because he’s just good at bringing fun.
Jack would be Alakazam because he makes seemingly impossible things happen.
Laura Kriegel - Co Founder - Dragonite
There are so many reasons I love working at Stomping Ground and through some way or another I have Laura to thank for all of them. I don’t think Laura sees Stomping Ground as a summer camp but more as a movement? An ideology? It’s hard to put your finger on but for Laura, Stomping Ground is a model of a better system for the world. All of her actions are geared toward making camp an environment where people can explore and express and celebrate themselves. I have always loved summer camp at a pretty basic level - I love fun, summer camp is a fun factory for me. Laura works tirelessly and shows me every day that it is so much more. It’s a tool aimed at propagating fairness and connection and community.
Laura has to be Dragonite! Inspiring, powerful and majestic as hell.
George Clay - Facilities Director - Golduck (written by guest writer, Ray!)
Where to begin with our good friend George. By reading this article you have seen a glimpse of the charismatic, endearing, and light hearted soul that he is. If you were to ask George his favorite part about camp, he would most likely respond with his iconic, joyful giggle before saying, “It’s the waterfront of course!” But what George has done for camp goes so far beyond the simple joys of swimming in the lake. He has been with camp since the very beginning working as a cabin counselor, EMT, waterfront director, program director, village panda, and now supervises our year round facilities operations. The guy has literally helped build and navigate every aspect of this wacky science experiment called Stomping Ground! And the best part about his long tenure at camp is that whatever role he is tasked with, he does with grace and a smile.
George is Golduck because he is willing to swim against any current to support his friends. He is strong, compassionate, and a great listener.
(And also George just is a delicious swimmer. The man can flip and dive like none other and we are beyond grateful to have him.)
