Veteran & Vital
In a typical summer, our staff consists of men and women ranging in age from 18 to retirement age. Our staff members are thought of as being in one of two groups: (i) young men who serve as lodge counselors, living in a lodge with several campers, and (ii) non-lodge staff, a group comprised of men and women who offer instructional expertise or some other contribution.
Our lodge counselors are the life-blood of our staff. They tend to be college students or recent college graduates. The influence of a lodge counselor upon his campers is powerful and overwhelmingly positive, and our lodge counselors understand the unique position they hold: mentor, friend, role model, surrogate parent, all in one.
Boys acquire new interests and aspire to better things when they live with counselors whom they admire and want to emulate. We look for counselors who inspire that admiration and emulation, and in many cases we need not look far. Most of our lodge counselors have grown up within our ranks, having spent several summers with us as campers. We invite them to be counselors if we have the requisite confidence in their judgment and their ability to lead.
Our counselors recognize that it is a privilege to live with and mentor other people’s children, and most of them choose to return to our staff for as many summers as they can manage.
Members of our non-lodge staff are a diverse group. Some live close by and commute to camp; others live on campus in staff housing. Some bring their expertise to a particular activity, such as the Ropes Course or the Woodshop; others provide support in the camp office, in the kitchen or in some other essential role. Some are educators or retired and have their summers available to work at camp; others are self-employed and carve-out their summers to dedicate themselves to the Kawanhee experience. It’s fair to say that all are essential cogs in the wheel that keeps Kawanhee rolling.
Our Staff
Mike Altmaier
Book: Anything about history
Band: Jackson Browne
Movie: Shawshank Redemption
Notable moment: Twice winning the championship of the televised quiz show, So You Think You Know Maine; proudest camp moment was being awarded the “Estabrook Staff Member of the Year” a few years ago; also receiving his 50-year paddle along with his brother at the 2015 Kawanhee reunion
Goofy moment: Every Saturday evening when he reads the camp log at the weekly campfire
Robert Altmaier (“B.A.”)
Book: The Bible; books about mountains and hiking
Band: Bob Dylan, John Prine, Neil Young
Movie: It’s a Wonderful Life
Notable moment: Being a father and grandfather, and his camp relationships and memories
Goofy moment: Learning to waterski as a camper
Paige Berry
Book: The Glass Castle
Band: Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers
Movie: The Green Mile
Notable moment: Raising her sons (Seth and Eric, Kawanhee alums) and witnessing their many achievements; seeing the growth of campers in archery
Goofy moment: Having to retrieve the archery targets from the baseball field after prank night
Mary Birch
Book: Mysteries generally
Band: Many
Movie: The Green Book
Notable moment: Herb Birch’s celebration for his 50th year as a Kawanheean; getting married at camp during a rest hour
Goofy moment: Mary cannot recall a single goofy moment!
Susan Cooke
Book: We Band of Angels
Band: Andy Williams
Movie: Pretty Woman
Notable moment: Completing 49 consecutive Polar Bear swims
Goofy moment: Step-dancing at Saturday evening campfire
Macy Davis
Book: Harry Potter, Little House on the Prairie; anything by John Green and Rainbow Rowell
Notable moment: Running Kawanhee history as an activity during the 2018 season; becoming a published poet in 2019
Goofy moment: Taking four first-year junior counselors to a water park on a field trip and being passed-off as their little sister (a ridiculous but fun time)
Rohan Doherty
College: Allegheny College (B.A. in Psychology); University of Pittsburgh (candidate for M.A. in Social Work)
Book: 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
Movie: V for Vendetta
Notable moment: Two summers ago Rohan coached Kawanhee’s all-star team against a rival camp on our home field. Kawanhee’s team fell behind early but came back dramatically to force a tie. As Kawanhee rallied, other campers and staff began to watch the game, supporting their friends and peers. Seeing that Kawanhee spirit, as well as the joy on the players’ faces, was one of Rohan’s proudest moments at camp.
Goofy moment: Upon arriving at camp one year Rohan was psyched to see and catch up with his friends. From his cabin he bounded toward them, forgetting along the way that the cabin’s door was in the way.
John Figueirinhas (“Jack”)
College: University of Colorado, Boulder (Mechanical Engineering)
Book: Brave New World, The Martian
Band: Kendrick Lamar
Movie: Dazed and Confused
Notable moment: Passing Junior Maine Guide and being surprised by the announcement at mealtime
Goofy moment: During a junior counselor field trip, buying a couple of oversized inflatable swans to float down the river on. After inflating the swans at a repair shop near Walmart, the group tied the swans to the top of their van and got some hilarious looks en route to the river with the music blaring.
