A Wide Range of Expertise

Adir Abaiev Mishlachat – Sports
From Mazkeret Batya, Israel, Adir is spending his second summer at Camp Ramah in Wisconsin and recently completed his IDF service.

Dr. Andy Abeles Doctor
A veteran camper and staff member, Andy is now an anesthesiologist based in Columbus, Ohio. He earned his MD from the University of Missouri-Columbia school of medicine.

Rabbi Shoshana Abramowitz Rosh Yahadut (Jewish Studies)
Shani Abramowitz is the rabbi at Ohavay Zion Synagogue in Lexington, Kentucky. Shani grew up in Skokie, Illinois, and attended Brandeis University, where she studied English and Psychology. Shani received her Rabbinic Ordination from the Jewish Theological Seminary in 2021, and she’s delighted to be back at camp as Rosh Yahadut. This is Shani’s fourth summer on staff.

Malka Aderman-Alcorn Senior Counselor – Rikud (Dance)
Malka is from New York City and just completed her freshman year at SUNY Buffalo. This is her 11th summer at camp, and second summer on staff and she is so excited to be back at camp!

Shir Admon Mishlachat – Photograph/Social Media
Shir is from Ashdod, Israel. She is a content creator on social media and has been passionate about photography since the age of 12, using a professional camera. This is her first summer as a staff member at Camp Ramah in Wisconsin.

David Alperin Rosh Anaf (Activity Head) – Tech
This is David’s fifth summer on staff and 13th summer overall. David is originally from the city of Chicago, and spends the year at the University of Pittsburgh (in Pittsburgh), studying Quechua and linguistics.

Rabbi Jaymee Alpert Shavua Bogrim
Jaymee is a Conservative rabbi who has served congregations on both coasts. She is also a fitness trainer, a life coach, and founder of Neshama Body and Soul, a practice that combines exercise, prayer, and Torah reflections. Jaymee attended JTS for rabbinic ordination and an MA in Jewish Women’s Studies. She also holds an MJEd from Hebrew College and a BA in French Language and Literature. Jaymee is excited to bring her passion for the body-mind-spirit connection to Shavua Bogrim, and she is excited to be back at Camp Ramah in Wisconsin.

Golan Altman-Shafter Junior Counselor
Golan Altman-Shafer is a rising freshman in college from Milwaukee, Wisconin. He will be serving as a counselor, and it is his first year being a part of Ramah. He will attend Brandeis University to major in Economics.

Robin Anderson Director of Operations
Robin joined the Ramah Wisconsin team in 2025. Previously, she served as the inaugural Director of Operations at Keshet, a Chicago based organization that supports children and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities in reaching their full potential. Prior to joining the team at Keshet, Robin spent nearly two decades at Camp Young Judaea Midwest, serving as Associate Director, Director, and Executive Director.

Azucena Arena Cruz International Staff – Rishonim (Pre-Camper Program)
Azucena Arenas is from Oaxaca, Mexico. She has worked in the educational field as a teacher of Spanish, reading, and mathematics for children. She studied Language Teaching at the Universidad Autonoma Benito Juarez de Oaxaca. This will be her first summer at Camp Ramah in Wisconsin, where she hopes to contribute with her enthusiasm and experience in working with children.

Brandi Argentar Professional in Residence – Shavua Bogrim
Brandi was a camper for 5 summers and a counselor for 3 summers. This will be her 5th summer on professional staff (4th with Shavua Bogrim). Her oldest son is a Ramah alumni and worked on staff last summer. Her middle son will be a Nivonim camper and her youngest will be in Garinim this summer.  Brandi is a science teacher and technology coach at Stevenson High School, a northwest suburb outside of Chicago. She has participated in several Breakout EDU (Escape room for school setting) workshops. Brandi has also implemented several within her own classroom and helped other teachers create their own.  She is excited to share her excitement for escape rooms with the Bogrimers. Brandi also facilitates mobile escape room events through her company Escape In A Box Events LLC.

Caleb Arnow Junior Counselor – Cabin
Caleb is from St. Louis, Missouri, and this is his eighth summer at camp and first as a staff member. Next year, Caleb plans to take a gap year to study at a yeshiva in Israel, and then will attend Brown University, where he plans to major in chemical engineering. His favorite time at camp is Friday night Shabbat services.

Adi Atia Yoetz Tichnun
Adi, a veteran staff member since 2009, joins us from Netanya, Israel, currently on shlichut with WZO at SAR High School in Riverdale, NYC. She holds an LLB from Bar Ilan University and spent six years practicing law before becoming a teacher, having received her teaching certificate from Seminar HaKibbutzim five years ago. She is a proud mom to Amit (Solelim), Yishai (Ruach Ramah), and Ayala (Rishonim), and is married to Gal.

Or Avidov Mishlachat – Sport
Or was born in Chicago, Illinois and moved to Israel when she was 14. She drafted to the IDF at age 18 and served in the Search and Rescue brigade as a combat commander. This is her first year at Ramah Wisconsin!

Itai Aviv Mishlachat – Chinuch Bashetach (Outdoor Education)
Itai was born in St. Louis, Missour and was raised in Israel after moving there in sixth grade. He recently completed his service in the IDF as a combat warrant officer in the Special Operations Engineering Unit (S.O.E.U). This fall, he will begin his studies in aerospace engineering at the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology. Itai attended camp for one summer when he was very young and is excited to return and be part of the experience once again.

Ron Azaraf Mishlachat – Shira (Songleading)
Ron is from Jjerusalem. He worked at a youth village during his military service where he was deeply involved in education and mentoring. This is his first summer at camp and he is very excited to join this amazing community.

Matthew Azulay Junior Counselor – Cabin
Matthew is from Chicago. He is excited to study business in the fall at the University of Maryland. He has been a camper at Ramah Wisconsin since Ruach Ramah, attended Ramah Israel Seminar and is excited to become a staff member this summer.

Dr. Loren Bach Doctor
Loren is a doctor, trained at the University of Minnesota and practicing in St. Louis, Missouri. He was at camp as a doctor last year and looks forward to this year. He met his wife at camp.

Maytal Bach Rosh Chadar Aleph

Neta Bar-Nes Mishlachat – Rishonim (Pre-Camper Program)
Neta is from Modiin. She served in the IDF as an enemy simulator for 2 years and is excited for her second summer on staff.

Dr. Adam Baruch Doctor
Adam is a second year camp doctor. He is the father of Rishonim-ers, Matan, Lev and Shira. His wife, Tali, is the Director of Strategic Initiatives at Ramah Wisconsin. In summary, at the age of 36, he became a deeply embedded Ramahnik.

Tali Baruch Director of Strategic Initiatives
Tali (Ribnick) Baruch is an alumna of Nivonim 2006 and was a counselor and Rosh Eidah for several summers. Tali grew up in Minneapolis and now lives in Ann Arbor, Michigan with her husband, Adam and three kids – Matan, Lev and Shira.

Or Barzilay Mishlachat – Shiluv (Inclusion Specialist)
Or currently resides in Petah Tikvah after living in Tel Aviv. He is a music producer and singer and has a degree in music production. He is currently working at an insurance agency, and previously worked with kids as a dungeon master in a Dungeons and Dragons class. It will be his first year at Camp Ramah in Wisconsin.

Mia Bearman Senior Counselor – Music
Mia is from Skokie, Illinois and is currently a student at Bradley University with a major in communications and minors in history and creative writing. Mia spent sixteen years as a camper at Ramah (Rishonim through Nivonim) and is so excited for her second year on music staff!

Caleb Becker-Schwartz Senior Counselor – Waterfront
Caleb is from Denver, Colorado and is excited to be returning for his third summer on staff and fifth summer overall at Ramah Wisconsin. He also spent six summers as a camper at Ramah Canada. During the year, Caleb participates in a co-op program, alternating semesters between studying aerospace engineering and astronomy at the University of Maryland and working at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.

Kate Behrman Senior Counselor – Cabin
Kate Behrman is a Los Angeles native. She will be entering her third year at Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut, in the fall, studying Film, English, and Religious Studies. During the year, Kate works as a 6th grade teacher for Congregation Beth Israel’s Youth Education Program in West Hartford, Connecticut. She cannot wait for her third summer at camp!

Dr. Adina Beiner Assistant Director
An alumna of Camp Ramah Darom, where she spent summers as a camper, counselor, and division head (Rosh Eidah), Adina has spent additional summers at Darom and Ramah Sports Academy in senior administrative roles.  She also worked as a middle school humanities teacher and school-wide events coordinator at Beit Rabban Day School in New York. Adina is a graduate of the University of Georgia with a B.S. and M.Ed. in Middle School Education.  She earned her Ed.D from Northeastern University, where her research focused on staff retention in camps like ours!

Eudice Beiner Camper Care
Eudice made aliyah 45 years ago when she was in her 20s. She worked as an Inclusion specialist and then co-founded the Jerusalem Democratic School, where she has passionately devoted the last 24 years of her life. She is an educational counselor, a mindfulness enthusiast, and loves working with kids in more informal settings.

Renatya Ben Ezra Mishlachat – Rosh Anaf (Activity Head) – Sports
Renatya is from Modiin, Israel and will be returning for her third summer on staff, her second as Rosh Sport.

Noy Ben Michael Mishlachat – Rishonim (Pre-Camper Program)
Noy is from Netanya in Israel. In the army she was a programmer and graphic designer and she finished her service about six months prior to camp. For the past four years she has been teaching math.

Ayal Shachar Ben Or Inclusion Specialist
Ayal is a dedicated professional with a diverse background in special needs settings and sign language interpretation. A graduate of Bar Ilan University’s Sign Language Translator Course, Ayal is currently pursuing a BA in Psychology at Open University Israel. With over 8 years of experience working with neurodiverse children and those living with chronic illnesses, Ayal has also served as an inclusion specialist at Camp Ramah Darom. In his current role Youth, Community and Israel Education at Finchley Reform Synagogue in London, Ayal is known for his passion for education and community engagement, serving as a tutor for B’nei Mitzvot and leading various educational activities.

Amit Ben Praz Mishlachat – Sgan Rosh Chinuch Bashetach (Outdoor Education)

Noam Ben-Gideon Senior Counselor – Rishonim (Pre-Camper Program)
Noam grew up at Camp Ramah, attending for seven summers.  Noam lives in Roslyn, New York, and is attending a Kol Ami Mechina this year.

Natasha Benjamin Junior Counselor – Cabin
Natasha is an incoming freshman at Washington University in St. Louis! She plans on majoring in neuroscience. This is her eighth summer at camp, and her first summer on staff. She loves playing piano, watching movies, mishmar, yishuns, and music.

Tamar Benson Mishlachat – Israel Education
Tamar is from Beer Sheva. She graduated high school from Amit High School in 2020. After graduating she started a gap year in a pre army program called Mechinat Aderet. After the army she did a service in the IDF as a Mashakit Hasbara in the education unit from 2021-2023. After the service she moved to Tel Aviv and worked in an administrative position in the ministry of Communications.

Adrienne Berman Program Director
Adie Berman became Camp Ramah in Wisconsin’s year-round Program Director in 2022 after 3 summers as Rosh Rishonim. She has a BA in Early Childhood & Elementary Education from Concordia University and an MA in Educational Leadership from McGill University. She brings over 20 years of experience as an educator, school administrator and mom and spent 13 years at her childhood camp (Pripstein’s) as camper, staff and head staff. Adie and her husband, Efrem are originally from Montreal, Canada and currently live in Minneapolis, MN with their Ramah-nik children Cassie (Nivo), Zach (Bogrim) and Tessa (Garinim).

Teshale Bikaya Mishlachat – Cabin
Teshale made aliyah from Ethiopia at the age of 8.5. He was a participant and later a counselor at Bnei Akiva. In school he majored in computer science and chemistry. During his IDF service, he served as a training coordinator for a special army unit and later completed four months of reserve duty as an operations officer.

Nicol Blaj Mishlachat – Rishonim (Pre-Camper Program)
Nicol is from Yavne, Israel. She lives with her parents and her sibling who is in the IDF. She works at Ben Gurion Airport in the security department, and this is her first year at camp.

Natalie Blitt Rosh Mercaz
Natalie Blitt serves as Director of Academic Programs and Special Projects at The iCenter and is the author of five novels—two for young adults and three for middle grade readers. A proud Canadian who will fly the maple leaf at any opportunity, she currently lives in Skokie, Illinois, with her husband, Rabbi Josh Feigelson, and their three sons.

