Prospective Families Division Head, Administrators, Office
Divison Heads
Carrie Burlin
Mini / Junior Day Division Head
Carrie has spent many summers at Crestwood as a camper, parent, and then Group Leader since the summer of 2016. In 2018, she joined our year round staff as one of our Toddler teachers. Carrie holds a B.S. in Childhood Education from L.I.U. and a M.A. in Early Childhood Education from N.Y.U. She has previously taught Nursery in Manhattan, Kindergarten in the Syosset School District, and in a Toddler program at a local Nursery School. In addition to her other roles at Crestwood, Carrie spent many summers as a leader in our Parent & Child programs and has developed an expertise in supervising our youngest campers, training staff and mentoring new parents. Both of her children attend camp at Crestwood, and Carrie loves sharing this summer home with them!
AnnMarie McQuade
Divison Head Junior Day
AnnMarie joined our Crestwood family in 1986. She started out as a camp counselor and then became a group leader for many years for our Preschool and Mini-Day groups. A few years later, in 1990, Annmarie joined our year-round teaching staff where she has experience as a lead teacher for Toddlers, Nursery and Pre-K students. She currently teaches one of our three year old classes. For the past 5 summers, Ann Marie has been a camp Administrator assisting Stephanie with the supervision of our entire Preschool Camp Division and with preparations for each new school year. Family and Crestwood go hand in hand for Annmarie. Her mom, Palma was a teacher and Arts and Crafts specialist for many years. Annmarie’s son and daughter who both grew up attending Crestwood Day Camp are now third generation staff members working as counselors and group leaders, respectively.
Amanda Hickey
Divison Head Preschool (Girls)
Amanda started working at Crestwood during the summer of 2013, first as a counselor and then later as a Group Leader. She joined Crestwood’s year-round staff as a Nursery Teacher in 2022. She previously worked at a local Preschool as a Nursery Teacher before becoming a year-round staff member at Crestwood. She is excited to oversee the Preschool girl campers as their Division Head starting in the summer of 2024. Amanda graduated with a Bachelors of Science from SUNY Farmingdale.
Alyse Skoller
Division Head Preschool (Boys)
Alyse will be joining Carrie Burlin (Mini Day) & AnnMarie McQuade (Jr Day) on our Preschool Camp Division Head team. Stephanie Steiner, our year-round Education Director, will continue to oversee this age group as our Preschool Camp Director. Alyse has been a part of the Crestwood family since 2007 as a Counselor, Group Leader and then Division Head of 3rd - 6th grade campers. In 2013, Alyse became a member of our school staff, and is currently a Nursery Teacher during the school year. She loves being at Crestwood 365 days a year!
Stephanie Steiner
School Director & Preschool Camp Director
Stephanie is the Director of our year round private school and in the summer is the Director of our preschool camp program. Stephanie developed her skill with young children, parents and administration by working in a variety of positions at Crestwood since starting here in 1997. During the summers at Crestwood, Stephanie began as a counselor and then Group Leader and during the school year, Stephanie has taught music, parent and child, toddlers and nursery, prior to becoming our director. Stephanie holds a BFA in Education and a Masters in Early Childhood from CW Post. Stephanie’s husband Joe is also a certified teacher, professional musician and a former Crestwood staff member. Their sons, Matthew & Austin, both attended our school and look forward to camp every summer.
Kim Marotto
Division Head Kindergarten Girls & Boys
Miss Kim, as she is affectionately called, is the Division Head of our Kindergarten division since the Summer of 2020. She spent past summers as a Division Head working alongside Stephanie Steiner to run our pre-school camp division and parent child program. Kim joined Crestwood as a camp Counselor while in college. After college graduation, Kim started as a full time pre-school teacher and camp Group Leader. In the time that Kim has spent as a member of our staff, she has established herself as one of the all-time great camp Group Leaders and is still one of our most popular Crestwood pre-school teachers. In more recent summers, Kim became one of our Parent & Child Program Group Leaders and then the program Supervisor. Kim is proud to have had all three of her children to have come through the Crestwood camp and school program. Two of her children have worked here for several summers as well. Kim is looking forward to getting to know you and your child during the summer months.