William Fleming
Book: The Lathe of Heaven
Band: Mason Pace Band
Movie: Forrest Gump
Notable moment: Seeing new computer science courses he created being offered in his high school’s course catalog
Goofy moment: As a junior counselor, when he put on a gas mask, to the delight of the campers, to evade the stench of a senior counselor known for frequently passing gas in the cabin
Brandon Flora
College: Washington State University (International Business)
Book: Harry Potter
Band: Rolling Stones
Movie: The Secret Life of Walter Mitty
Notable moment: Winning “Climber of the Year” as a camper
Goofy moment: Putting on an epic performance at skit night back in 2010, Brandon’s only season as a Kawanhee camper
Mario Gracia
College: Universidad de Puerto Rico (Comparative Literature)
Book: Lone Wolf and Cub
Band: Henry Cole
Movie: Memorias del Subdesarrollo
Notable moment: The completion and celebration with campers of the first two-story tree house in the woods as part of “Project Hardwood” in 2013. They all knew they were leaving something special to everyone who came after.
Goofy moment: Generally playing or performing at campfires, the hobo band being high up there in the ranks of the silly and goofy.
Jayden Griffin
Book: The Walking Dead
Band: Khalid
Movie: Star Wars
Notable moment: The bonds of friendships that might last a lifetime and the opportunity and honor to have met so many that he can call his family
Goofy moment: Generally playing or performing at campfires, the hobo band being high up there in the ranks of the silly and goofy.
Bernice Hoisington
College: University of Vermont (B.S in Home Economics Education); Paul Smiths College (Forest Technician)
Book: Anything by Stephen Hawking, Jane Austen, J.R. Tolkien
Band: Steep Canyon Rangers
Notable moment: Her children and grandchildren
Sylvia Lutick
College: University of Southern Maine (Journalism)
Book: The Bible
Band: Yanni
Movie: The Lord of the Rings
Viva Maree
College: Hampshire College and Monterey Peninsula College (Communications and Massage Therapy)
Book: The Alchemist
Band: Jeff Lorber and J Dilla
Movie: A Knight’s Tale
Notable moment: Completing a giant earthen pizza oven in the mountains of Utuado, Puerto Rico with friends and family
Goofy moment: Freestyling around the fire…coming up with poetry on the spot!
Emily Lou McLean
College: University of Virginia (Nursing)
Daniel Mertus
Book: The Three-Body Problem, Watchman, Godel, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Braid
Band: J Cole, XXXTentacion, J.I.D.
Movie: The Dark Knight
Notable moment: His first summer, Daniel hated camp.; ruled by fear and social anxiety, he refused to participate. In spite of his intransigence, his counselors and teammates never stopped encouraging him to step outside his comfort zone and overcome his self-imposed obstacles. Their efforts paid off when Graham Marvin convinced Daniel to try to swim the lake. Overcoming his childish fear was liberating and is one of the proudest moments of Daniel’s life. He feels that camp’s uniquely supportive environment was unimaginably beneficial to him as a younger guy. Daniel now feels that he’s reached an age where he can contribute to this magical atmosphere.
Goofy moment: In 2018, it was Karaoke night and Badger cabin had to represent Nickleback. At no other place would Daniel get up on a stage with three of the people he cares about most in the world randomly wearing clothes found in the lost-and-found and sing Rockstar. None of them can sing, but they rocked that stage.
Grant Moravec
College: Cornell University (Policy Analysis and Management)
Book: To Rise Again at a Decent Hour
Band: Death Grips
Movie: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
Notable moment: Passing Junior Maine Guide; being told by one of his campers that he loved him; winning honorable mention at Harvard Model U.N.
Goofy moment: Engaging in an intense (unsanctioned) pirate battle with some of the junior counselors last year. There were lots of mutinies and ship-boarding.
