Meet our Staff
Experienced, caring professionals
At Camp Jewell YMCA, our team is composed of nine full-time, year-round staff members who collectively bring more than 50 years of invaluable camp experience. These dedicated professionals are deeply committed to delivering a high-quality, safe, and impactful experience for every child, ensuring parents can trust that their child is in capable and caring hands. In addition to our core team, we employ up to 20 expert program instructors during the fall and spring, and more than 160 highly trained staff members in the summer. Every staff member is dedicated to providing an exceptional experience, no matter which program you or your child participates in.
Craig Dawson
Executive Director
Originally from England, Craig spent his childhood near Sherwood Forest, exploring the woods and imagining himself as the legendary Robin Hood. He went on to earn a Bachelor of Arts degree in Geography from the University of Leeds, before embarking on a notable career with YMCA Camps in New York and Wisconsin, where he held various leadership roles.
Craig has been a dedicated member of the Camp Jewell team since 2012 and assumed the role of Executive Director in 2018. He also holds the Organizational Leader Certification from the YMCA of the USA. When he’s not leading the way at camp, Craig loves hiking the miles of trails surrounding Camp Jewell. His primary goal is to ensure that every individual who attends camp has an exceptional and enriching experience.
Jodi Gove
Associate Executive Director
Jodi has been working with the YMCA since 2004 where she met and married Peter who also works at Camp Jewell and together they have a son who LOVES camp. She graduated from Bethel University with Bachelor degrees in Political Science and Business. Throughout her years she has held many positions including: Program Staff, Ranch Coordinator, and the Ranch Program Director. During her free time she likes hiking throughout the area with her son Jonah and the family dogs.
Anthony Amalfi
Senior Program Director
Anthony comes from us from what he calls the best state ever, New Jersey! He has been coming to Y camps since he was a teenager and loving every minute of it. He started working for the Y in 2014 in a variety of roles and in a variety of places like New York, California, Philadelphia and of course Connecticut. Anthony returns to us this year after running different summer programs at other Ys and truly could not be more excited to help lead all of our wonderful programs we offer at Camp Jewell. In his free time find him lounging on the couch with his dog and family or on a plane flying somewhere new! Anthony hopes to make everyone's experience at camp something special and cannot wait to meet all of you!
"Always remember Camp is Camp and it is all good!"
Jamie Reed
Ranch Coordinator
A midwestern kid, Jamie grew up spending her summers at a YMCA camp as an equestrian camper then counselor. After graduating from the University of Georgia (Go Dawgs!) with a degree in Recreation Management and Leisure Studies, she went on to work full-time at her childhood camp, managed a couple small horse barns, then worked as a corporate trainer and talent coordinator for a river cruise line. Ready to return to her camp roots, Jamie is excited to have joined the Camp Jewell team in 2024 as the equestrian coordinator. In her free time, Jamie enjoys traveling to new places or hunkering down at home with her fur children.
Robb Engel
Property Manager
When Robb isn’t juggling maintenance requests and whiny counselors, you can find him perfecting his pizza dough tossing technique. Known for his uncanny ability to fix leaky faucets with nothing but duct tape and sheer willpower, Robb has mastered the art of balancing running toilets with a good sense of humor. Whether it's dealing with a broken water heater or a rogue raccoon, Robb is on the case, armed with a toolkit and a smile.
Nate Peppler
Assistant Property Manager
Linda Twofoot
Registrar
Linda and her husband Dennis moved to Colebrook, Connecticut in 2014, and spent time exploring the neighborhood and became familiar with Camp Jewell.
She joined the Camp Jewell team in 2022 as registrar, with great please and excitement.
As registrar, she always looks forward to coordinating with you from inquiry all the way through your registration.
Linda looks forward to seeing all campers arrive and make lifelong friends while experiencing all that camp Jewell has to offer!