Christine Eliot
Division Head 1st & 2nd Grade Girls
Christine has been our 1st and 2nd Grade Girls Division Head since 2020. After many years as a Crestwood camper, Christine worked 10 summers as a Group Leader and has been the Chairperson of our Leadership Team (our top Group Leaders who meet all year round to make Crestwood the best it can be). In addition, Christine has been a teacher in the Crestwood school where she has also been the Director of our two-week pre-camp program every June.
Cami Scher
3rd & 4th Grade Girls Division Head
Cami spent her entire life at camp! She started as a day camper at Crestwood before switching to sleep away camp. After spending 4 summers as a camp counselor, Cami returned to Crestwood in 2019 as a Group Leader. As a Group Leader, she took on administrative responsibilities on our Leadership team, led our Staff Events and oversaw camper field trips. During the year, Cami is a Science teacher at Francis Lewis High School. She is always counting down the days until camp and can’t wait for another amazing Crestwood summer with your children!
Ricky Martorella
Division Head 1st & 2nd Grade Boys
Ricky has been a part of the Crestwood team since 1999. For over 20 years, Ricky was recognized as an All-Star staff member and selected onto our Leadership Team, where he served with other stand-out Group Leaders to help train and mentor other staff. He looks forward to camp every summer and the opportunity to be active with his campers, play sports and participate in the wide variety of Crestwood activities. Professionally, Ricky is a teacher and has spent the last 18 years of his career in the Half Hollow Hills School District, primarily as a Kindergarten teacher. Ricky looks forward to bringing his wealth of experience to his position as Division Head. Personally, Ricky has two daughters who have each spent over 10 summers at Crestwood and love it just as much as their dad.
Barry Steinberger
Division head 3rd and 4th Grade Boys
Barry joined our Administrative Team as our 3rd and 4th Grade Boys Division Head in 2018. Barry has been a part of the Crestwood family since 2006 and in addition to being a Group Leader for many summers, he brings a wide variety of camp experiences. Barry worked as an Assistant Swim Director and also was the Chairperson of our Leadership Team committee, our top Group Leaders who meet with the Directors throughout the year to make Crestwood the best it can be. Professionally, Barry teaches 8th grade Social Studies for the NYC Department of Education. Barry and his wife Robin live in Dix Hills and have 2 daughters, Jordyn and Brianna who have been at Crestwood since the age of two. A former college soccer player, Barry now enjoys coaching his girls soccer team for the HBC Soccer Club and is a former USSF Soccer Referee. Barry is looking forward to another amazing Crestwood summer with your children.
Brian Cyriac
Division Head - Grade 5 & 6
Brian has been a part of the Crestwood family since 2011, working with every age group at camp from 1st grade thru 6th grade as both a counselor and group leader. Most recently, he has spent his summers as Group Leader for our 6th grade boys overseeing them at camp and on their co-ed day trips and overnights. While at Crestwood, Brian has been recognized as both a leader and role model, which earned him the position as Chair of our Leadership Team, our top group leaders chosen to help train and mentor other staff. During the off season, Brian is an elementary school teacher in Uniondale. He has been teaching for 8 years starting his journey in Queens, New York. Brian was named the New York Islanders teacher of the month for February 2021. He can’t wait to take your children on an adventurous summer both at camp and filled with amazing trips.
Rachel Vikingstad
Assistant Division Head
Rachel has been part of the Crestwood family since 2010. She has been a Kindergarten Group Leader (seven summers), Leadership Team member and Chairperson, and has held several other roles here at camp. You may have even seen her directing cars during arrivals! Rachel took some time off to have her two boys but you can now find all three of them here at camp. During the school year, Rachel teaches First Grade in the Farmingdale School District. She is a proud graduate of Brandeis University, BA in English & American Literature and Theater Arts, and holds an MS in Childhood Education and Certificate of Advanced Studies in Literacy from Hofstra University. Contrary to popular belief, Rachel is not related to any Vikings but you can trace her husband’s family back to the first king of Norway!