Ashley Oakes
College: Manchester Metropolitan University (Politics)
Book: Gone, by Michael Grant; Maze Runner, by James Dashner
Band: The Lumineers, Noah and the Whale, Metallica, Rammstein
Movie: The Godfather
Notable moment: Setting up a sailing trip for Kawanhee’s first and second mates to set sail on a windjammer out of Camden, Maine
Goofy moment: Telling ghost stories to his campers around a campfire during an overnight trip
Luis Pol (“Quique”)
Book: The Great Gatsby
Band: Elvis Presley
Movie: The Godfather
Notable moment: When Luis helped a camper through his homesickness by offering encouraging words to engage with his lodgemates
Goofy moment: Having a blast with his lodge during an evening swim
Clyde Quillin
College: University of Nevada, Reno
Book: Life of Pi
Band: John Mayer
Movie: Pulp Fiction
Notable moment: This past winter, doing 42,500 vertical feet of mogul skiing for six hours non-stop with his father and realizing, at the end of it all, that he could push his limits much farther than he could have anticipated
Goofy moment: On a dare, taking a fully-clothed shower under a rain gutter at camp in order to make it into the camp video, only to find out that his scene was relegated to the “bloopers” part of the video
Robert Ray (“Robby”)
College: University of New Mexico (Applied Math and Philosophy)
Book: Science fiction generally
Notable moment: Teaching one of our youngest campers how to swim and seeing his face when he jumped off the high dive for the first time
Goofy moment: During test week for Life Guard Training staging a “drowning” for instructional purposes. When the drowning volunteer failed to show up, Robbie and another counselor both simultaneously decided to play the role of the victim, and the Life Guard Training candidate had to save them both
Enakai Robles-Hails (“Kai”)
College: Colorado State University (Business)
Book: Good Omens
Band: Louis the Child
Movie: Baby Driver
Notable moment: Making his way through the Range system at a very fast pace, as well as becoming an all-around better person from his experiences at camp.
Alec Russo
College: Southern Methodist University (Finance)
Book: Great Expectations
Band: Chance the Rapper
Movie: The Incredibles
Notable moment: Finding out at the awards ceremony that he had passed Junior Maine Guide, a program he spent a month preparing for
Goofy moment: With other junior counselors, spelling ‘PORTLAND SEA DOGS” on their chests and revealing their body art to the whole camp on the morning of the annual Sea Dogs game
Juan Samalot (“Juanki”)
College: University of Puerto Rico (Horticulture)
Book: The Prophet, Sand and Foam, Dune, Sherlock Holmes, V for Vendetta, Watchmen, James Bond
Band: Jazzy low-fi hip-hop
Movie: Sci-fi movies, Japanese animations, Disney and all fantasy
Notable moment: Organizing and leading a full Mt. Katahdin trip and persevering with courage across the Knife’s Edge. Participating in the winter walk to Bass Rock in record low temperatures
Goofy moment: To truly grasp the moment, one would have to sit down and have a long, sordid conversation with an old wise man only found in the shallow bays of Monhegan Island. To some he is a legend, to others just a fool. His name is Herbert and only he can tell the tale.
Konrad Sashin (“Mac”)
College: Emerson College (Sports Communication)
Book: Of Mice and Men, Catcher in the Rye, Hamlet
Band: Foo Fighters
Movie: The Spongebob Squarepants movie
Notable moment: Passing his rowboat and canoe test as a 9 year-old after successfully pulling himself from the water and back into his boat. This moment became the subject of Mac’s college application essay many years later, which stressed the importance of perseverance
Goofy moment: During skit night in 2012, when his cabin won the award for best skit for its depiction of Spanish shopping day
Gretchen Schmidt
College: Chatham University (English literature)
Book: Jane Eyre
Band: Max Richter
Movie: Remains of the Day
Notable moment: Raising three beautiful men
Ferdinand Schoedinger III (“Ferd”)
Band: Led Zeppelin
Movie: M*A*S*H
Notable moment: Teaching campers to ski and seeing their excitement; fixing the diving tower crib
William Sellers (“Billy”)
College: Virginia Tech (Biology)
Book: Game of Thrones
Band: Nirvana
Movie: Scott Pilgrim vs. the World
Notable moment: Winning High Point Winner for the first time after also earning his Junior Maine Guide designation
Goofy moment: During skit night a few years ago, playing a celery farmer with a Forrest Gump accent and Dwight Schrute’s wit
Zachary Sherman
College: Flagler College (Religion/Philosopy); Columbia Seminary (MDiv.)
Book: Moby Dick
Band: ColdPlay
Movie: The Natural
Notable moment: Taking y6outh groups all over the world and building Habitat for Humanity homes
Goofy moment: Doing skits as a Program Leader at Windy Gap
William St. John (“Pete”)
College: University of Massachusetts (Literacy)
Book: The Worm Ouroborous
Band: George Clinton
Movie: The Abominable Dr. Phibes
Notable moment: Breaking the record for the most successful Junior Maine Guide candidates (12 out of 13)
Goofy moment: Watching my star Junior Maine Guide pupil J.P. fell a large poplar tree onto my dog (he was fine – just a bit startled)
Susan Stewart
College: Mary Hitchcock/Dartmouth (Nursing)
Book: A Tale of Two Cities
Band: James Taylor
Movie: A Tale of Two Cities
Notable moment: Working in Africa for MERCY (Medical Emergency Care for Youth) during the Biafran War in 1969. The war had escalated with Nigeria, so there was an opportunity to airlift the children who could survive into the Ivory Coast, where they were set up in camps. The Biafrans were educated and well-trained, so when they were rescued by the Ivory Coast, they were able to survive and have a good life. It was Sue’s job to decide who could survive from the starvation. Sue eventually went on to spend vacations over 30 years as part of a surgical team doing surgery on children in developing countries, visiting 53 countries along the way.