Shayna Block Ruach Ramah Counselor
Shayna Block is originally from Caldwell, New Jersey, but now lives in Washington, DC, studying public health and pre-medical sciences at George Washington University. Her favorite Ramah memories were as a camper for nine summers at Camp Ramah in the Berkshires and in Israel as part of Tichon Ramah Yerushalayim in the spring of 2023. Shayna is so excited to work at Camp Ramah in Wisconsin this summer as a Ruach Ramah counselor!

Richard Bloomberg
Originally from Baltimore, Richard moved to Israel in 1977 at the age of 19. Following his Israeli army service, he returned to the USA and completed a B.A. in Jewish Studies from the Baltimore Hebrew College. Richard and his wife have lived and raised their five children in Jerusalem since 1987. Over the years, he has had the privilege of working in the high tech sector and later as an educator in an alternative school in Jerusalem.

Ilana Brener Senior Counselor – Cabin

Ilisa Brown Accounting Manager
Ilisa received a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Washington University in St. Louis. She has worked at a public accounting firm and as the controller of the International Academy of Merchandising and Design. Ilisa attended Camp Ramah in Wisconsin (Nivo ’81) for three summers as a camper and four summers on staff. All three of her children, Ari (Nivo ’12), Mason (Nivo ’16) and Sage (Nivo ’19), have attended Camp Ramah in Wisconsin and Ramah Day Camp.

Mason Brown Summer Communications Associate
Mason is so excited to be returning to Ramah for another summer! Mason is from Chicago and attended the University of Minnesota where he studied graphic design and developmental psychology. He attended camp each summer as a camper and this is his third summer on staff at the overnight camp. Mason has also worked at Ramah Day Camp in Chicago for a few summers and is excited to be on staff at both camps assisting with communications.

Becca Bubis Yahadut (Jewish Studies)
Becca moved to the Midwest in 2023 with her husband, Rabbi Jonathan Bubis, and two kids, Pennielle and Shai. She teaches Jewish Studies at Rochelle Zell Jewish High School. In her spare time, she enjoys playing cards, reading fiction with 7yo Penny, and wrestling with 3yo Shai.

Rabbi Jonathan Bubis Yahadut (Jewish Studies)
Rabbi Jonathan Bubis is the Rav Beit Sefer (School Rabbi) at the Solomon Schechter Day School of Northbrook, Illinois. Jonathan is a Jewish educator, prayer leader, composer, and performing artist with a passion for music, theater, and Jewish text. Rabbi Jonathan is thrilled to be back in the Northwoods with his family, and considers Ramah a second home after attending camp for fourteen summers.

Jeremy Budin Senior Counselor – Cabin
Jeremy is a rising sophomore at Washington University studying computer science and mathematics. This summer will be his third as a counselor at Ramah Wisconsin after six years as a camper.

Audrey Burstin Pianist
Audrey Burstin is originally from Munster, Indiana and now lives in Kiryat Tivon, Israel.  She graduated from Indiana U Bloomington with a degree in education and currently runs a high-ticket affiliate marketing business online. Audrey began her journey at camp as a Halutzim camper in 1992 and continued as a camper and as a staff member through 2010, serving as a counselor, drama staff, and Rosh Rishonim. She’s now married to her Ramah sweetheart Netanel and this will be their second summer returning to camp as a family with their three kids.

Netanel Burstin Yahadut (Jewish Studies)
Netanel is from Israel and holds a Master’s degree in Archaeology from Bar-Ilan University where he also began his studies in Tanakh. He currently teaches middle school and runs a business helping families organize and manage their finances. Netanel was on staff at Camp Ramah in 2007-2008 where he met his wife Audrey. They returned to camp last summer with their three kids and are excited to return this summer.

Samuel Caplan Chief Development Officer
Sam joined the year-round team in January 2014. Previously, Sam had served for two terms on the Ramah Wisconsin Committee and had been co-chair of Development with Dan Blumenthal on the Ramah Wisconsin Executive Committee. Professionally Sam brings a wealth of development experience most recently serving as the Midwest Deputy Director for AIPAC where he managed an annual campaign of $14M across nine Midwest states. Sam spent four years at Ramah Wisconsin as a camper and seven on staff including several as a Rosh Eidah. Sam met his wife Sarah Ettinger (Nivo ‘98) at camp, and they now have four children.

Ella Chester Senior Counselor – Music
Ella is super excited to come back for her seventh year at camp! This will be her second year on muzika staff. During the year she studies biology at Wesleyan University where she takes part in student theater and dives for their Swim and Dive team.

Afek Cohen Mishlachat – Chinuch Bashetach (Outdoor Education)
Afek lives in Israel near Jerusalem. This is his first summer at camp and he is very excited to be on chinuch bashetach staff and hopes that this summer will be his best.

Asif Cohen Mishlachat – Rosh Agam (Waterfront)
Asif is from Nitzan/Haifa. In the last year he was doing reserve duty and studying for his application to electrical engineering school. This is going to be his second year as a staff member.

Dori Cohen Rosh Eidah (Division Head) – Machon (entering 10th grade)

Evan Cohen Senior Counselor – Cabin
Evan Cohen is from Chicago, Illinois, and is currently finishing up his freshman year at the University of Miami (FL), where he is studying finance in the business school. He spent seven summers as a camper at Ramah Wisconsin and is excited to return for his second summer on staff!

Heath Cohen Coach-In-Residence
Heath is from Boca Raton Florida. He attended University of Illinois where he earned a degree in kinesiology and a minor in coaching strategies. He was a camper for four summers and has been on staff for over ten years.

Shahar Cohen Junior Counselor – Cabin
Shahar is from Chicago suburbs but originally came from Jerusalem. He was a camper for two summers and this is his first as a staff member.

Sharon Correll Nurse
Sharon is a resident of North Carolina, a graduate of the Accelerated Option in Nursing from Winston-Salem State University. She’s a 20-year nurse with varied experiences from long term care to psychiatric nursing and the most recently six years working as a travel nurse. She also toured California for 13 months working on mobile vaccine units administering the Covid vaccine.

Fayge Crandus Junior Counselor – Cabin/Shiluv (Inclusion)
Fayge Crandus is from Chicago, Illinois. She graduated high school this year, and will be studying psychology at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign starting this fall. She is very excited to attend her first year at Ramah!

Amy Cytryn Office Staff
Amy Cytryn received her BA from Simmons College in Elementary Education, her BHL from Hebrew College and MA in Jewish Education from the Jewish Theological Seminary. She currently lives in Jerusalem with her husband Eric and they have six grandchildren, four of whom are campers this summer at Raman in Wisconsin.

Rabbi Eric Cytryn Yahadut (Jewish Studies)
After serving congregations in New Orleans, St. Louis and Harrisburg, Rabbi Eric Cytryn retired from the Congregational Rabbinate in 2020 and moved to Jerusalem, where he lives with his wife Amy. He spent seven summers as a camper and 13 summers as a staff member at different Ramah camps, including two summers as Rosh Nivonim (1979-1980) at Ramah Wisconsin. He plays guitar, schmoozes and teaches Yahadut in camp.

Jacob Cytryn Executive Director
Jacob is returning for his 33rd summer with Ramah – 26th on staff. In 2018 he became the Executive Director of Camp Ramah in Wisconsin and Ramah Day Camp after having been Director, Assistant Director and Program Director for several years. He earned an M.A. in Talmud and Rabbinics at JTS and is working on a Ph.D. in Jewish Studies and Education at Brandeis University. Jacob lives in Chicago with his wife Tamar and sons Sam, Micah and Hillel.

Rebecca Dennis Infirmary Administrator
Beca is joining us from St. Louis, Missouri. This is her first summer at Ramah Wisconsin, but she is no stranger to the Jewish overnight camp experience! Beca attended Case Western Reserve University where she earned her Bachelor’s of Science in Nursing in January of 2019. Since graduation, Beca has primarily worked with kids. Her first nursing job was in the pediatric float pool at St Louis Childrens Hospital. She has also worked as a school nurse, camp nurse and in pediatric private duty.

Itay Deshet Mishlachat – Music
Itay is coming back for his second summer at camp, to share his love for music and Israel! This year he is planning to study computer science and economics at Tel-Aviv University.

Alex Dolin Junior Counselor – Photography
Alex plans on attending the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs in the fall to study aerospace engineering. Alex is a hobbyist photographer who is hoping to expand his skills with his first job as a professional photographer.

Nicole Dolin Nurse
Nicole Dolin, from NJ, lived in Madison, Wisconsin for 17 years, and is now in San Diego, California. She worked as a nurse in many areas including Pediatric ICU, Outpatient Cardiology and Outpatient Urogynecology. She has three kids who have gone to camp every summer.

Dr. Ron Dolin Doctor
A longtime staff member, Dr. Dolin joins us from Del Mar, California where he works as a radiologist. He earned his undergraduate degree from Washington University in St. Louis and his MD from the University of Illinois-Chicago. He and his wife Nikki have three children.

Maayan Adir Dubitsky Mishlachat – Music
Maayan was born in Givatayim (near Tel Aviv) and graduated from Kalay High School. He later moved to Ramat Gan. Maayan worked for five years as a guide in the Givatayim observatory and since September 2024 he has worked at a cafe in Ramat Gan. He writes and composes music, and has been playing for about 10 years. Maayan also attended Tel Aviv University and studied the arts of cinema and television.

Mollie Dubner Senior Counselor – Cabin
Mollie is so excited to be back on staff as a Nivonim counselor this summer after eight summers as a camper! Mollie is from Chicago, Illinois, and just finished her first year at George Washington University where she is studying Middle East Studies. She is on the board of GW for Israel, and she also works at a nearby Hebrew school. Last year, Mollie spent the year living in Jerusalem, Israel, on the Shalom Hartman Institute’s Hevruta Gap Year Program.

Nate Dubner Junior Counselor – Cabin
Nate Dubner is from Deerfield, Illinois. He is attending the University of Illinois in the fall with a major in psychology and a minor in Jewish studies. He graduated from Rochelle Zell Jewish High School in the spring, and he is excited for his first year on staff! He has loved attending camp for the past nine summers and also loved going to Israel on Ramah Seminar. Nate loves playing basketball, frisbee, and spikeball at camp.

Eliav Ehrlich Junior Counselor – Cabin
Eliav grew up at Camp Ramah in Wisconsin and attended Ramah Seminar in 2024. He is excited to study business in college and pursue aviation for a career. This is his first summer on staff, and he can’t wait. Eliav is from Mendota Heights, MN, and loves to play sports and work out.

Avigail Elbaz Mishlachat – Shiluv (Inclusion Specialist)
Avigail is from from Rehovot, Israel. She was discharged from the army in January 2025 and has been working as a secretary at a law firm since then. This is her first year at camp.

Caleb Ellenberg Senior Counselor – Cabin
Caleb is a rising sophomore at Brown University, where he’s majoring in Applied Math and Computer Science. Outside of class, he’s the head of the data desk at the Brown Daily Herald and he runs with the club running team. He’s originally from Madison, Wisconsin, where he graduated from West High School in 2024. He spent seven summers as a camper at Ramah in Wisconsin, and he’s super excited to be back for his second full summer on staff!

Elia Ellis Ruach Ramah Counselor
Elia is from Overland Park, Kansas and will be going into her senior year of high school at the Hyman Brand Hebrew Academy. She has been going to Camp Ramah in Wisconsin for 10 summers. This will be her first summer on staff and she is so excited to be a Ruach Ramah counselor.

Riley Ellis Senior Counselor – Cabin
Riley is from Overland Park, Kansas. This will be his ninth year attending camp, and his second as a staff member. He currently attends Rockhurst University studying sports management with a minor in marketing. He plan on transferring to either Tampa or Charleston.

Rose Ellis Wasserman Senior Counselor – Cabin
Rose is from Kansas City, KS. She attends Florida Atlantic University for a business marketing, as well as attending Istituto Marangoni Miami part time for a degree in fashion design. Rose has spent 7 summers at Ramah Wisconsin as a camper, and is so excited to be back for her second year on staff. In Rose’s free time she enjoys dancing.

Maya Engel Mishlachat – Omanut (Art)

Chana Engelman Nurse
Chana Engelman is a Registered Nurse with more than 15 years of nursing experience, including a decade specializing in pediatric emergency care. Prior to becoming a nurse, Chana worked as an EMT in Magen David Adom. She holds a Masters in Public Administration and a certification in Pediatric Emergency Nursing. Chana is a mother of three girls and is so excited to be spending time at Camp Ramah, treating all the children as if they were one of her own.