Kim Ott
Teen Travel Director & School Administrator
Kim came to Crestwood in 2015 with almost 20 years of camp experience. She has worked as a Group Leader, an Athletic Director, an Assistant Director and most recently as a Teen Travel Director. Kim holds a BS in Economics, Finance, and Psychology and became Crestwood's School Administrator in the Fall of 2016. Kim was very active in her Woodbury community where she sat on the board of Syosset Baseball, and has coached boys baseball and basketball for most of her life. Kim is the mother of two grown sons and she recently became a grandma. Kim on camping, " I still remember the excitement I felt almost 20 years ago as a new Group Leader when I walked across the field to meet my first group. That hasn't changed for me!" Kim loves to share that passion and enthusiasm with our Crestwood Teens!
Adam Goldfarb
Teen Adventure Director
Adam joined the Crestwood family in 2015 as a Group Leader for the Mohawks. He brought with him 13 years of prior experience as a Day Camp and Travel Group Leader. Adam has a BA in English and an MS in English Education. He's certified to teach elementary, middle, and high school students and has worked in the Jericho School District since 2012. Adam always looks forward to the summertime because that means camp time! Adam can't wait to pack his enthusiasm, along with his clothes, and start going on many "Teen Adventures."
Heather Wachler
Leadership Training Division Head
Heather is very excited to join the Crestwood family for the summer of 2024. She has a dual master’s degree in elementary education and students with disabilities grades 1-6. Heather has been teaching for 14 years and is currently a 6th grade special education teacher in NYC DOE. She has over 20 years of camp experience, both in day camps & sleepaway camps, as a camper, CIT and counselor. Heather is a camper at heart and is genuinely passionate about the experiences and lifelong memories made at camp. Heather lives in Commack with her husband and two children, Hudson and Drew, who can’t wait to attend Crestwood this summer!
Daniel Selmer LCSW-R
Director Endeavor Program
Dan is a camp enthusiast. From being a camper starting at the age of 6 to running a specialized camp program for over a decade, there is nothing about camp that he doesn’t love. He enjoys experiencing camp through the camper’s eyes and strongly believes in the benefits of camp for children. He has seen, first hand, the social, emotional and individual growth and development that takes place within a child over the summer. Daniel is a practicing New York State licensed Psychotherapist with over 20 years of counseling experience. His interests are routed in full spectrum family work, ranging from pediatrics through young adulthood. Daniel has been working specifically with families and children with executive functioning and behavioral concerns. He maintains his group private practice while also running a camp program for children with social challenges. Daniel currently resides in Plainview, New York with his wife and two children.
Jennifer McElhiney
Assistant Director, Endeavor
Jen joined Crestwood in 2016, when it became home to the Endeavor programs. Throughout her more than 25 years as a New York State licensed Speech & Language Pathologist, Jen has worked with a variety of children from early intervention through high school and beyond. For the past 17 years, she has worked privately and in a public middle school where she brings a unique perspective to bridging language skills and academic curriculum. Jen is passionate about addressing pragmatic skills and the many, current social-emotional issues that negatively impact social functioning and communication. In her role as the Assistant Director of the Endeavor Program and Club E, Jen is able to capitalize on those less structured moments that often challenge children, yet offer immense opportunity for growth. To that end, she is a huge proponent of camp being the perfect place for the “on the job training” of social, emotional and communication skills for children with executive functioning deficits who need some extra layers of support to find success.
Administrators
Arielle Murdocco
Program Director
Arielle is thrilled to be joining the Crestwood Administration team! She has been a part of the Crestwood family since 2005, when she began working as the camp's Assistant Head of Drama, and worked as both a counselor and group leader. For the majority of her time at Crestwood, she was the Head of Drama, directing various productions with the children. During the school year, Arielle is the Choral Director at Great Neck North Middle School, where she also directs their annual school musical. She holds a B.S. in Theatre from Syracuse University, a M.S. from Hofstra University in Music Education and is completing her certification for building and district administration. Arielle lives in Commack with her husband and two kids and is so excited to share the summer with all of the Crestwood families.