Goofy moment: Step-dancing with Sue Cook during campfire. They thought it would be like the musical Stomp. Stomp it was not, but fun it was! Goofy was the right word for their performance.
Edwin Trayner (“Eddie”)
College: University of Massachusetts, Amherst (Animal Science)
Book: Cat in the Hat
Band: Red Hot Chili Peppers
Movie: Castaway
Notable moment: During Eddie’s many years as a camper one of Eddie’s favorite parts of camp was the overnight trips. After having an opportunity to work in the tripping department in 2018, Eddie got to experience this from the other end. Eddie led his first trip taking nine guys up Katahdin and was overjoyed to see that he could extend the same experience to them that he had the chance to enjoy many years before.
Goofy moment: When he first arrived at camp, Eddie always had fishing on his mind. One year, he arrived at camp and immediately headed over to the fishing dock with a friend. In a bout of excitement, Eddie leaned over the front of the dock and fell in the lake, fully clothed.
Camille Tulloss
College: Brown University
Book: Bel Canto by Ann Patchett
Band: Bruce Springsteen
Movie: The Prestige
Notable moment: Spontaneously deciding to go waterskiing after encouragement from campers and getting up on one ski for the first time
Goofy moment: Coming up with name suggestions for our baby chicks last summer
Rees Tulloss
College: Cornell University
Book: Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors
Band: Leonardo da Vinci
Movie: Sing Street
Notable moment: Watching my two kids enjoy and contribute to the amazing experience that is Camp Kawanhee
Goofy moment: Falling off of the Flying Scot while attempting to land at the mooring
Charles Welch (“Charlie”)
College: Harvard University (after gap year)
Book: A Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson
Band: Fleetwood Mac
Movie: Avengers: Endgame
Notable moment: Playing chess with Camden in Beaver Lodge last year and getting him to love chess
Goofy moment: Losing a lodge competition by failing to find Skittles in a mound of whipped cream
Drake Williams
College: University of Colorado, Boulder (Environmental Design)
Book: Shantaram
Band: Red Hot Chili Peppers
Movie: Batman: The Dark Knight Rises
Notable moment: Completing the Junior Maine Guide program
Goofy moment: Performing Summer Loving as a girl during skit night
Sandy Winkles
College: Western Michigan University (Special Education)
Book: Any book by Dan Brown; Atlas Shrugged
Band: Simon and Garfunkel
Movie: Sound of Music
Jamie Withrow
College: University of Maine at Fort Kent (Nursing)
Book: The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
Band: Wild Child
Movie: Too many to mention
Notable moment: Watching the campers slowly improve themselves every day at Kawanhee
Eli Yale
College: Santa Clara University (Computer Engineering)
Book: Godel, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid
Band: Credence Clearwater Revival
Movie: Forrest Gump
Notable moment: Passing Junior Maine Guide and getting the fastest wet-day fire time
Goofy moment: Standing up in the middle of the dining hall to sing a solo of Taylor Swift’s Love Story
James Bolon (Jamie)
Hometown: Columbus, Ohio
Years at camp: 15
Book: In the Heart of the Sea
Band: Red Hot Chili Peppers
Movie: Step-Brothers
Notable moment: Starting his own business
Goofy moment: Crushing his finger taking out the camp docks at the end of the season
Gordon Magne
Hometown: Delaware, Ohio
Years at camp: College: University of Colorado (Classics)
Book: The Sun Also Rises
Band: Any boy-band from the 1990s
Movie: 2 Fast 2 Furious
Notable moment: Winning skit night honors in back-to-back years. Boo-yah!
Goofy moment: Helping Rees Tulloss with anything at camp!
Gene P. Thomas
Hometown: Culebra, Puerto Rico
Years at camp: 0
Book: Maze Runner
Band: Bad Bunny
Movie: Ready Player One
Notable moment: The joy of playing baseball with his team-mates back home
Goofy moment: Getting into the cold lake water at camp!