Hadar Ernst Junior Counselor – Cabin
Hadar is from Washington, DC. He plays piano, sings, and loves everything music. He’s an avid enjoyer of fantasy novels, Ultimate Frisbee, and going on hikes. While this will be his first summer at Ramah Wisconsin, he grew up going to Camp Ramah in New England and is excited to spend his summer in the Midwest.

Joseph Eskin Inclusion Specialist
Joseph Eskin lives in Lexington, KY, where he works for the Jewish Federation of the Bluegrass and runs the Religious School at Ohavay Zion Synagogue. Originally from Evanston, Illinois, he attended Camp Ramah in Wisconsin and returns this summer for his tenth summer on staff.

Shoshana Evans Infirmary Aide
Shoshana is from Baltimore, Maryland, and this is her first summer on staff! She will be starting medical school this July at George Washington University.

Uri Farber Yahadut (Jewish Studies)
Uri is from Silver Spring, Maryland, and has studied at Yeshivat Maale Gilboa, Pardes, and the University of Maryland. He’s never been affiliated with Ramah Wisconsin, but is excited to join!

Ofek Fatal Mishlachat – Sport
Ofek is from Ramat Hasharon, a city that is located near Tel Aviv. He went to Rothberg High School and majored in physics and computer science. He is currently working as a teacher in an after school program in an elementary school.

Mira Feig Junior Counselor – Cabin
Mira is from Glencoe in the Chicago suburbs. She just graduated from New Trier High School and will be attending University of Miami to study psychology on the pre med track. She has been a camper at Ramah Wisconsin for eight summers and attended Ramah Seminar.

Micah Feigelson Senior Counselor – Cabin
This will be Micah’s second summer on staff at camp! He is from Skokie Illinois, and graduated from Rochelle Zell Jewish High School in 2024. He recently completed Young Judaea Year Course, a gap year program in Israel. Next year he will be attending the University of Illinois.

Mia Feinberg Senior Counselor – Cabin
Mia is from Highland Park, Illinois and an incoming sophomore at Syracuse University studying illustration and graphic design. Mia has been going to Camp Ramah since she was in Garinim, and this is her second year on staff!

Idan Fine Mishlachat
From kibbutz Maagan Michael in Israel, Idan joins us for her fifth summer on staff. After high school she did a gap year volunteering with special needs people. In the army she served as a Hebrew teacher for olim hadashim (new immigrants) and Arabic speaking soldiers. Since she finished the army she worked in various educational jobs, including at Alexander Muss High School and in the summer camps department at the Jewish Agency. Today she is a student at Shalem College in Jerusalem. This will be her fifth summer working in camp, and she is very excited to be back for the summer!

Rabbi Jeremy Fine Volunteer
Rabbi Jeremy Fine is the rabbi at Congregation Bnai Tikvah in Deerfield, Illinois and before that was at Temple of Aaron in St. Pau, Minnesota. He is a former Rosh Eidah, Rosh Sport, and camper/counselor. Rabbi Fine is a sports blogger and works in the Jewish sports world as well, most notably working with Team Israel baseball and professional wrestling.

Dr. Yonah Fisch Rosh Machlakah – Chinuch BaShetach (Outdoor Education)
Yonah is back in Chinuch B’Shetach this year at camp. Yonah is a science educator currently living in Cincinnati, Ohio. Yonah spent time conducting research on coral reefs in Israel prior to obtaining his PhD in Marine Biology and Ecology from the University of Miami, Florida. Yonah is excited to be back at Ramah this year to help lead an incredible outdoor experience at camp.

Whitney Fisch Office Staff – Front Desk
Whitney Fisch is the CEO of BaMidbar. In 2010, Whitney graduated with her MSW from the University of Michigan’s School of Social Work and was selected as a National Community Scholar. Whitney subsequently spent 10 years working as a school counselor and education administrator, most recently at Milken Community Schools as their Director of Health and Wellness in LA. In 2020, Whitney became the Executive Director for the Hillel at Miami University and recently transitioned to CEO of BaMidbar.

Aviva Fisher Senior Counselor – Cabin
Aviva Fisher is from Minneapolis Minnesota and is attending the University of Minnesota School of Nursing this year and was previously on a gap year in Israel working with Magen David Adom. This will be her 10th summer at camp and second as a counselor. She enjoys being with friends and being outside.

Lauren Fleischman Director of Camp Wellness & Inclusion
Lauren joined the year-round team in 2025 after serving as the long-time Associate Director of the Hillel of the University of California at Berkeley. She is excited for her first summer at Camp Ramah in Wisconsin!

Briana Flores Estrada International Staff – Kitchen
Bri is from Mexico and this will be her second year on staff.

Giovana Flores Tolama International Staff – Kitchen
From Mexico, this is Giovana’s second summer on staff. She is currently studying psychology at BUAP (Meritorious Autonomous University of Puebla).

Keren Fraiman Scholar-in-Residence

Valerie Freeman Rosh Anaf (Activity Head) – Mitbachon (Teaching Kitchen)
Valerie Freeman lives in Overland Park, Kansas with her husband and three children. She works at Hyman Brand Hebrew Academy and enjoys solving puzzles and experimenting with new recipes in her free time. Valerie is excited to return for her third summer in the Mitbachon, blending her passion for learning and creativity both personally and professionally.

Tiferet Rachel Frumkin Yahadut (Jewish Studies)
Tiferet is from Jerusalem. She completed her B.A. in General and Comparative Literature at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem in 2024, and is due to start an M.A. in Yiddish literature in October. In the past year she has worked teaching Hebrew, creative writing and literature in various frameworks. This is her first time coming to Ramah.

Rimon Gabriel Mishlachat – Cabin
Rimon is from Israel, currently working as a shinshin in Chicago. This will be her first summer on staff.

Matan Ganz Junior Counselor – Cabin
Matan is from Newton Massachusetts and will be going on a gap year in Israel next year. After his year in Israel he will be going to Northeastern University and will spend his first semester in Greece. He spent four years going to Camp Moshava I.O as a camper, and worked as a sports counselor for one month. During his free time he loves to ski, workout, and hang out with friends.

Dr. Netali Ginsburg Doctor
Netali Ginsberg is a board certified Emergency Medicine physician who has worked all over the country in many clinical settings. She has three kids, one of whom is a camper at CRW. This is Dr. Ginsberg’s second year working as a camp physician.

Eliora Glickman Senior Counselor – Cabin
This is Ellie’s second year on staff, after many amazing summers as a camper. She is from Kansas City, just spent the year studying in seminary in Jerusalem, and will be attending Binghamton University in the fall. Ellie is so excited to get to know all of her amazing campers and make new memories at camp.

Yael Goder Mishlachat – Chinuch Bashetach (Outdoor Education)
Yael is a member of the Israeli mishlachat, attending for the first time. Yael comes from Even-Yehuda and has 4 siblings. Yael loves to hike and traveled arround the world. She studied theatre for 8 yesrs in school and in different programs. Yael is exited about the summer that is coming.

Emma Goldberg Junior Counselor – Nagarut (Woodworking)
Emma is from Chicago and is entering her freshman year at the University of Pennsylvania. She was a camper for nine years and this will be her first year on staff.

Lilianna Goldberg Junior Counselor – Cabin
Lilianna Goldberg is from Highland Park, Illinois. Lili went to camp for nine years, all the way from Ruach to Nivonim, and is excited to begin her first summer back at camp as a counselor. Lili has two sisters, one of which is her twin Emma Goldberg, who is also coming back to camp as a junior counselor this summer. Lili attended Rochelle Zell Jewish High School, graduating as part of the class of 2025, and is excited to attend the University of Pennsylvania in the fall if she does not attend the Hevruta gap year program first. At the University of Pennsylvania, Lili is planning to major in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics, with a minor in Comparative Literature.

Uri Goldfinger Mishlachat – Cabin
Uri is from Gedera, Israel where he is currently a Shinshin volunteering in the Chicago Jewish community. When he was in high school, he majored in CS, Cyber-security and Chemistry. He also volunteered at the Mashazim youth movement.

Joel Goldsmith- Commissary Logistics Liaison
Joel is looking forward to using his many years of Supply Chain and Logistics experience within the food industry at camp this summer. Joel is a camp alumn (Nivo ‘97) who also spent 3 summers as a cabin counselor staff and previously served on the Board of Director’s Va’ad. He resides in Minneapolis with his wife (Laurie) and 3 Ramah-nicks (Hannah, Ari, & Adina).

Barak Goldstein- Ruach Ramah Counselor
Barak Goldstein comes from Highland Park Illinois and is a part of the Beth El congregation. He is attending American University in Washington D.C. and is majoring in psychology and will also compete at the division 1 level in track and field.

Elijah Golob Senior Counselor – Drama
Elijah Is from Bloomington, Minnesota. He just completed his freshman year at the University of Minnesota studying special education. He has been at Ramah for seven years and is very much looking forward to his eighth!

Paulina Salatiel Gomez Rios International Staff – Kitchen
Paulina joins us from Mexico for her second summer at camp. She is from Mexico City, where she studies International Relations at the National Autonomous University of Mexico.

Nitzan Gonen Mishlachat – Cabin
Nitzan joins us from Modi’in, Israel. He was born and raised in LA, CA until he was 8. Nitzan finished the years of Military service (AKA Tzava) in December of 2024 and is planning to start architecture studies in university after camp.

Jonathan Goodgold Junior Counselor – Cabin
Jonathan lives in Evanston, Illinois and will be studying business at Emory University in the Fall of 2025. Jonathan has attended Camp Ramah in Wisconsin since Kochavin, and before that attended Ramah Day Camp outside of Chicago for two summers. Jonathan has worked for three years at the Joseph & Belle Braun Anshe Emet Religious School as a teacher’s assistant for fifth, third, and second graders. This is Jonathan’s first summer on staff at Camp Ramah.

Preston Gordman Senior Counselor – Cabin
Preston Gordman is from Omaha, Nebraska, attending the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. He is majoring in finance with a minor in accounting. He was a camper for 8 years and a counselor for 2 years.

Nitai Gorlin Junior Counselor – Cabin
Nitai is from Chicago, Illinois. He went to Rochelle Zell and is going to Columbia University. He has been a camper at Ramah Wisconsin since Garinim summer.

Mitchell Gottlieb Senior Counselor – Cabin
Mitchell Gottlieb is returning to Ramah in Wisconsin for his 10th summer and will work as a cabin counselor. He grew up in the suburbs of Chicago and attended RZJHS. Now, Mitchell goes to school at Vanderbilt University, double majoring in Economics and Political Science with a minor in Data Science.

Jaja Greenberg Mishlachat – Cabin

Savanah Greenberg Junior Counselor – Cabin
Savanah is from London, England. This is her first summer as a counselor at camp. She attends university in Leeds, UK where she is studying to become a primary school teacher.

Ella Greenfield Mishlachat – Cabin
​Ella lives in Ramat Gan, Israel. She earned a high school diploma majoring in physics and psychology, as well as a full mandatory service in the IDF in the education corps. She has been employed as a barista (simultaneous with army service), for the 6 months leading up to camp.

Aleksandra Guzik International Staff – Rishonim (Pre-Camper Program)
Aleksandra is 29 year old and comes from Poland. She earned her degree in pre-school and primary school education. This will be her third summer at camp working with Rishonim.

Yaron Haba Mishlachat – Outdoor Education
Yaron lives in Shoham, Israel. This is his first summer on staff at Camp Ramah.

Benjamin Hammel Junior Counselor – Cabin
Ben was raised in Israel and the Chicagoland area. He has gone to Ramah Day Camp since kindergarten and Camp Ramah in Wisconsin since Ruach Ramah.

Lavi Hammel Senior Counselor – Cabin
Lavi currently attends Santa Clara University as a bioengineering major. He was a camper for eight years, and this is his fourth year as a counselor.

Ariana Handelman Rosh Ruach Ramah
Ariana recently graduated from Muhlenberg College, in psychology and business administration. She is a proud Chicago native who loves biking to Lake Michigan. She is excited to return for her third year on staff after seven summers as a camper. When you see her on the kikar, make sure to find out which bubble wand she will be carrying.

Alon Hankin Mishlachat – Cabin
Alon joins us from Kibbutz Gezer for his fourth summer on staff. He served three years in the Israeli army. He loves sports, landscaping and hiking.