Jared Glazer
Assistant Program Director / Performing Arts Supervisor
Jared joined the Crestwood family back in 2015 as the assistant for drama. Since then, he has moved up to run the program and has had an amazing time mounting great productions with our very talented campers. Jared holds a BM in Classical Voice Performance from the University of Miami and an MA in Music Education from NYU. During the school year Jared is the Middle School Choir Director in the North Babylon School District. In addition, he is very active in the Long Island community theater network as a performer. Jared also enjoys being a teacher/stage manager at the Cultural Arts Playhouse in Syosset and Merrick. Jared looks forward to his Crestwood filled summer every year and the joy of making theater with our amazing campers!
Nicole Seeger
Arts Director
Nicole has been working year-round at Crestwood since 2006. She is one of Crestwood’s Nursery Teachers and then over the summer, she runs Crestwood’s Art Programs. She holds both a Bachelor of Science and Masters in Art Education plus a permanent teaching certification for NYS. Nicole worked for West Hempstead high school for three years, during that time she was the Class Advisor, the Girl's Varsity Swim Coach and was voted teacher of the year. Nicole is also a member of the National Art Education Association and NYS Teachers Association. Along with her many roles at Crestwood, Nicole is an inventor and holds a patent for her yarn storage invention.
Kathleen (Kat) Serafin
Swim Director
Kathleen has been a part of the Crestwood family since 1990 where she attended as a student in the Nursery program. She continued as a camper all the way through the teen program and then became a lifeguard in 2003. Having taken on every leadership position at the Crestwood pools, it was a dream come true when Kat became our Swim Director in 2014. Kat received her Bachelor’s in Childhood Education at SUNY Cortland and her Masters in Special Education at C.W. Post LIU. She started as a nursery teacher at Crestwood in 2009 and has been teaching here ever since. Her love of swimming started when she first learned how to swim at Crestwood and continued through USA competitive swimming. Kat swam competitively on a club swim team, for her high school swim team from 7th-12th grade and in college for SUNY Cortland. After college, she started coaching for her competitive swim team: Team Suffolk. Crestwood has shaped the person that she has become and she strives to do the same for every camper. Kat is married and can’t wait for her newborn son Tyler to become a Crestwood camper … and member of the swim team!
Andrew Richter
Special Events Director
Andrew is passionate about providing our campers with fun and unique special events every summer. Andrew joined the Crestwood staff for the summer of 2014. Prior to joining the greatest staff there is, Andrew accumulated nearly 20 years of experience working at various camps. Andrew has been teaching health and physical education in the North Shore School District since 2003. He is also the North Shore High School boys varsity golf coach. Andrew holds a Bachelors of Science in Health and Physical Education as well as a Master’s Degree in health, all from Adelphi University. He has presented innovative methods of teaching health and physical education at various conferences around the state. In 2015 he was named Nassau County Health Teacher of the Year! Outside of work, Andrew enjoys being active, rooting for the Mets, Jets, Knicks, and any other team that he can jinx, spending time with his family, and coaching his children’s community sports teams. His children Jake, Madison, and Brett have all been Crestwood students and campers!
Mady Mocelo
Camp Administrator
Mady has been at Crestwood since 1979. She began her Crestwood career as a Group Leader and then became our Kindergarten Division Head for many summers while also teaching Physical Education and Spanish in our school during the school year. In 2020, Mady took over the role as Athletic Director. Mady is very excited to bring her passion for athletics, her coaching background and her love of the Crestwood kids to camp every summer.
Bryan Straub
Athletic Director
Bryan started at Crestwood in the summer of 2014 as the Basketball Director. During his time at Crestwood, campers loved learning and playing basketball with Bryan. He has over 20 years of experience as a NYC physical education teacher, Dean, and coach. Bryan received a degree from SUNY Cortland and CUNY Queens College plus holds an administration license. Crestwood is lucky to welcome Bryan back as our Athletic Director for the summer of 2023 and he is looking forward to his return!
Jordan Ashley
Transportation Director
Jordan joined Crestwood in the Winter of 2023. He not only was a lifelong camper, but also has almost 10 years of camp professional experience! Jordan worked in local camps as a Group Leader, Division Head, Travel Director and is now at Crestwood as the Director of Transportation. He has a BS in Physical Education from The Citadel where he ran Division 1 track and an MS in Health Education from Hofstra. Fitness is a passion of his, as he is a certified group fitness instructor and an avid runner. Jordan is looking forward to meeting the Crestwood family!