John-Fritz Rullan (“Fritz”)
College: Naropa University (M.A. in Clinical Mental Health Counseling; Wilderness Therapy)
Kawanhee Resumé: Campcraft Counselor, Head of Junior Maine Guide Program, Trip Leader, Director of Leadership Training Program
Years at camp: 0
Nicholas Stanhope (“Nick”) – Lodge Counselor
College: University of Maine at Fort Kent (Nursing)
Book: Fahrenheit 451
Band: Juice Wrld, Logic, Aerosmith
Movie: Fight Club, Martian, Interstellar
Notable moment: Earning Eagle Scout
Years at camp: 9
Zachary Sherman (“Zach”) – Lodge Counselor
College: Cleveland Institute of Art (Art)
Book: Harry Potter
Band: Depeche Mode, Tame Impala
Movie: Monsters University, Coco, Transformers
Notable moment: His road trip with friends during the 2018 summer to Colorado, Texas, Nevada
Goofy moment: Likes to wear onesies
Years at camp: 7
Dionisio Colberg (“Dioni”) – Lodge Counselor
College: University of Puerto Rico (Marketing)
Book: Anything by Isabelle Allende
Band: Bob Marley and reggae music generally; Slightly Stoopid
Movie: Toy Story, Blues Brothers
Notable moment: Working in the tennis department in 2018
Goofy moment: Dioni has never had a goofy moment
Years at camp: 7
Hector Quinones – Lodge Counselor
College: Marquette University (Public Relations; Advertising & Sports Promotion)
Book: Game of Thrones, Hatchet, Alex Ryder series
Band: Raggae, old-school rap, classic rock
Movie: Tarzan
Notable moment: Head-of-lake swim; winning streak in Maroon-Grey competition
Goofy moment: Doing a belly-flop off the high dive
Years at camp: 2
Thomas Jones – Lodge Counselor
College: Miami of Ohio
Book: Time Machine
Band: John Legend
Movie: Star Wars
Notable moment: Captained the Columbus Academy varsity wrestling team
Goofy moment: Swimming in -22º Fahrenheit weather
Years at camp: 1
Michael Wallace – Kitchen Crew
School: Mt. Abram Regional High School (Class of 2021)
Book: Walk to Moons
Band: Hip-hop, rap, Juice Wrld
Movie: Forrest Gump, Stand by Me, Tumbledown
Notable moment: Served as snowboarding coach at Sugarloaf Mountain resort
Goofy moment: Spilling large container of ranch dressing on himself in Kawanhee kitchen
Years at camp: 1
Justin Stewart – Kitchen Crew
School: Mt. Blue High School (Class of 2019)
Book: Of Mice and Men
Band: Post Malone, NF
Movie: Avengers Endgame, Lone Survivor, Shawshank Redemption
Goofy moment: Pulled-over by police while driving in a driver’s ed vehicle
Years at camp: 0
John Brenner – Kitchen Crew
College: University of Massachusetts, Amherst
Book: The Hobbit
Band: Anything except New Country
Movie: Master and Commander, Far Side of World
Notable moment: Winning first-place honors in North America in the international Envirothon competition (aquatic ecology division)
Goofy moment: Losing his car keys at the bottom of a pond as a result of catching them with his fishing tackle while casting
Years at camp: 0
Dawson Tolman – Kitchen Crew
School: Mt. Blue High School (Class of 2020)
Book: Hatchet
Band: Hip-hop, rap, pop, Toby Keith
Movie: Nemo, Toy Story, Dog’s Purpose
Years at camp: 13
Bailey Scott – Camp baker
College: University of Maine, Farmington (Psychology)
Notable moment: Every moment at camp makes me proud. Kawanhee is such a great community to be a part of. Everyone at camp is like family, and it’s what keeps me coming back each year.
Years at camp: 2
Brittany Chapman – Kitchen Crew
School: Mt. Blue High School (Class of 2018)
Music: Country music generally
Movie: Lovely Bones
Goofy moment: Dropping all manner of things in the walk-in refrigerator
Years at camp: 1
Wyatt Lufkin – Kitchen crew
College: University of Maine, Orono (Computer Science)
Music: Country and hip-hop generally
Movie: Avatar
Notable moment: Graduating from Dirigo High School in 2019
Years at camp: 22
Sean Minear – Camp Chef
College: Cornell College (History, English, Medieval and Renaissance Studies)
Book: Herodotus
Music: Folk and classical music generally
Movie: Chariots of Fire
Notable moment: Coordinating the Town of Weld’s bicentennial celebration
Goofy moment: Inventing the “pork dance” on the fly in the Kawanhee kitchen to Tina Turner’s Rolling on the River