Nina Harris Yoetzet (Camper Care Team)
Nina Gelfand Harris M.A., LCSW is a clinical social worker. She was a camper for 4 years (Nivo 1979), went on Seminar, was a junior counselor, senior counselor and Tikvah counselor.  She has been a yoetzet since 1999 and her own children literally grew up on the kikar. She is excited to be working with many of the yoetzim who she knew as campers and staff. During the year she has a private practice in Highland Park and is the social worker at Chicago Jewish Day School (Go Rams!). She also is the lead clinician for the Israel Now program, which is a Chicago Jewish Federation community program that takes 8th graders to Israel. Nina has a M.A. from the University of Chicago, and is a graduate of the Wexner Heritage program. She is originally from Minneapolis but currently lives in Highland Park with her husband.

Halel Hazan Mishlachat – Israel Education
Hillel lives in Sensana in southern Israel. During her military service she was in the Education Corps. This is her second year at camp.

Yaron Heiligman Junior Counselor – Cabin
Yaron is from Overland Park, Kansas. He is planning on attending Yeshivat Orayta in the Old city next year. This is Yaron’s 13th year at camp.

Jose Hernandez Amador International Staff – Kitchen
José is a Mexican staff member. He is currently studying International Trade in Puebla City, and this will be his first year as a staff member at Ramah Wisconsin and any other camp. He’ll be in the kitchen.

Miriam Herstein Senior Counselor – Cabin
Miriam is a third-year counselor from Los Angeles, California, and this is her 16th summer at camp! She is a rising junior at Brandeis University where she double-majors in international and global studies and Near Eastern and Judaic studies. Aside from being a student, she works as a religious school teacher, a Ramah Service Corps Engagement Fellow, a student worker at the Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Center for Studies in Jewish Education, and as the Ramah College Network coordinator at Brandeis. Her favorite parts of camp are Mishmar, Kabbalat Shabbat, and boating!

Sean Herstein Rosh Merkaz
Originally from Minnesota, Sean has been a part of the Camp Ramah in Wisconsin community since 1991, including three summers as a camper, four as a counselor, and two as a Rosh Eidah. He has been teaching and/or Rosh Yahadut almost every summer since 2002, and this summer moves to the Mercaz to support the staff with programming. During the school year he is a member of the Jewish Studies faculty at Milken Community School in Los Angeles, California. Sean holds a BA from Indiana University, an MA from Hebrew University, and a certificate of advanced Jewish Studies from the Pardes Institute.

Yuval Hezroni Mishlachat – Tarbut Israel (Israel Education)
Yuval is 21 years old and lives in a small town in Israel called Kiryat Ono. She recently finished serving under the IDF as an education Nco in a special unit named Egoz under the Israeli Commando Forces. In camp Yuval will be a part of anaf’ Tarbut Israel.

Dr. Sara Hoffenberg Yoetzet (Camper Care Team)
Dr. Sara Hoffenberg is a child psychologist at the Atlanta Children’s Center with expertise in child development, developmental/learning concerns, behavioral difficulties, anxiety, and depression. Prior to co-founding the Atlanta Children’s Center, Sara spent 11 years at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta and was an Assistant Professor at Emory University School of Medicine. Dr. Hoffenberg is certified through the American Board of Professional Psychology. In addition, she is also on the executive board of Camp Ramah in Wisconsin. Sara lives in Atlanta, GA with her husband, Jon, who she met at Camp Ramah, and her 3 children who are Ramah Israel Seminar, Bogrim, and Halutzim this summer.

Jon Hoffman Head Chef
Jon Hoffman lives in St. Louis, MO with his wife Dani, and two children Avi and Evelyn. He was a camper from 1993-1998, and has worked in the kitchen for 5 summers. In St. Louis Jon owns and operates Papa Mark Catering. He loves being able to come back to camp and to keep his connection with Ramah Wisconsin as strong as ever.

Leo Holcomb Ruach Ramah Counselor
Leo is from Minneapolis, MN. Leo currently attend Xavier University where he studies cell & molecular biology. This is Leo’s second summer at Ramah!

Hailey Homonoff Senior Counselor – Cabin
Hailey is from Des Moines, Iowa. This will be her 8th summer at camp and her 2nd summer on staff. She is currently pursuing a Bachelors of Science in Pharmaceutical Sciences at Northeastern University in Boston.

Beth Hope Camper Care Coordinator
Beth is the Senior Director of Clinical Communication and Quality at Compass Health Center, a behavioral health organization based in Illinois. She has been a therapist and clinical administrator for almost 20 years and prior to joining Compass Health Center, was the Executive Director of Child Welfare Programs with The Heartland Alliance. She serves as a member of the Board of Education for District 225 and on the curriculum advisory committee for Brain Health Academy. Beth was a camper at Ramah Wisconsin from 1994-1996 and then attended the Ramah Israel Seminar & Poland program in 1997 followed by 2 years on staff at Ramah Wisconsin. Beth attended the University of Michigan and New York University where she earned a BA in Psychology and a Masters in Social work, respectively. She is originally from Edina, Minnesota and now lives with her husband and two daughters (both current CRW campers) in Northbrook, Illinois.

Henriett Horvat International Staff – Kitchen
Henriett is from Budapest, Hungary. She studied finance and accounting at Corvinus University but was never really interested in them. It is her 4th summer at camp. She loves cats and likes learning languages, especially Italian and Russian. She likes reading about astronomy, spirituality, fitness and helathy lifestyle.

Bar Hury Mishlachat – Shiluv (Inclusion Specialist)
Bar is 20 and from Rosh Haayin. She loves baking and doing yoga. She used to volunteer at a youth community for kids with and without special needs called Krembo Wings. She was in the IDF and was a drone technician and later a project manager.

Sigal Judd Junior Counselor – Sport Staff
Sigal has been with Ramah for 8 years, having started in Kochavim. She is from Columbus, Ohio and is studying at Northeastern University to become a speech language pathologist. She’s previously worked at two other summer camps and enjoys spending time with her campers by making friendship bracelets, coaching softball, and having dance parties. This is her first year on Ramah tzevet, and she hopes to give back to the camp community as much as it gave to her.

David Kamen Mishlachat – Sport Staff
David lives in Shorashim, Israel. This is his first year at camp, and he hasn’t gone to university yet. He has been a soldier and a baseball coach for the last 3 years.

Erez Kanner Mishlachat- Nagarut (Woodworking)
Erez, 21, is spending his first summer at camp. He was raised in Kfar Saba. In his spare time, he enjoys playing the saxophone and collaborating with friends to produce music. An avid hiker and sports enthusiast, Erez loves spending time outdoors and staying active. During his military service in the IDF, he served as a sergeant in the communications department of the Artillery Division.

Nicole Kantarji Mishlachat – Agam (Waterfront)
Nicole Kantarji is from Kiryat Ata, Israel. She has a high school diploma and finished 12 years of school. She works as a medic/first aid provider.

Rena Kantor Junior Counselor – Agam (Waterfront)
Rena is from Detroit, Michigan and will attend a gap year in Israel and then go to college in the US where she is hoping to study computer science and cybersecurity. Rena has been a part of Ramah Wisconsin for 3 years, first as a camper and now as a staff member. She is passionate about baking and kayaking and is excited for another great summer at camp!

Ayelet Kaplan Senior Counselor – Shiluv (Inclusion Specialist)
Ayelet Kaplan is from Huntington Woods, Michigan. She is a rising sophomore at Georgetown University, where she studies mathematics. This is Ayelet’s second summer on staff, and 10th summer at Ramah!

Devorah Kaplowitz Ruach Ramah Counselor
Devorah Kaplowitz was a camper at Camp Ramah in Wisconsin for five summers. She is from Chicago and will be a Senior at Ida Crown Jewish Academy in the fall. She loves reading, singing, dancing, and camp. She can’t wait to be on Ruach Ramah staff this summer!

Molly Kavanaugh Shiluv (Inclusion Specialist)
Molly is thrilled to return to Ramah for her fourth summer on staff. She spent seven summers as a camper before participating in Ramah Israel Seminar and eventually becoming a cabin counselor. Originally from Kansas City, Molly earned her bachelor’s degree in English from Kenyon College and now lives in Athens, Georgia. She is halfway through her master’s program in social work at the University of Georgia.

Aimee Kellinger Junior Counselor – Cabin
Aimee Kellinger joins us from England for her first summer on staff. During the year, she studies psychology at university.

Mark Kelln Rosh Machlakah Sport
Mark grew up in Wisconsin and has lived in Omaha, Nebraska for the past 25 years where he is the Education Director at Beth El Synagogue. He has degrees from the University of Wisconsin-LaCrosse and the University of Nebraska. He has two sons, his youngest is in Nivo this summer. Mark is Rosh Machlakah Sport and this is his third year on staff at Camp Ramah.

Kinsco Kernya International Staff – Kitchen
Kinsco is from Hungary. She studies commerce and marketing at University of Pécs. She worked as a kitchen staff in the camp in 2024.

Eliya Mlaiman Mishlachat – Photography
Eliya was born and raised in Haifa, Israel and recently finished her reserve duty in the IDF. In high school, she studied journalism and photography for three years. This is her first summer on staff.

Ruth Klein Shiluv (Inclusion Specialist)

Bence Kleiner International Staff – Kitchen
Bence Kleiner came from Hungary. He is at University of Dunaujvaros right now, and he is studing business economy technologies. He was working in Camp Ramah Wisconsin In 2024 as Kitchen staff member. Bence has no job yet, because of the University.

Tali Kogan Mishlachat- Tarbut Yisrael (Israel Education)
Tali is from Israel and this is her first summer on staff. She spent five years as a counselor in a youth movement, including two years as head of the counselor team. She also studied music at a conservatory for 11 years. Recently, she completed her military service as a commander in an observation operations center.

Yael Kula Mishlachat – Rosh Omanut (Art)
From Tel Aviv, Israel, this is Yael’s second year as Rosh Omanut. She’s very excited to be back in camp this summer!

Alex Kwait Yoetzet (Camper Care Team)
Alex is from the Chicago area and currently lives in Highland Park with her husband Jared and three daughters Grey, Ella and Romi. Alex is a social worker who attended Indiana University for her bachelors and Loyola University for her Masters. Alex is a long time Ramahnik who attended Camp Ramah as a camper and then as a counselor for many summers.

Gui Lahav Mishlachat – Agam (Waterfront)

Ayelet Lazar Senior Counselor – Waterfront
Ayelet Lazar is from Chicago, Illinois and attends Marquette University. She is majoring in Computer Science and minoring in Chemistry. This will be her second summer on staff after spending 9 years as a camper.

Joshua Lazar Rosh Solelim
Josh is initially from Chicago, Illinois and just graduated from the University of Minnesota. Go Gophers! This will be his 5th summer on staff and 13th summer in total.

Angel Leal Millan International Staff – Kitchen
Angel joins us from Puebla, Mexico for his first summer on staff. He attends BUAP (Meritorious Autonomous University of Puebla) where he is studying finance.

Moria Lehman Rosh Anaf (Activity Head) – Omanuyot HaBama (Performing Arts)
Moria is from Jerusalem, Israel, where she grew up and still lives today. Moria and her family spent 4 years in Milwaukee as shlichim, where she worked as a teacher in Milwaukee Jewish day school. Today Moria is a teacher in Inbar high school in Jerusalem, and she is excited to come back for her 5th summer in camp, with her 3 children who will be joining Nivonim, Shoafim and Garinim.

Gilad Lehman Mishlachat – Radio 

Orit Leiferman Junior Counselor – Cabin
Orit is from Cincinnati, Ohio and will be attending Machon Ma’ayan Seminary in Israel in the fall. Afterwards, she will attend the Ohio State University to study International Relations. She is excited for her first year on staff after spending 4 summers as a camper!

Joel Levinson Shirah Staff
Joel is the Head of Content for an EdTech company, an occasional song leader, father of two, husband of one, dog father of a sheepadoodle and mini poodle. He’s in his 4th year at camp, and he love musicals – especially the ridiculous ones!

Elena Levitt Yahadut (Jewish Studies)
Elena Levitt is from Minneapolis, MN. She graduated from the American Jewish University with an MA in Jewish Education, and she also has degrees in Journalism and Political Science. Elena has taught at Heilicher Minneapolis Jewish Day School for eighteen years. This is her fourth year on the Yahadut staff at camp, but she also helped out in the kitchen in the summer of 2021!  Elena’s daughters are also excited to be back at camp again.

