Meet the Staff

Our staff is carefully selected on the basis of their experience, education, training, leadership ability and interpersonal skills. Each staff member participates in a week long pre-camp training period in preparation for the arrival of campers.

Sandy Island is full of staff members that were once campers, and our camper population boasts many staff alumni, Once you spend time on Sandy Island it is easy to see why we have so many returning Campers and Staff!

Jack Archer, Tennis Pro
Anya Archer, Office Manager

Jack grew up in Baltimore, and attended the University of Maryland and Georgetown School of Law. Anya is originally from Connecticut, and attended Dickinson College, majoring in music.  She also attended graduate school at the Ohio State University in Music Education before relocating to the Washington, DC area.  

Anya's family had a long history with Sandy Island.  Her older sister was part of the first Little Red Schoolhouse class!  We met when we were very young (33 years ago!). Anya was working on Capital Hill for a NY congressman, and Jack was working for AAA as a lobbyist. A match definitely made in Washington.....When we decided to get married, Anya told Jack that coming to Sandy Island was part of the deal--and he happily agreed.  After tying the knot, we settled down in northern Virginia and had a son, Ryan (25), who spent many happy vacations at Sandy Island.  As a stay-at-home mom, Anya started a business creating, selling, and teaching crafts.  Jack eventually left AAA and began working as a consultant, writing model traffic safety laws for the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration at the Department of Transportation.  Anya re-entered the workforce as an Instructional Assistant in our neighborhood elementary school in Virginia.  She continued the craft business while working and attempted to keep the household running smoothly, chairing various PTA and community groups, and co-authoring the history of Sandy Island, The Sands of Time.

In 2008, we sold our home in Virginia and packed up all our possessions and moved to the land of the old, aka Florida!  We also spent half of the summer of 2008 at Sandy Island as staff. We returned to Sandy for the entire summer of 2009, and enjoyed being away from the Florida heat.  What do we do here to keep busy?  Jack plays tennis on a team, follows University of Maryland sports, and watches the stock market go up and down.  Anya attempts to keep up with her elderly mother (more difficult than managing a classroom of kindergartners!), serves as treasurer for our homeowners association, and communes with the many lizards in our back yard.   We both enjoy swimming in our neighborhood pool and visiting the beach. Seeing dolphins swimming around the Gulf of Mexico and all those interesting wading birds is very cool--especially when coming out of a store into a parking lot and finding that an ibis is standing on your car!

 We are looking forward to returning to Sandy for the summer of 2010, although riding in the car from southwest Florida to NH is an extremely long (boring) trip.  It will be great to see everyone again and spend the summer on that Beautiful Island of Sandy!
 

Michael Fieleke, Assistant Director

Mike has been coming to Sandy Island since he was a toddler. The summer of 2010 will be his sixth full summer on staff, where he has served on kitchen, waterfront, service, and program. Mike has a Ph.D. in Education and currently lives and teaches in Newton, Massachusetts. Mike is married to Jill, and they have two children, Megan and Kyle, who all summer long can often be spotted building forts and swimming in the beautiful waters of Winnepesaukee.

Amy Becker, R.N.

10 year EMT and instructor;  US National Ski Patrol,  Fairfax County Fire & Rescue Department,  and Park Ranger in Homer, Alaska.

Growing up, I spent my summers in New Hampshire where I hiked, canoed on Lake Winnipesaukee, learned to sail and swim, and to appreciate nature and hot showers.

After graduating from Colby College in Waterville, Maine I traveled and installed medical computer systems for AT&T, U.S. Sprint and AOL.  Later, I went back to nursing school and worked first for Duke University Medical Center and now for Visiting Nurse Association & Hospice of Southern Carroll County.

I am very excited about working with YMCA families at Sandy Island Camp this summer.

Kate Lemay, Sandy Island Director
klemay@ymcaboston.org
603.569.2725 ext 225

Kate has been involved with YMCA family camps since 1999.  The 2009 season was her first summer at Sandy Island. In addition to serving as the Sandy Island Director, Kate works year-round as the Senior Program Director, handling communications and marketing for the Camping Services of the YMCA of Greater Boston. Kate began her YMCA camping career at Camp Ockanickon, Inc. Medford, NJ and holds a Bachelors in Studio Arts from UNH and a MA in Arts in Education from the University of the Arts in Philadelphia, PA. Kate and her husband Robert and son Cooper currently reside in Kate's hometown, Gilford, NH. When not at Camp Kate enjoys painting, running, yoga and making fun memories with family and friends.

Beth Magnuson, Weekender

Beth Magnuson has been involved with Sandy Island Camp for the past 14 years.  She started by taking vacation time to help in the dining hall during weeks eight and nine, when many staff need to leave for school, then added work during the pre-and post-season weekends. Beth is among the first at camp as part of the diehard group of "weekenders" that help get camp open pre-season, then close it down in the fall.  Beth typically is responsible for closing and opening the kitchen and dining hall, then helps run the dining hall during weekend groups.  During the summer, she might be found on the weekends in the office, in the kitchen or wherever needed.  She has been a proud member of the Sandy Island Fire Brigade for the past two years.  Last summer, both her children, Sandi and Trevor Lemieux, and her stepchildren, Paul and Bethany Chisholm, all worked at Sandy.

Although Beth's only been on island for the entire summer season for one year in 2001, (the year she married Doug Chisholm, a long-time weekender), she probably spends more time on the island during six months of weekends each year than many summer staff do.  When she's not at camp, she works as an Occupational Therapist in an Early Intervention program serving infants and toddlers with developmental disabilities.

Molly Curran,  a Camper on Staff.

Molly has been a member of the Sandy Island Staff for 5 years now. She was a week four camper for 16 years before being asked to “Scab” at the end of the 2005 summer. Molly fell in love with Sandy all over again and saw the island in a whole new light. Of course, she loves her week (partly because they’re all her relatives!), but each week there are special people she looks forward to seeing all year. They share extraordinary memories, love and appreciation for the island.

When Molly is not at Sandy Island, she’s thinking about it for sure. Her entire year revolves around a countdown.. She’s a senior at Emmanuel in Boston and when she thinks about the real world and getting a job, she only wishes she could work at sandy as a Program Counselor for the rest of her life ☺. …