Jordan grew up in Oakland and spent 20 years working in the local Jewish world, serving as the Development Director of the Hebrew Free Loan and Executive Director of BimBam. He also spent several years in the for-profit world with stints as Director of Accounts, Director of Strategy and Partnerships, and as Senior Director of Social Impact and Corporate Responsibility – not bad for a guy with two creative writing degrees. He lives in Berkeley with his wife, Shira (whom he met as staff at Tawonga in 1997), two daughters (Chloe and Emilie), and his mini Aussie (Patches). He loves to meet and befriend new people, cook, eat, and watch Warriors games.

Jordan feels incredibly lucky to be able to step in and be of service to Tawonga as the Interim Director of Community Engagement while his friend and former camper, Shoshie, is on maternity leave. He was a Tawonga camper for 5 summers, staff for 10 summers (with a stint as year-round Head of Accounts Receivable for spice), and he’s been a camp parent for 9 seasons (if you include family camp – which he does). He is so happy to be home again. Jordan’s experiences at Tawonga have shaped and strengthened his Jewish identity and defined and nurtured his prime directive: facilitating repair in the broken world by intentionally and meaningfully connecting with other people. He will be taking the next step in pursuing that directive by returning to graduate school in the Fall on his way to becoming a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist.

Ryley is a Tawonga “lifer”. She started her journey with Tawonga in the early 90s as a camper from Arizona and continued on as a summer staffer through college before joining the full-time team in 2006. After nearly a decade of supporting Tawonga families, Ryley left her position to focus on raising her three daughters and transitioned to being a “camp mom,” watching her oldest daughter begin her own Tawonga journey. In 2022, Ryley re-joined the full-time staff and loves being a part of the team that creates the magic of Camp. Ryley has a dual degree in Public Policy and Sociology from Pomona College as well as a background in non-profit administration. In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with her husband, daughters and muppet-like dog, Sunny, as well as writing and cooking. She makes a mean chocolate chip cookie!

Ben first encountered the “tall, tall trees” during the summer of 1996. It rained every day he was there and he vowed he would never come back. After his mom literally forced him on the bus two years later, the East Bay native can’t get enough of the Tuolumne River. Ben was a camper for five glorious summers and became a summer staff member in 2003. Ben has worn many hats during his 13 summers working at Camp: counselor, lifeguard, assistant director, driver, office staff, nanny, unit head and Teen Service Learning supervisor. Ben joined Camp Tawonga’s full-time staff in 2015 and he absolutely loves talking to parents about his experience and how meaningful it has been in his life. Ben lives in Kensington with with his wife Kelli (whom he met at Camp Tawonga) and their dog Sadie. In his free time, Ben likes to go on hikes, play Ultimate Frisbee and go to movies.

Shoshie has been a Tawongan for 20+ years, starting as a camper and working seasonally as a counselor, CIT leader, unit head and a summertime assistant director. She is excited to join the year-round team as the Assistant Director of Community Engagement and looks forward to sharing her passion and dedication for working with children and families. Prior to this role, Shoshie worked as a special education preschool teacher. She earned a B.A. in Developmental Psychology from UC Santa Cruz and a Masters of Infant Mental Health and an Early Childhood Special Education Credential from Mills College. Shoshie lives in San Francisco with her husband and enjoys traveling, cooking, camping, and spending time with friends, family, and babies.