Jessica Levitt Engagement Associate
Jess graduated from the Ohio State University in December 2023 with a degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering. Jess has been spending her summers at Camp Ramah since 2011, and spent two summers rosh eidah, and joined the year round team in 2024.

Lindi Lewish Nurse Practitioner
Lyndi is a Nurse Practitioner from Chicago. She graduated in 2022 with her MSN from Vanderbilt University and has been working as a nurse practitioner in the emergency department since 2023; after a 5 year career as an RN. This is Lyndi’s first summer to work at Ramah, however spent many summers at summer camps in Texas as both a camper and staffer.

Yuval Ezra Liberkheyn Mishlachat – Agam (Waterfront)
Yuval is 21 from Holon. She played all kinds of sports most of her life, mainly basketball. She majored in sports science in high school. Yuval spent her time in the army mostly in the communications and Cyber Corps at the southern command. After completinghery military service, she worked as an assistant to a contractor for infrastructure development work and now is serving in the army reserves until camp.

Meira Lieberman Senior Counselor – Cabin
Meira Lieberman is an incoming sophomore at Tulane University in New Orleans. Meira grew up in the northern suburbs of Chicago now living in Deerfield IL and attended Rochelle Zell Jewish High School. At Tulane University, Meira is intending to major in psychology and cognitive studies with minors in political science and sociology. Meira has attended camp as a camper since she was 6 months old in Rishonim and this will be her second summer on staff.

Lorelai Lindon Junior Counselor – Agam (Waterfront)
Lorelai is a first year staff member after 9 years as a camper. She is from Deerfield Illinois and next year will be living in Israel on the gap year program Hevruta before study architecture at the University of Maryland. She is very excited for the summer!

Laeh Litin Operations & Travel Associate
Laeh is a veteran staff member who has worked in numerous areas of camp over the years.  Aside from her 47 years at camp (6 as a camper), Laeh has lived in Chicago her entire life. She earned degrees in Dietetics, Sociology, and Athletic Training from UIC. After 25 years at Gordon Tech High School, she moved to her current job at Rochelle Zell Jewish High School in the fall of 2019 as the Athletic Trainer, and is now also the Head Track Coach and Assistant Cross Country Coach.  In her spare time, she plays hockey, bowls, and is the Daily Minyan Torah reader at Mah Tovu (aka Ner Tamid Egalitarian Minyan) in Chicago.

Jason Litwack Kitchen Staff
Originally from St. Louis, Missouri, Jason has been a part of the Camp Ramah in Wisconsin community since 1992, including numerous summers as a camper and counselor as well as several summers working in the kitchen. Jason currently lives in Chicago, Illinois with his wife (Nivo ’97) and three children. Jason is a member of the Camp Ramah Board of Directors.

Sarahi Lopez Waldo Support Staff – Housekeeping
Sarahi joins us from Mexico for her second year on staff. She is currently studying business administration at BUAP and will graduate this year.

Elena Macias Huerta Support Staff – Kitchen
Maty was born in Mexico and is a psychology student who loves reading and painting. Last year, she went to Camp Starlight in Pennsylvania, fell in love with the scenery, and was delighted with her new friends. She loves traveling around her country and learning new stories.

Abby Maeir Volunteer
Abby returns to camp for her 11th summer, where she spent four years as Rosh Omanut (2018-2021) and six years as Artist-in-Residence. Abby created camp’s inaugural Fused Glass program in 2014 and helped design the new Mercaz Tarbut. Abby also works at Ramah Day Camp, Ramah Darom and Ramah New England. A graduate of Penn State, Abby is a Chicago-based artist and a Creative at Apple, where she also serves at a Volunteer Champion.

Noa Maeir Senior Counselor – Cabin
Noa is so excited to be at camp for her fourth year on staff and twelfth year in total! From Deerfield, Illinois, she is a student at the University of Vermont, studying nursing.

Oriya Isca Maimon Mishlachat – Atzmayim
Oriya is 22 years old and lives in Efrat, Israel. She is a graduate of Ulpanat Neve Hanna and the Meitarim-Lachish pre-military academy. During her army service, she served as a commander working with unique populations, including soldiers on the autism spectrum and youth with emotional and psychological challenges. Today, she works as a special education teacher at an elementary school. Oriya brings with her a deep passion for inclusive education and meaningful connection with every student.

Mark Mangold International Staff – Kitchen
Mark`s first summer ten years ago started as a brief summer work and travel program but turned into years long fun at camp since then. In Hungary he works for Camp Leaders making thousands of Hungarians` dreams to visit the United States come true.

Hector Marmolejo Lizama International Staff – Kitchen
From Mexico, this is the third year being part of Camp Ramah as kitchen staff. Currently studying a major in architecture in Mexico and happy to be part and have this experience for one more year

Roni Martinez Mishlachat – Agam (Waterfront)
Roni is 20 years old from Netanya, where she studied at the Yad Leibovitz High School, majoring in sports. This is her first year as a summer camp “Shaliach”.

Ezra Matthews-Needelman Senior Counselor – Cabin
Ezra Matthews-Needelman is happily returning for his second year on staff this summer. He is from Madison, and studies at the University of Wisconsin in Madison. He spent time at Madison East High and Blackhawk Middle school tutoring in a wide range of subjects. Ezra is hyped to be back!

Dr. Rachel McDowell Doctor  
Rachel is from Riverwoods, IL. She attended Columbia University (BA), Ben Gurion University (MD), and had a residency in Emergency Medicine at University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences. She spent 6 years as a camper at Ramah WI, then 3 on staff prior to medical school.  She has now lost count of how many years she has spent at Ramah. A mother of 6 former and current Ramah campers, Rachel currently works as an emergency physician at Advocate Condell Medical Center in Libertyville, IL and as a telemedicine quality director.

Abby Mehr Rosh Chalutzim
Abby Mehr graduated from Ohio State this past May with a degree in Science Education and a physics specialization. After camp, she will spend 10 months in Bat Yam on the Masa Israel Teaching Fellows program before teaching high school physics in the Chicago area. This is Abby’s thirteenth summer at camp, her fifth summer on staff, and her first summer as a rosh eidah.

Molly Mehr Senior Counselor – Drama
This is Molly’s 11th summer at camp, and second year on staff. She is so excited to be on tzevet drama again this summer! She is currently studying special education at The Ohio State University.

Ofri Mehudar Mishlachat – Shiluv (Inclusion Specialist)
Ofri Lives in Jerusalem, where he studied at the Hebrew Gymnasium High School, majoring in Biology and diplomacy and international communications major. He studied English and mathematics at an advanced level. He worked part-time during my summer vacation from school every year. Ofri served as an air defense warrior in the Iron Dome weapon system. After his military service, he trained teenagers in a pre-military preparatory school, and now he works in the security department of a luxury hotel in Jerusalem.

Hannah Melman Ruach Ramah Counselor
Hannah is from Northbrook, IL and currently attends Rochelle Zell High School and in the fall will start her senior year there. She has spent 12 summers at camp but this is just her first year on staff.

Jordan Melman Senior Counselor – Shiluv
Jordan Melman is from Northbrook, Illinois. He is entering his Junior year at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, where he is majoring in Social Work. This is his 14th year at camp Ramah.

Brithany Mendoza Barboza Support Staff- Kitchen

Abby Merkel Head of Housekeeping
Abby is from Eagle River, Wisconsin and is joining us for her 13th summer working at Camp Ramah.

Michael Merkel Facilities
Mike is a longtime member of the Camp Ramah in Wisconsin facilities team. For over 20 years, he has worked in the construction business doing general contracting work in the Eagle River area.

Tom Merkel Facilities Director
Tom supervises the year-round maintenance staff at camp and has been part of the team for over 20 years. He has worked in the construction business for over 20 years as a general contractor in the Eagle River area.

Nava Miller Mishlachat – Cabin
Nava miller is from Jerusalem Israel. She works in special education. And is very excited for her first year at camp ramah!

Leehe Milligan Rosh Omanuyot (Arts)
Leehe lives in Northbrook with her husband, Sam and her two children, Noah and Maya.  She attended List College and graduated with a double degree in Visual Arts and Art History, and a degree in Bible Studies. She also holds a Masters Degree in Art Therapy from the School of Visual Arts. Leehe has spent years in the Jewish educational world, both in formal and informal settings and is passionate about experiential ed, art, Israel ed, and helping others engage with the always changing modern classroom. She first came to camp in 1999 as a staff member and it has felt like home ever since.

Lionel Amit Mitelpunkt- Yoetzet Tichnun (Camper Care Team Programming)
Lionel Amit Mitelpunkt (originally from Herzliya, now based in Jaffa) is a community builder, spiritual caregiver, and creative trainer. He studied film, communication & wducation at Seminar HaKibbutzim, and is currently completing his chaplaincy studies with Kashuvot at Ichilov Medical Center in Tel Aviv. Since his first summer at Camp Sprout Lake in 2009, Lionel has worked globally—from JAFI’s Zionist Seminars in Australia to leading 248: The Community Action Network for Partnership2Gether. Today, he co-leads Hormesis, a neighborhood wellness space, and Youngivers, a support network for young caregivers. His latest project, Lionel’s Creative Gym, helps people grow through creativity, AI, and spiritual insight—blending heart, tech, and transformation in everything he does.

Ezera Mojja Outdoor Education
Ezera is from the Abayudaya Jewish community in Uganda. He has been at Camp Ramah in Wisconsin for three consecutive unforgettable summers, starting in 2023. During his time at camp, he has led outdoor education activities, including biking, ropes courses, and overnight camping trips. Camp Ramah has become a second home to Ezera – a place where he has formed lasting connections and created cherished memories. He is deeply passionate about the camp experience and feels grateful to have been a part of the Ramah community.

Hannia Monroy International Staff – Housekeeping
Hannia is currently studying psychology at her state university, Benemérita Universidad Autónoma de Puebla (BUAP). This will be her third summer on staff.

Ori Mor Mishlachat – Sport

Michal Morad Gandi Senior Counselor – Mitbachon (Teaching Kitchen)
Michal lives in Rishon Lezion, Israel. She served in the army for nearly five years, leading a team of programmers and serving as a programming course commander. This is her second summer at camp, and she is looking forward to another exciting summer!

Daniela Moran Cumbalaza International Staff – Rishonim (Pre-Camper Program)
Daniela joins us from Colombia for her second summer as a camp counselor at Camp Ramah in Wisconsin.

Joecelyn Munoz Cortes- Support Staff
Jocelyn is a Mexican English teacher who studied her bachelor’s degree at the Benemerita Univerdad Autónoma de Puebla. She currently works with children ages 3-6 years old.

Leah Nash Rosh Yahadut (Jewish Studies)
Originally from Israel, Leah Nash studied at the School of Education at Seminar Hakibbutzim, where she earned her degree in education. She has been teaching Hebrew and Jewish Studies at HBHA for 20 years and is deeply passionate about her work. With a love for both language and tradition, she brings warmth and dedication to her students every day. Her camp experience adds a joyful and meaningful layer to her connection with the community.

Maayan Nesher Michlachat – Chinuch Bashetach (Outdoor Education)

Maayan Nesher is 22 years old, from a city called Hod Hasharon. In the army she was the IDF spokesperson in the Gaza Division. She hasn’t been in the camp yet, this is her first year and she is looking forward to it.

Sydney Newman Rosh Ruach Ramah & Shiluv (Inclusion Specialist)
Sydney Newman is from Arlington Heights,IL. She graduated from the University of Illinois in May 2025 with a degree in Special Education. She will working as Special Education Teacher in Deerfield,IL. Sydney was a camper for 8 summers and this will be here 5th year on staff as Rosh Ruach Ramah A and an Inclusion Specialist.

Karen Nochimowski Mitbachon (Teaching Kitchen)
Karen Nochimowski is the founder of the popular cooking blog, MommaChef.com, and the author of the cookbook 6-Minute Dinners (& More!). Mrs. Nochimowski also started and runs Momma Chef’s Soup Kitchen and Momma Chef’s Little Free Pantries in Chicago, which provide food at no cost to those in need. Her work and recipes have been featured on Live with Kelly and Ryan, WGN, FOX, NBC, CBS and ABC as well as in dozens of publications, including HuffPost, Working Mother, Costco Connection, TODAY Parents, Chicago Tribune, among others. She is the monthly food columnist for The Daily Herald.

Avi Okner Junior Counselor – Agam (Waterfront)
Avi Okner is from Skokie Illinois. He attended Ida Crown Jewish Academy for High school.  Avi was a camper at Ramah Wisconsin for seven years.

