Staff

The counselors are bright, creative, emotionally supportive, and lots of fun!

– SLC Parent

Introduction

SLC campers come back year after year–and so do our staff. With a summer staff of 270, we take pride in maintaining a low camper: counselor ratio so that our staff and specialists can know and care for each child as an individual.

We hire to the highest standards, complementing our “home grown” counselors with staff from Israel and Europe to give our campers a wider cultural perspective. And we train staff extensively so that together we can uphold SLC’s philosophy, values and staff standard of excellence, while cultivating valuable career skills and growth.

Below, meet our Directors and leadership team—and consider your job opportunities!

Work Here!

Start dreaming of your own summer at SLC. When you join the team here, you’ll gain and share valuable skills and leadership experience—in a great community of peers and mentors. Summer roles include: counselors, specialists, nurses, and “behind the scenes” opportunities.

Year Round Staff

Adam Bendeson
Adam Bendeson
Executive Director
Adam Bendeson

Adam Bendeson

Adam returned to camp in 2022 as Executive Director after a 20-year hiatus. He began his SLC career in 1988 as a Unit Supervisor and spent the next 15 years as part of the full-time camp staff ensuring countless children had the opportunity to make wonderful camp memories. After many years as our Teen Camp Director and Assistant Director, he left to join the Suffolk Y-JCC out in Long Island, NY. Adam is passionate about his camping roots. He is a third generation SLC’er and the parent of his family’s fourth generation. He has remained involved with SLC throughout the years as members of both the Alumni Association and 1902 Society. As he says, “there is no better thing than returning home, especially when home is SLC!”

Email Adam 845-265-3616
Sheryl Kirschenbaum
Sheryl Kirschenbaum
Camp Director
Sheryl Kirschenbaum

Sheryl Kirschenbaum

Sheryl manages all the program planning and day-to-day experience of campers and staff at Surprise Lake Camp. She is a career-long Jewish camp professional full of passion for and excitement about the power of camp to transform young lives. Sheryl has served as SLC’s Camp Director since 2009. Prior to SLC, she held a long and distinguished tenure as the Mid-Island Y JCC’s Director of Youth and Camping Services.  

Email Sheryl 845-265-3616
Abbe Wittenberg
Abbe Wittenberg
Assistant Camp Director
Abbe Wittenberg

Abbe Wittenberg

Abbe handles all the details of camper registration, tuition payments, and tuition assistance. She attended SLC as a camper in the 1980’s and returned as summer staff in the 1990’s, and even briefly worked as full-time Coordinator of our site rentals. For almost 18 years, she worked in the Communications and Professional Information Department of a large NYC nonprofit–and then rejoined SLC’s full-time team as our Registrar. Abbe met her husband Rob through longtime SLC friends; their daughter is now a second-generation SLC camper.

Email Abbe 845-265-3616
Dena Stevenson
Dena Stevenson
Recruitment and Retention
Dena Stevenson

Dena Stevenson

Dena was an SLC camper and staff member in the 80’s.  After taking a break from camp and starting a family, she returned to camp in 2017 as a Unit Supervisor.  She has been able to share her love of SLC with her husband and four children, the latter of whom have been campers since 2017.  Dena is passionate about working with various age groups and having a positive impact on young adults.  SLC made a profound difference in her life, and she strives to do the same for a new generation.  In addition to her camp experience, she has over 25+ years combined experience in retail management, paralegal work, office management, and sales.

Email Dena 845-265-3616
Zoë Kingston
Zoë Kingston
Program Director
Zoë Kingston

Zoë Kingston

Zoë came to SLC in 2008 from England as a counsellor. After 5 years of working on Teenside, she left for a life at sea working for Royal Caribbean.

Zoë worked in the kid’s club and then moved onto managing the activities program onboard some of the largest cruise ships.

In the summers of 2018 and 2019, Zoë returned working on programming. Although Covid prevented Zoë from returning in 2020 and 2021, she came back as Teenside’s Head Counselor in 2022. Zoë’s experience both at camp and at sea make her a perfect match as our Program Director.

Email Zoë 845-265-3616
Avri Klemer
Avri Klemer
Director of Finance
Avri Klemer

Avri Klemer

Avri was hired as a counselor at the Camp America Fair in London, England in 1994 and has been at camp ever since. While studying for his MSc Ed at Hunter College in 2002, he jumped at the opportunity to move to the full-time staff, first in a program role, later as the camp’s Bookkeeper.  In 2016 he completed an MA in Camp Administration and Leadership and took on the role of Director of Finance. Avri is a published board game designer and a (to date) unpublished novelist.

Email Avri 845-265-3616
Laura Miller
Laura Miller
Communications/Marketing Director
Laura Miller

Laura Miller

Laura oversees communications and marketing for the SLC camp community. Her 92-year-old dad is a proud alumnus. Laura is a longtime camp employee who is passionate about the positive impact summer camp provides. She is excited to share SLC’s story with new and existing camp families. Laura holds a BA in Public Communications and has worked in marketing for several national companies and nonprofit organizations.

Email Laura 845-265-3616
Lindsey Brown
Lindsey Brown
Advancement/Development Director
Lindsey Brown

Lindsey Brown

Lindsey joins us as Surprise Lake Camp’s Development Director with many years of leadership experience in nonprofit fundraising, camping, and youth development. She has a Master’s Degree in Recreation Management and is thrilled to be working with SLC the community to expand funding opportunities for programs, capital improvements, and the growth of our camp scholarship tradition.  When not thinking, talking, or writing about camp, Lindsey loves to spend time outdoors during all the seasons, hang with her dog, and is always up for an adventure!

Email Lindsey 845-265-3616
Celia Baczkowski
Celia Baczkowski
Alumni Relations and Special Events Coordinator
Celia Baczkowski

Celia Baczkowski

Celia is our Alumni Relations and Special Events Coordinator, meaning she helps to maintain strong relationships between camp and its alumni, and also plans special events held in the off-season.

Celia began her summers at SLC in 1994, and in 2004 she joined the full-time staff.  Over the years she served in a variety of roles including Director of Development & Alumni Relations, Director of Retreats & Communications, and Assistant Director.

After a two-year hiatus, Celia returned to camp in 2022 as the Farm Specialist, planting and growing flowers, fruits, and vegetables, and teaching campers to love and appreciate camp’s natural beauty and resources.

Email Celia 845-265-3616
Gene Kelly
Gene Kelly
Head Caretaker
Gene Kelly

Gene Kelly

Gene and his team are responsible for making sure all of Camp’s systems, buildings and grounds are safe and well-functioning. Gene has been at SLC for more than twenty-five years working behind the scenes to ensure that generations of campers and staff have the summer of a lifetime. Gene is talented in many areas including electrical work, mechanics, automotive, HVAC, plumbing, and much, much more.

845-265-3616