Meet Dani Trynoski!

I'm a self-proclaimed nerd who has a sneaky suspicion that I was a jousting medieval knight in a former life. Obsessed with horses and medieval history, I will be at Coppercreek Camp for the first time as a riding instructor this summer. I compete in 3-Day Eventing when I'm not reading about castles, Vikings, royal treasure or other interesting things.

I also like hiking, camping, singing and telling stories and I'm excited about the possibility of doing all of these things and more at camp this summer. I am a horrible terrible no-good very bad artist, so don't ask me to draw anything unless you like stick figures with bad proportions. I currently live in Las Cruces, New Mexico where I am the resident expert on shelving paperback novels in the local used bookstore.

I spend all of my spare time at Red Sky Farm riding young horses for Susie Whelpley. I look forward to meeting everyone!

Meet Erica Stichter!

Hey Everyone!

My name is Erica Stichter. I am really excited to finally get to work at Coppercreek, I have wanted to work at camp since I was a camper. I was a camper every year for about 8 years, from Billabong to FBI (Don't know if the names are still the same.)

Right now I am finishing up college at University Nevada Reno. I am majoring in Political Science and minoring in Renewable Energy. I plan on getting my masters in Social Work.

I love everything outdoors! I love backpacking, hiking, snowboarding, horseback riding, ect.... I dabble in a lot of other things and love learning and trying new activities. This summer I am looking forward to meeting everyone and making new friends with counselors and campers.

I grew up in Lake Tahoe so the mountains and outdoors have always been a big part of my life. I love meeting new people, even though I tend to be a little shy I make friends quickly and am always ready to have fun and come up with activities to have a good time. Hope to see and meet everyone soon and look forward to it! See you in June!

Meet Gabby Lichtig!

Hello All!

My name is Gabby and this is my second year working at Coppercreek Camp! I am very excited to get back to camp because camp is like a second home! This year I have studied abroad in New Zealand and I have had many adventures!

While I’ve been in New Zealand I have done A LOT of hiking and Kayaking! This country is so beautiful and so many amazing things to do outdoors. I love just hanging out in nature and I have found that hiking and finding new places to explore is some of my favorite things to do!

I am very excited to be at camp again because I love to be silly and camp is the perfect place to do so! I love talking to people and I love meeting new campers!

One of my favorite adventures in New Zealand was a five-day horse trek that I did across the North Island of the country. We started on the west coast of New Zealand and trekked 75 kilometers to the East Coast! We rode for 6 hours everyday! On this treck I rode Bon Bon, a super standard bred. We crossed mountains and galloped across untouched beaches! It was absolutely breath taking.

I have a complete love for animals. I love dogs, horses cows and most other animals too! I am a vegetarian and I an excellent pet owner!

As well as having a love for animals I am an equestrian! I have been riding my entire life and competing in Hunters and Jumpers since I was 13. I am now on my Equestrian Team at Miami University. Riding has been a huge part of my life and it always will be!

As well as riding I also really like to climb on rocks, sing, eat potatoes, play the ukulele, paint, my camel back, boondoggle and try new things!

I can’t wait to meet all of you soon this summer!!!

Meet Erin Calfee!

Hi everyone! I’m Erin and I’m 22 years old. I grew up in Davis, California. The first time I moved away from home I was 17 and went on exchange to Germany. Eight months later I moved to Providence, RI, where I now go to school at Brown University where I study history. I’ll be graduating this May right before coming to Coppercreek!

Rhode Island is great, but I always come home for breaks because I love spending time outdoors in beautiful California. In the winter I ski up in Tahoe and in the summer you can find me hiking in the mountains or floating down the river.

I started kayaking with my dad when I was 14 and fell in love with the river. For two summers in college I worked as a raft guide on the South Fork of the American River. Last summer I got a job in Providence researching Native Americans in colonial New England with a professor (very cool stuff!). I didn’t spend my whole summer in the archives though. I also went on a 20-day self-supported kayaking and rafting trip down the Grand Canyon with family and friends! We had creek exploring, rattlesnakes, mucky-muck wars, unexpected June rain, beautiful sunsets, unbalanced coyotes, and VERY big whitewater…ask me all about it!

I am a very silly person and I love to laugh. At Brown I’m part of an improvisational comedy acting troupe which means that I have 4 hours of scheduled silliness every week! Tell me your jokes and riddles and show me your silliest dance moves and animal impersonations!

I look forward to meeting all of you!

Erin

Meet Sam Sigal!

Hey everybody! My name is Sam Sigal and I am very much looking forward to returning for my second summer on staff at Coppercreek!! I a

m from an interesting state somewhere in between Pennsylvania and New York known as New Jersey. No, I do not have a New Jersey accent, but I do at times pretend I belong to the Soprano family.