Dr. Sarah Olitzky Yoetzet (Camper Care Team)
This will be Sarah’s 4th summer as a Yoetzet and she LOVES supporting staff learning and campers! Sarah has a PhD in School Psychology and is a licensed clinical psychologist and nationally certified school psychologist. She founded and directs  Pediatric Psych Services- a company providing outpatient mental health services to children and special education evaluation and consultation to local schools.

Dr. Daniel Olson Yoetz Tichnun (Camper Care Team Programming)
Dr. Daniel Olson is the Assistant National Director at the National Ramah Commission. He leads year-round professional development opportunities for Ramah’s year-round and seasonal staff. He has also conducted research on key issues within the Ramah Camping Movement.

Fanni Omray International Staff – Pre-Camper Program
Fanni is a Hungarian girl who’s studying tourism at the University of Pécs. She’s outgoing, sociable and a fun person to be around. She’s looking forward to getting back to the US for her second summer at camp.

Jose Ortiz Flores International Staff – Kitchen
Alberto is from Aguascalientes, Mexico and he is studying at university. This is his second summer at camp. He loves sports, especially soccer and baseball.

Shalom Orzach Scholar-in-Residence
Shalom is a senior educator with The iCenter, and serves on faculty for the Foundation for Jewish Camp. Prior, he served as the AVI CHAI Project Director for the training of staff returning to summer camps in North America, and Director of Education in the Shlichut and Israel Fellows unit for the Jewish Agency. He is a member of the International Education Committee of Taglit-Birthright, has served as a consultant for the Jim Joseph Foundation, JUF Ta’am Yisrael and the Jewish Peoplehood Committee and teaches a course in experiential education at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem. Shalom was the Central Shaliach for USY from 1992 -1995. He was also a scholar on the prestigious Jerusalem Fellows Program, following which he was the Executive Director for Jewish Renewal at the UJIA in England. Shalom is an acclaimed public speaker on contemporary Israel who brings extensive knowledge, humor and passion.

Shira Pellegrino Senior Counselor – Waterfront
Shira is from Overland Park, Kansas. She is currently an Industrial Design major at the University of Kansas and works as a Graphic Designer for KU Athletics. She spent 5 summers at Ramah as a camper and attended Poland/Israel Seminar. This will be her 3rd summer on Agam staff.

Ethan Penn Marp (Nurse) Aide
Ethan graduated from WashU with a statistics degree. Its Ethan’s 11th summer at camp. Ethan is working in medical research next year and applying to med school. Ethan interviewed musicians and comedians for the WashU newspaper.

Joe Pennington Food Service Director
Joe joins us from Louisville, Kentucky for his 15th year on staff. He received a BA in English at the University of Louisville and studied culinary arts at Sullivan University. Joe and his wife Christina have three children.

Anita Phelps Welcome Center
Anita Phelps has been on staff for 13 seasons, most of which have been in our Welcome Center.  She lives in Eagle River with her husband, Don, and has four adult children, three of whom worked at camp for several years. During the off-season, Anita is a paraprofessional for the Three Lakes School District and enjoys her hobbies of crocheting, quilting, and reading.

Don Phelps Office Staff
Don lives is a retired teacher. He and his wife live in Eagle River. This is his 25th summer. He enjoys going on adventures with his seven grandkids and fishing.

David Pickard Junior Counselor – Tech
David Pickard is from Glencoe Illinois, he attended Rochelle Zell Jewish High school. He wild attend American University and major in history. It will be his 8th summer at camp. 7 summers as a camper, 1st as a staff member. He has worked at Grand Foods grocery store, Hometown Coffee and Juice and Shaevitz BBQ. He is currently employed at Shaevitz BBQ.

Nina Pickus Junior Counselor- Cabin
Nina Pickus graduated from Northside College Prep class of 2025. In the fall she will be attending the University of Maryland College Park and plans to major in Political Science. She attend Ramah Wisconsin for the last 9 summers, including Ramah Seminar, and will be a Junior Counselor this summer.

Max Pivo Yoetz Tichnun (Camper Care Team Programming)
Max has lived all over the east coast and in Chicago. He got his BA from Dartmouth and his MA from Harvard. These days he works at The iCenter for Israel Education in Northbrook, IL.

Dina Plofsky Shiluv (Inclusion Specialist)
Dina grew up in Deerfield, IL, and currently lives in Old Town, Chicago. She spent her summers at Camp Ramah in Wisconsin since she was a toddler in Rishonim. Dina graduated from Indiana University Bloomington earning a Bachelors of Applied Health Sciences, majoring in Human Development and Family Studies with a certificate in Clinical Psychological Sciences. In Spring 2025, she officially graduated from her masters and specialist program at Loyola University Chicago, with a Masters in Educational Psychology and an Educational Specialist degree in School Psychology. Dina has worked as a camp counselor for one summer at Ramah Day Camp and one summer at Camp Ramah in Wisconsin. These past three years she has worked in public schools all around Chicago and surrounding suburbs with children ranging from early childhood to high school age. In her free time she loves to be outside and take photos of nature, spend time with friends, and hang out by Lake Michigan.

Matt Plofsky Doctor
Dr. Plofsky is a Family Physician based in the northern suburbs of Chicago.  He is a veteran Ramah Wisconsin camper, counselor, and doctor. Having doctored from 2005-2016, he is excited to be back after a 9 year Marp sabbatical.

Ayala Podhoretz Volunteer
Ayala Cohen was born in Chicago, raised in New York (Long Island) and raised her own children in New York City. Ayala attended Brandeis University and received a B.A. in American Studies with a minor in Near Eastern and Judaic Studies. She currently works as a Talent Manager, having previously worked as a talent agent and a producer at Saturday Night Live. Ayala was a camper at Ramah Wisconsin from 1981-1986, and she served on staff in 1988 and 1990.

Shayna Podhoretz Senior Counselor – Cabin
Shayna is baffled to realize that this will be her fourth summer on staff after four summers as a camper. She is from New York City but spends most of her time at Williams College, where she majors in history and Jewish studies and will graduate in 2026. She spent the spring of 2025 studying abroad in Prague (she’ll probably never shut up about it). She likes piña coladas and getting caught in the rain.

Jocelyn Ramirez Cruz International Staff – Housekeeping
This is Jocelyn’s second year at the camp and she is really excited about the new adventures she would have this summer. She is from Mexico city and she is studying Design and Visual Communication.

Sarah Rappaport Senior Counselor – Cabin
Sarah Is from St. Louis Park Minnesota and currently attends the University of Kansas as a Speech Language Hearing major. This is her second summer on staff after 8 summers as a camper.

Noa Reuveni Mishlachat – Agam
Noa is from Netanya, Israel. She has a full high school diploma and currently works as a swim coach and a waitress.

Alexander Rich Senior Counselor – Sport Staff
Alex is from Omaha, Nebraska. Next year he will be Attending Nebraska-Omaha for Aviation with a concentration in Professional Flight. This is going to be his 7th Summer at ramah and 2nd as a member of sports staff.

Zachary Rich Senior Counselor – Cabin
Zach Rich is from Omaha, NE where he grew up his whole life. For the last three years he played Junior Hockey in Raleigh North Carolina where he experienced the South. In the Fall, he will be attending Duquesne University where he will study business, likely marketing. He went to camp for 5 years as a camper and this is his second as a counselor.

Emily Rodgers International Staff – Rishonim (Pre-Camper Program)
Emily joins from Newcastle, UK for a 2nd summer as a Rishonim counsellor. In 2023, she graduated from University of Sunderland with a honours degree in childhood studies. She is currently working as an Early Years Educator at a daycare centre for 0-5 year olds. She is so excited to spend another summer in the beautiful Wisconsin Northwoods!

Omer Roi Mishlachat – Chinuch Bashetach
Omer Roi is 22 years old. She lives in the north of Israel, and it’s her second year as a staff member at camp Ramah in Wisconsin. Omer finished her army service after being a commander in January 24′, and since then she was drafted to reserves duty, worked in the camp, coffee shop, and currently works in a program for 12th graders from New York who came for two months to Israel. After this summer Omer will start her studies at the Hebrew University, majoring in law, philosophy and economics.

Levi Rose Atzmayim (Vocational Program) Counselor
Levi is from St. Louis, MO and recently graduated from WashU with a BS/MS in computer science. His first summer at camp was 2011. Next year he will be in Israel.

Ann Lesley Rosen Assistant Director of Communications & Development
Ann Lesley was a camper for two summers, participated in Ramah Israel Seminar in 1997, and is now in her 25th summer on staff. She joined the year-round staff team in 2010. She earned a BA in music and English from Lake Forest College and an MFA in creative writing and poetry from the University of Missouri in St. Louis. Originally from St. Louis, she and her husband Scott now live in Buffalo Grove, Illinois with their four children and two dogs.

Ilex Rosen Senior Counselor – Cabin
This is Ilex’s (ae/aer pronouns) second summer on staff here at Ramah Wisconsin! Ilex just finished aer first year of college at the Unviersity of Wisconsin – La Crosse, majoring in Theatre Arts with an emphasis in Stage Management and a minor in physics.

Scott Rosen Summer Operations Manager
This will be Scott’s 26th summer on staff after being a camper for two summers. Inside and outside of camp, Scott has dedicated his work to youth with special needs. He currently is a teacher at Rondout Elementary School north of Chicago.  Scott met his wife Ann Lesley when they were both in Nivonim and he proposed to her on the shore of Lake Buckatabon. 

Ella Rosenblum Mishlachat – Chunuch Bashetach
Meet Ella Rosenblum! This is her first year at camp, and she’s excited to be here. Ella comes from Giv’at Shmuel, Israel, where she lives with her three younger sisters. During her service, she was a combat soldier and a commander in the IDF. Ella loves spending time with friends, listening to music, and exploring new places. She’s looking forward to making new memories and sharing great experiences with everyone at camp!

Jonathan Ross Business Office Liaison
Jon Adam Ross (JAR) is originally from Memphis, TN and currently lives in NYC with his family where he runs the Inheritance Theater Project, an arts nonprofit that does bridge building work around the world. This is JAR’s 26th summer on staff at CRW after 5 summers as a camper and a summer on Ramah Israel Seminar. JAR holds a BFA in Acting from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts and his work with ITP is the subject of an Emmy winning PBS documentary.

Maayan Rotem Mishlachat – Atzmayim (Vocational Program)
Maayan is from Yokneam Illit. She was discharged from the army in January, and served in the Intelligence Corps in a drone unit. Currently, she is working. This year is her first time at the camp! She loves playing music, meeting new people, and exploring nature!

Shiraz Rothschild Junior Counselor – Cabin
Shiraz Rothschild is from Phoenix, Arizona. She has been at camp for the past seven summers and looks forward to coming back as a counselor. After camp she will embark on a gap year in Israel before attending college at Stanford University.

Dr. Ari Rubenfeld Doctor
Ari doctors in Chicago as an Otolaryngologist at the University of Illinois at Chicago. He makes world class gravlax and smoked sable. He is fourth in the family pecking order of his wife Kimberly, daughter Aviva (seminar) and daughter Lilah (shoafim) – all quite worthy of their higher positions.

Robin Rubenstein Family Engagement Director
Robin is originally from suburban Chicago. She graduated from the Joint Program of the Jewish Theological Seminary and Columbia University in 1996 with degrees in Talmud and political science. Robin currently lives in West Bloomfield, Michigan with her husband Steven and their children, Ari (Nivonim 2017) and Tali (Nivonim 2020).

Tifara Sacher Mishlachat- Cabin
Tifara Sacher is 22 and lives in Moreshet, Israel. She just finished her army service. In the past years she worked as a gymnastics instructor and was a counselor in Bnei Akiva.

German Sanchez Manzano International Staff – Kitchen
German is from Puebla, Mexico. He is currently studying clinical nutrition at the Benemerita Universidad Autonoma de Puebla. He will be working as a kitchen staff member this summer. This is his second consecutive year as a kitchen staff member.

Beckett Sas Counselor – Cabin
Beckett Sas was born in San Francisco and grew up in Berkeley California. He has been a happy camper here since his Garinim summer and this is his first summer on staff.

He has worked as a lifeguard and swim trainer, co-captain of the varsity swim team, and is an avid water polo player year-round. Next year he will start college at UCLA, intending to major in data theory/statistics.

Yair Sas Ruach Ramah Counselor

Nadav Savaya Rosh Chadar Aleph
Nadav was born and raised in Israel and first had his eyes opened to all the potential of Judaism and learning from and with Diaspora Jewry when he attended a summer camp in Arizona as a shaliach, fresh out of his military service. He has since been a shaliach on campus at Stanford University, and a Senior shaliach in New York. Nadav currently works for the Jewish Agency, directing a project that brings gap year students and their Israeli counterparts together. He is married to Rachel and they have three girls.

Rachel Savaya Yoetzet Tichnun (Camper Care Team Programming)
Rachel Smith-Savaya’s experience as an educator (madricha, teacher, tour guide, shlicha) spans three decades and five continents. She is currently the Director of International Partnerships at Adam Teva V’DIn, Israel’s environmental watchdog. Rachel made aliya 20 years ago from London and currently lives in Ramat Hasharon with her husband and three girls – all of whom are super excited to be returning to Ramah Wisconsin.

Lior Sayag Mishlachat – Cabin
Lior joins us from Israel for his first summer on staff.

Alaine Saylor – Physician Assistant
Alaine Saylor is originally from Ohio. She did her undergraduate in Medical Laboratory Science at The Ohio State University and got her masters in Physician Assistant Studies at Kettering College. Since becoming a PA, she has worked in the emergency department for the past 10 years. She is currently employed at Condell ER. This will be her first year at Camp Ramah.

Ilan Schein Ruach Ramah Counselor
Ilan is from St. Louis Park, Minnesota. Ilan has attended camp for 8 years and this is his first summer on staff. Ilan is planning on going on Ramah Seminar this Summer. Ilan’s favorite part of camp is Yom Sport (which he won as a captain), Mishmar and Shabbat. He can’t wait to meet all his campers.

Randy Schelper Facilities
Randy has spent over 40 seasons on staff. In his year-round work for camp, Randy specializes in building and maintenance projects. Randy is from Conover, Wisconsin.

Sylvia Schmitz Junior Counselor – Drama
This is Sylvie’s first year on staff after 9 years as a camper. She plans to study elementary education this Fall and hopes to become a teacher in the future. She studied abroad Fall of 2024 on the Alexander Muss High School in Israel program after spending her summer on Ramah seminar and loved every minute of her 6 months in Israel. She is very excited to continue her camp experience on drama staff and cannot wait to be a counselor!

Micah Schoenberger Junior Counselor – Cabin
Micah Schoenberger is from Minneapolis, Minnesota. He has been a camper at Ramah since Ruach and was part of Nivo ’23. This will be his ninth summer at camp and his first on staff. Next year, he will study at Yeshivat Maaleh Gilboa in Israel, followed by service in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) as a Lone Soldier. In his spare time, Micah enjoys playing Golf, Piano, and baking Challah.

Carl Schrag Israel Educator-in-Residence
Carl is a senior educator at The iCenter for Israel Education, and he teaches about Israel and Jewish affairs in many settings. He and his wife, Lilach, met in Israel and live in Highland Park, IL. During his first career in journalism, Carl served as the editor of The Jerusalem Post. He continues to bring an obsession with current events to all that he does. 

Lilach Schrag Artist-in-Residence
An exhibiting artist with a teaching degree from Hamidrasha Art School in Israel and a MAJPS from Spertus institute in Chicago, Lilach has a special passion for leading collaborative art installations. For ten years she was Rosh Omanut at Ramah Day Camp, and currently teaches Art at RZJHS in Deerfield, Illinois.

Ari Schwab Ruach Ramah Counselor
From Deerfield, Illinois, this is Ari’s eighth year at Ramah Wisconsin and second year on staff. He will be attending West Point.

Erica Schwab Shiluv Yoetzet (Camper Care Team)
Erica Schwab earned her M.Ed. in special education and behavior analysis from Rutgers University. Erica has worked with our Tikvah and Atzmayim programs for many summers and was previously on staff at Ramah in the Poconos for six summers. Erica is currently a behavior consultant and early childhood educator. Originally from Philadelphia, Erica lives with her husband and four children in Highland Park, Illinois.

Eden Scwartz- Mishlachat – Noam Counselor
Eden grew up in Tel Aviv. She’s coming to camp for the first time as the madricha for the Israeli Noam group. She recently completed her army service in the Casualties Unit.

Moki Schwartz Yoetz (Camper Care Team)
Moki grew up in an English-speaking home in Israel. They hold a double B.A. in Archaeology and History, as well as an M.A. in Philosophy, all from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. A proud graduate of an elite commando IDF unit, they served in the reserves. Their love of working with young people began at summer camps – first at Ramah Nyack in 2000 and 2001, and later at Camp Nesher (NJY Camps) in 2006 and 2007. For 15 years, Moki worked as an independent tour guide across Israel. For the past six years, they’ve been a full-time educator and faculty member at the Kivunim gap year program, where they continue to combine a passion for learning, teaching, and mentoring. Moki is happily married to Rahel and loves being a dad. Outside of work, they are a semi-professional long-distance runner and teach Torah reading to B’nai Mitzvah students.

Anya Schwartzberg Counselor – Mercaz Supplies
Anya Schwartzberg is from Minnesota, and is currently a Sophomore at Southern Illinois University Carbondale. She is studying to get a degree in Therapeutic Recreation with a minor in Psychology. She is super excited to be a first time counselor.

Margalit Segal Enrollment and Operations Manager
Margalit received a bachelor’s degree from Brandeis. She has worked as an investment analyst, as well as a legal and executive recruiter. Margalit and her husband have three children, all of whom attend Ramah Wisconsin.

Tal Segev Mishlachat – Nagarut (Woodworking)
Tal was born and raised in Ramat Hasharon, Israel. An officer in reserves in the IDF armoured corps.

Roy Shalev Mishlachat – Chinuch Bashetach
This is Roy’s first year as a staff member in Camp Ramah Wisconsin. He enjoys climbing and soccer, and studied computer science.

Avi Shapira Rosh Shoafim
Avi Shapira recently graduated from the University of Michigan where he studied cognitive science and Judaic studies. Next year he is looking forward to moving back home to Evanston and living with his goldendoodle Jonny. This will be Avi’s 13th summer at Camp Ramah and 5th summer on staff.

Jesse Shapira Senior Counselor – Cabin
Jesse Shapira is from Evanston, Illinois. He spent 9 summers as a camper and is now in his second summer on staff. He spent the past year on the Young Judaea Gap Year program in Israel. Next year he will begin his studies at the business school at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Tamar Shapira Office Staff
Tamar Shapira earned a Bachelor of Arts in Jewish History from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Graphic Design from Columbia College Chicago. She also spent her junior year at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Prior to teaching art at Chicago Jewish Day School, she worked as a graphic designer in Chicago. In her spare time Tamar enjoys art projects, yoga, cooking, baking and long walks with her dog. She has three children: Avi (age 22), Jesse (age 19) and Eliana (age 16).

Jacob Shapiro Rosh Nagarut (Woodworking)
Jacob is looking forward to his 21st summer at camp. Jacob graduated from Princeton University with a BA in architecture and is the owner of Vero Design + Build in Chicago. Jacob was a rishonimer and chanich for many years, spent two summers on tzevet and has been coming back as an artist in residence since 2017. Jacob is excited for his first summer as Rosh Nagarut

Gabriel Shapps Senior Counselor – Cabin
Gabriel Shapps is from Chicago, Illinois, and is currently a 20-year-old Junior at the University of Denver, where he is double majoring in History and Art History with plans to attend law school. He is actively involved on campus as the President of Chabad and Vice President of Student Supporting Israel. A proud graduate of Beacon Academy High School(2021), Gabriel has been part of Camp Ramah for 13 years, and this is his third year serving as a staff member.

Ethan Sharp Rosh Nivonim
Ethan is coming back on staff for his fifth summer at Ramah Wisconsin. He is originally from La Crescenta, California, and had spent many summers as a camper and counselor at Ramah California. He graduated from University of Wisconsin – Madison in 2023, and works as a math teacher at La Follette High School in Madison, WI.

Anat Shinar- Shavua Bogrim Workshop Leader – Rikud (Dance)
Anat Shinar (hear it) is a Twin Cities-based dancer, choreographer, contemporary multidisciplinary performance artist, educator, curator, and Artistic Director of Young Dance. She graduated from the University of Minnesota with a BFA in Dance and a BA in Visual Arts, and completed her Master’s degree in Arts and Cultural Leadership, also at UMN. As an educator, Anat blends an appetite for physical challenge with a love of individual expression. She meets dancers where they are, leading them through a journey to discover more about themselves and empowering them to be active contributors in a collaborative class environment.

Dina Shiner Yoetzet (Camper Care Team)
Dina lives in Deerfield, IL and is the proud mother of Ari (Nivo ’18), Zachary (Nivo ’20) and Nathan Rosen. She has worked as a school social worker since 1989. She recently started a part time private practice and will be retiring from her school job in 2 years. Dina was a camper at Ramah for 3 years (Nivo ’82) and also attended seminar. She has worked as a yoetzet for over 10 years and is happy to be back for 2 weeks this summer.

Gil Shouval Mishlachat – Chinuch Bashetach
Gil Shouval is from Rehovot, Israel. He majored in physics and chemistry in high school. He finished mandatory military service in Israel in December 2024, and is in the reserves in the military until April 2025. He loves hiking, traveling, sports and friends.

Yahav Rachel Shuster Mishlachat – Sgan Rosh Chinuch Bashetach
Yahav lives in Shoham, Israel. She is engaged in informal education and recently finished instructing in a pre-military leadership academy. She has experience and contact with the Diaspora Jewish communities and is excited for camp!

Lines Sidgiaev Mishlachat – Cabin
Lines Sidgiaev is 21 years old and from Israel, living in a city called Netanya. She was discharged 4 months ago from the Israel Defense Forces after serving for 2 years and 8 months in the Israeli Air Force. Lines has been playing drums for 14 years, enjoys paddleboarding, and loves working out. Currently, she works at a high school, teaching and mentoring students both professionally and personally in various subjects. In the past, she was also part of several youth movements, ‘Hanoar Haoved’ and ‘Madazim’.

Meira Silverstein Musical Director-in-Residence  
Meira Silverstein is a professional violinist who performs regularly with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra and Minnesota Orchestra. A graduate of Yale (MM ’04) and Mannes College of Music (BM ’01), she counts as one of her more formative experiences her gap year in Israel (’01-’02) where she split her time between studies at the Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem and lessons with Chaim Taub, former Concertmaster of the Israel Philharmonic in Tel-Aviv. This will be her tenth year on staff. Her two children, Dani and Adinah, consider Ramah Wisconsin their summer home and plan to continue yearly for the rest of their lives.

Rita Simon International Staff – Kitchen
Rita is from Hungary and usually works in retail while at home. Her first year on staff was in 2016.

Heidi Simons Yoetzet (Camper Care Team)
Heidi Simons is thrilled to be returning as a yoetzet for her fifth summer! Heidi was a longtime Ramah Wisconsin camper, and has held many jobs around camp: drama staff, cabin counselor, rosh aidah, trip planner, rosh Ruach Ramah, among others. When she’s not at Ramah, she is a fifth grade teacher in Lexington, Kentucky, and lives with her two children Adina (7) and Ezra (4) and husband Matt.

Galia Slonim-Levi Junior Counselor – Cabin
Galia is excited to return to Camp Ramah for her second summer on staff after two years as a camper. Galia lives in Skokie, Illinois and will be entering her freshman year at Brown University in the Fall.

Luz Sosa Xoxotla International Staff – Kitchen
Ame lives in Mexico, is about to finish her professional career, loves sharing moments, and creating memories. This is her second year on the team.

Samuel Speed International Staff – Rosh Rishonim (Pre-Camper Program)
Samuel is an actor, director and drama teacher with extensive training in his field. He completed his acting training at East 15 Acting School in London and later received a First-Class Honours bachelor’s degree in Community Theatre from the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire. With over 10+ years of experience, he has honed his skills as both a theatre director and acting coach, working with children of all ages. For the past five years, Samuel was living in Hong Kong working in the performing arts industry. He recently moved back to London with his Fiancé Ayal.

Phoebe Spinnell Senior Counselor – Cabin
Phoebe is from New Jersey and has spent a total of ten summers at camp, including three at Camp Ramah in Wisconsin. She grew up in the Ramah family, attending Ramah Canada, Ramah Nyack, and Ramah Seminar. This is her second year on staff as a counselor. In the Fall, she will be attending Lehigh University to study business.