I am currently majoring in Radio and Television Production at Rider University, aspiring to be a radio announcer. I also am a student manage for my school's Division 1 Men's Basketball team. My hobbies are sports, being goofy, movies and nice long walks on the beach...

I first came to Coppercreek for the artist formerly known as Family Camp. Through the years I attended traditional camp, and participated in Trek, the CIT program and was a Junior Counselor. After a few years away I was thrilled to return this past summer as a counselor!

I am looking forward to returning to camp and continuing my reign as the costume-dressing CHAMPION OF THE WORLD, as well as the dancing queen CHAMPION OF THE WORLD and the hurts-himself-while-trying to do the limbo CHAMPION OF THE WORLD and the PRETTIEST CAPTURE THE FLAG DRESSING CHAMPION OF THE WORLD.

At Coppercreek, I also have been known to dabble in drama, riflery, bingo-officiating and a

couple covert operations I am not at liberty to discuss. However, I cannot wait to see all of you in only a few short weeks!

Meet Emily Westphal!

Welcome Home, Emily!

Some people at Coppercreek say I have accent, but I don’t really hear it. Apparently us Michiganders have a bit of a Canadian or Minnesotan twist to our voices. You’ll have to wait and hear for yourself.

Hello there to old and new friends! I’m Emily Westphal, from Gaylord, Michigan. My first summer at camp (thanks to amazing camper Marissa) I earned the nickname of Emma D, and it stuck around. I am very excited to say that this summer will be my third year at camp. I came to Coppercreek on a whim, to live in a new place. I never knew that I would be coming back three years in a row calling it my summer home.

Outside of California, when I am home, I am a certified K-12 Art Teacher. Currently, I am a long-term sub in a high school art room, but I am on the search for the perfect classroom to call my own this fall. I would love to find a job in Michigan, but I am willing to move to a new state as well. When I am not working, I enjoy painting, reading, watching movies, snowshoeing, and spending time with my beautiful one-year-old niece, Rita-Marie.

My favorite place at Coppercreek is the high ropes course. I am not only a course supervisor, but a platform supervisor as well. The platform is the best spot at camp. I am always in awe of the beautiful view of the property and feel thankful to be a part of Coppercreek when I am up on the platform.

In addition to the high ropes course, I am also an instructor for the rock-climbing program. After practicing techniques on our rock wall, the best part is going on our overnight trip each session with a group of anywhere from 5-15 campers. I can also be found leading arts and crafts, playing sports, singing songs on stage, being a cabin counselor for some inspiring young ladies, and taking photos of the every day happenings at Coppercreek.

Every summer, I like to set goals for myself. In the past two years, I have met the following goals already –

• Getting up on a wakeboard
• Riding a horse for the first time ever (Thanks to our wonderful Riding Staff)
• Shooting a 22-rifle

This summer, I would like to add learning to play guitar, trying kayaking, singing more campfire songs, and going on more mountain bike rides to that list. I cannot wait to get back to Greenville, and have another amazing summer. See you there!

Meet Greta Dedmon!

Meet Greta Dedmon

My first summer at camp must have been about….. 1982. My Coppercreek history goes a little something like this: Camper – TC – Counselor/horse staff. I think I spent 6 or so summers here. It could be said that this is my happy place! Now my experience is coming full circle, as I join you to teach Arts and Crafts while my son, Josh, is a camper.

Before you ask, yes I could tell you stories from back in the day – but I’m sworn to secrecy. I did know Lornie way back when… in fact she was my counselor! And Papa John was a very important figure in my summer life. If you ask anyone who knew me then – I spent about 23 of every 24 hours at the horses. This camp taught me so much about life and I can talk about that for days!

Currently I live in San Rafael, CA with my husband and 2 of our 3 boys – they are 18, 14, and 8. (The oldest is off in college) As a family we enjoy many fun activities together including boogie boarding/surfing, mountain biking, fishing, baseball/softball, horseback riding, beading/jewelry making, travelling, and camping.

It’s my pleasure to bring my creativity and spunky personality to camp this summer. I love to dance, dress in costumes, ride horses, swim, waterski, canoe, ride bikes….. really about the only camp activities I’m not into are climbing (super don’t like heights) and skateboarding. Since I was about 8, I’ve been making beaded jewelry. So look for my well-stocked beading kit during Third Session! If you have any beads you want to bring – please do so! Counselors are encouraged to participate as well.

With the help of my favorite artist, Emily Elders, I will be offering some really fun and creative projects for all of you. I’m also bringing some fabric and a sewing machine with me so we can make some really great costumes for campfires and dances too.

I look forward to meeting you and having tons of fun this summer.