Eva Spiro Junior Counselor – Cabin
Eva Spiro lives in Skokie, IL, a suburb of Chicago. She graduated from Niles North High School and plans to attend the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in the Fall. She plans to study psychology as her intended major. This will be her 9th summer at camp, and her first summer on staff.

Mandy Spiwak Nurse
Mandy is so excited to return to camp for her third summer as the camp nurse! She lives in Deerfield, Illinois with her husband, two daughters (both Ramah campers), and goldendoodle. While not at camp, she works for Endeavor Health. She is looking forward to a great summer!

Eliana Stein Junior Counselor – Cabin
Ellie Stein is from Chicago, Illinois. She is a current senior at Lincoln Park High School and will be graduating in the spring. She will be attending Reichman University (in Israel) in the Fall and is planning to major in government and sustainability. She has worked as a life guard at the local JCC during the years 2022-2024, along with President of her local BBYO chapter for the duration of a year total. Ellie is also in her second year of her internship with the organization JCUA (Jewish Council of Urban Affairs). She attended Ramah Wisconsin for 7 summers and seminar last summer.

Seth Stein Senior Counselor – Cabin
Seth is attending The Ohio State University. He is majoring in Sport Industry with an interest in sports law. Seth was a camper here at Ramah Wisconsin for eight summers and did Ramah Seminar. This will be his third summer on staff.

Shira Steinberg Head Baker
This is Shira’s second summer as Camp Baker. She lives in Omaha, NE with her two kids: Naama and Leor. In addition to teaching and educational consulting, Shira runs her own cake decorating business. She has been a camper, counselor, Rosh Aidah and education specialist at Camp Ramah in Wisconsin. Shira holds two Bachelors of Arts degrees from Columbia University and the Jewish Theological Seminary. She has a Master of Arts degree in education from Bank Street College of Education.

Dr. Daniel Stromberg Doctor
Daniel grew up in Dallas, Texas and went to college at Princeton University. He attended medical school at UCSF, and did General Pediatrics residency there as well. He then went to Texas Children’s Hospital for Pediatric Cardiology and Intensive Care training. He now works at UT Austin/Dell Medical School. He has worked in the MARP briefly for 2 summers. But his real claim to fame is being the father of Sophia, Allie, Sammi, and Camila (Braden too but he never went to Ramah)!

Ethan Sugar Senior Counselor – Cabin
Ethan is a senior counselor in his second summer as a counselor and eleventh summer overall. He is from Evanston, Illinois, and currently attends the University of Maryland, College Park and studies business management. Ethan is looking forward to his second summer on staff.

Jamie Sugar Junior Counselor – Cabin

Attila Sule International Staff – Kitchen
Attila joins us from Budapest, Hungary for his sixth summer on staff. He attends Károli Gáspár University where he is studying law.

Ariella Tabick Inclusion Specialist
Ariella is a special education teacher from New York. She earned an MA in Autism and Intellectual Disabilities from Teachers College, Columbia University, and has been teaching for 13 years. This is her second summer on staff.

Dr. Jeremy Tabick Mashigach Ruchani
Jeremy is excited to continue his Ramah journey as Mashgiah Ruhani this summer! Originally from London, he studied physics at university, before moving to New York City and completing his PhD in Talmud. He works for Hadar, a center for Jewish learning and community building. He would love to talk about helping you with infusions of Jewish content and meaningful tefillah!

Nadav Tadela Mishlachat – Shiluv (Inclusion Specialist)
Nadav is 23 years old from Yoqneam, Israel. He works in a medical factory and attended camp to be part of the Shiluv program. He wants to learn ecomony at the university.

Sharona Tarsis Mishlachat – Rikud (Dance)
Sharona lives in Kramiel, Israel. She has been a Ballet and Modern dancer since she was four years old. She just finished her three years in the army after doing a permanent service in the Air Force. There she worked with intelligence and navigation at a squadron. She is very excited to come to camp Ramah for her first time, especially to meet all the campers and dance with them!

Noah Tennenbaum Junior Counselor – Cabin
Noah is from Chicago, Illinois and is a graduate of Whitney Young High School and will be attending The University of Florida in the fall, majoring in economics. He is a trained musician and singer, a certified lifeguard, and has been attending Camp Ramah for over 10 years, including Ramah Seminar in 2024. He is excited to have a great summer!

Marco Tolama Solis International Staff – Kitchen
From the state of Puebla in Mexico, Marco joins us for his third summer on staff. He attends the Meritorious Autonomous University of Puebla where he is studying business administration. He is excited to be at camp to live with and learn from people from all over the world.

Mark Topal International Staff Liaison/Rosh Foam/Office Staff
Mark hails from Rockaway Beach, NY to join us for his sixth summer on staff. During the rest of the year, Mark works with kids and adults at the JCC in Harlem. Known as “Uncle Mark,” he even has his own superpower: he has the ability to make people smile within seconds.

Amitai Vales Rosh Anaf (Activity Head) – Drama
Amitai Vales is from Chicago, Illinois. He recently graduated from New York University with a BFA in Drama and a Minor in Hebrew and Judaic Studies. This is his 13th summer at camp and his fifth summer on staff.

Natan Vales Shavua Bogrim Workshop Leader
Natan is currently living in Deerfield, and a graduate of School of the Art institute of Chicago. He loves art, spirituality, and community. He was a camper at Ramah for seven summers, and this is his fifth year back on staff.

Jordan Vandersluis Rosh Eidah (Division Head) – Garinim
Jordan Vandersluis is from Dayton, Ohio and was at The Ohio State University where she majored in Speech and Hearing Sciences in hopes to become a speech language pathologist. Jordan was a camper at Ramah Wisconsin for eight years and this will be her fourth year on staff!

Yesica Vargas Noguera International Staff – Housekeeping
Yesica joins us from Colombia for her third summer as a staff member. She is currently studying Modern Languages at the Universidad del Cauca in Popayán.

Jose Daniel Vazquez Flores International Staff – Kitchen
Jose joins us from Mexico for his third summer on staff.

Atara Volk-Itzchaki Mishlachat – Rosh Tarbut Israel (Israel Education)

Daniel Warshawksy Yoetz (Camper Care Team)
Daniel Warshawsky is a Clinical Psychology doctoral student at the Chicago School of Professional Psychology. Before beginning his studies, he served as the Engagement Director for the Midwest regions of United Synagogue Youth (USY). He earned his MA in Clinical Psychology at the Chicago School and holds dual Bachelor of Arts degrees in Communications and Jewish Studies from Indiana University. Daniel is a lifelong Ramahnik — as a camper, counselor, and Rosh Eidah — and is excited to be returning to camp for his 16th summer at Camp Ramah in Wisconsin! He is passionate about LGBTQ+ issues and advocating for reducing the stigma associated with mental health conditions. He has received certifications in Youth and Adult Mental Health First Aid, Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training (ASIST), Suicide Prevention from the QPR Institute, and has facilitated support groups for teens around the country. He is thrilled to be returning to camp for his second summer as a member of the Camper Care team.

Rabbi Josh Warshawsky Mashigach Ruchani (Spiritual Advisor)
This is Rabbi Josh Warshawsky’s 24th summer at Camp Ramah in Wisconsin! He was ordained in 2019 at the Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies in Los Angeles and serves as the rabbi of Congregation Agudas Achim in Columbus, Ohio. He met his wife (former assistant director) Adina Allen at camp and they have two children, Jona and Ziv, who can’t wait to be campers!

Alex Waxman Rosh Machlakah – Agam (Waterfront)
Alex is from Atlanta, where he attended Georgia State University and majored in biology. Since earning his bachelors, Alex has had the opportunity to work as a full-time Red Cross instructor and aquatic coordinator for two universities. He attended Ramah Darom for eight summers as a camper and about six as a staff member.

Leora Weinberg Junior Counselor – Cabin
Leora Weinberg is from Skokie, IL and is excited to be returning to camp for her 13th summer. She will be attending Michigan State University in the fall, majoring in Hospitality Business.

Sam Weiner Rosh Atzmayim (Vocational Program)
Sam is ecstatic to be back at camp working with the Atzmayim program. Sam graduated from the University of Wisconsin – Madison with a B.S. in Communication Sciences and Disorders in 2019 and is returning to school to get his Masters in Social Work at the University of Illinois – Chicago. Sam is also an avid runner and finisher of several marathons. He is excited to be back to run many, many laps around the Garbage Trail.

Zachary Weiser Rosh Machlakah – Agam (Waterfront)
Zach is from Minnetonka, Minnesota and recently graduated from Lehigh University with a degree in bioengineering. Next August, he will start pursuing his PhD in biomedical engineering from Drexel University in Philadelphia. Zach is super excited about coming back to camp before starting this next phase in his life. This will be his third year on staff and his eighth summer at camp!

Meredith Weprin Rosh Atzmayim (Vocational Program)
Meredith was a camper at Ramah New England and was a staff member there for five summers. This is her eleventh summer on staff at Ramah Wisconsin. She attended Ramah Israel Seminar in 2000. She lives in Columbus, Ohio and earned her MA in speech-language pathology from New York University. She is in private practice as a pediatric speech-language pathologist.

Julianna Williams Nurse Practitioner

Em Wolff Senior Counselor – Omanut (Studio Arts)
Em is from Columbus, Ohio, born and raised. They plan on taking a gap year in Israel and then going to Columbus State and Ohio State University! They attended camp as a camper for four years and this is their first year as a staff member!

Ziv Yahav Mishlachat – Sports
Ziv is from Israel and currently works as a Security Operations Room Manager in a high-tech company. He is studying for his Private Pilot License and brings leadership and tech skills to everything he does. This is his third summer on staff, and he is always down for a good tennis match.

Gavri Yares Rosh Music
Gavri Yares is a musician and music educator who plays a variety of string instruments, including upright bass, guitar, and oud. Passionate about music from all genres, Gavri performs styles ranging from American fiddle tunes to Persian music, Cuban folk songs, and classical repertoire. He is a certified public school music teacher at Red Cedar Elementary in the East Lansing Public School District, where he teaches music to students from pre-K through fifth grade. Gavri also serves as the Jewish Educator and Musician-in-Residence at Michigan State University Hillel and the Hillel Campus Alliance of Michigan, leading Shabbat and High Holiday services and engaging college students in Jewish learning. He is thrilled to be returning to Camp Ramah in Wisconsin as Rosh Shirah/Muzika this kayitz!

Yoni Zacks Ruach Ramah Counselor
Yoni is from Plymouth, Minnesota and is excited to come back to camp as a Ruach Ramah Counselor after nine summers as a camper. In the fall, he plans on attending Northwestern University, where he will study journalism and political science.

Yuval Zahavi Mishlachat – Rosh Rikud (Dance)
Yuval is from Nahariya, Israel. She has been a modern dancer for the past 19 years and a dance teacher for the past six years. In the army she served in the Air Force and worked with intelligence and navigation. After her military service, she completed a dance instructor course at the Wingate Institute. This will be her third summer at camp and she is very excited to be back for the summer!

Ana Carmen Zaldivar Sanchez International Staff – Housekeeping
Carmen has worked as part of the housekeeping staff for the past two summers and is excited for her third.  She is from Mexico and is studying International Business. She really likes working as part of the housekeeping staff and has made many very good friends.

Diana Christina Zaldivar Sanchez International Staff – Housekeeping
Diana Cristina Zaldivar Sánchez is a student at the Instituto Tecnologico Superior de San Martín Texmelucan. She studies Computer Systems Engineering. She loves her career and is excited to learn something new every day. This is her first summer at camp and she is happy that Camp Ramah in Wisconsin gave her a chance. She is very excited to have the opportunity to meet new people and see new places.

Eduardo Zamora Castaneda International Staff – Photographer
This is Eduardo’s first summer at Camp Ramah in Wisconsin. He is 19 years old and  is studying architecture at the Universidad Iberoamericana Puebla, although he is from a smaller city called Tlaxcala in Mexico. He is excited to be a photographer this summer.

Guy Gad Zoaretz Mishlachat – Sports 
Guy is from Tel Aviv, Israel. He attended Alliance High School. Outside of camp, he is employed as a bartender. This is his first summer at camp.

Joana Zuber Junior Counselor – Cabin
Joanna Zuber just finished her first year at the University of Illinois Chicago. She’s majoring in biological sciences with a pre-med focus. She’s from the Chicago-land area and adores the city. While she never went to Camp Ramah as a camper, she’s excited to come back as a second year counsellor.