Jackie Weissman
Notes & Message Supervisor
Jackie has been a part of the Crestwood family since 1996. After many summers as a camper at both day camp and sleep away camp she made her way to Crestwood. She started as a Counselor, then a Group Leader, and currently works as an Administrator at Crestwood. Jackie has BA in Elementary Education and an MS in Special Education and currently works in the New York City schools during the school year. She lives with her husband, Shaun, and sons, Spencer and Zachary in East Meadow, who are both Crestwood campers.
Erica Straub
Notes & Message Supervisor
Erica started at Crestwood working in the office in the summer of 2014. Over the years, she then became one of Crestwood’s most popular toddler teachers, preschool camp group leaders, and in 2023, the preschool boys Division Head. In 2024, Erica will return to work in the camp office as an administrator working alongside Jackie as the Notes & Message Supervisor. Erica spends the school year working in an elementary school and taking care of her family’s busy sports life. She looks forward to spending her summers at Crestwood and speaking with all of our families!
Martin Stern
Food Service Director
Marty has worked at Crestwood since 2000. He’s been in the food industry all his life, from learning how to be a butcher from his father, to being a waiter, to owning a catering hall for 22 years. At the same time, Martin has also been a Social Studies teacher for over 50 years in both the public and private school systems. He has a Masters Degree in History and Education as well as many credits qualifying him to be an administrator in the education system today. One of the most satisfying aspects of Crestwood for him has been meeting the dietary needs of the campers and staff in today’s world. Marty takes pride in offering a lunch program that children love and that meets the needs of all campers.
Heather Berman
Food Allergy Coordinator
Heather joined the Crestwood team in the summer of 2022. She coordinates all food allergy accommodations and requests, acting as a liaison between parents of campers with special dietary needs, division heads, group leaders, kitchen staff and any food related specialists. As a parent of a child with Type 1 Diabetes, Heather brings a special care and knowledge of important dietary needs and strongly values the safety and well-being of our campers. Heather’s son recently graduated Crestwood’s Pre-K School program and enjoys camp every summer. Prior to Crestwood, Heather worked as a Creative Director and Graphic Designer and is currently starting her own design studio.
Barbara Schneider
Lead Nurse
Barbara joined our Health Office as Lead Nurse in 2020, bringing several years of prior camp experience as a Food Allergy Specialist and Health Office Nurse. Earlier in her nursing career, she worked as an Oncology Certified Nurse in Adult & Pediatric Otolaryngology & Head and Neck Surgical Oncology in NYC. During the school year, she is an Elementary School Nurse for the Long Beach School District. Barbara currently resides in Bellmore with her husband Steve, twins Samantha and Hayden, and daughter, Daniella. All 3 children absolutely love their summers at Crestwood!
Jimmy Felton
Adventure Program Director
Jimmy has spent every summer at Crestwood since 2013. He started as a Lifeguard moving up to Head Lifeguard for several years and ultimately moved into the Crestwood Adventure Program. As a Firefighter for over 24 years, his experience with ropes, climbing ladders and rescues, this was a comfortable place for him. Jimmy also holds a USA Level 2 Archery Coach/Instructor certification where he helps train staff and run the Archery program here. Jimmy’s whole family is at Crestwood every summer where his Wife Marni works as a Group Leader and his 3 kids are campers. In his off time, Jimmy is a Firefighter, and Cub Scout Leader who loves camping and doing anything outdoors!
Lori Makower
Security Director
Lori has been with Crestwood since 2016. She has always worked on our security staff and wouldn't have it any other way. She has a 13 year old daughter who has attended Crestwood since she was a 3rd grader in 2015. Lori has a MS in Special Education and holds a license in General Education. She began teaching in 2001 and has been in the same school since she started which is in Brooklyn for the NYC DOE. Lori lives with her daughter Sydney and her puppy Luna (a Crestwood Puppy) in East Meadow.
Fermin Jerez
Maintenance Director
Fermin has worked at Crestwood for over 30 years and along with his staff, makes sure that our grounds and buildings are kept beautiful all year round. Also an accomplished carpenter, Fermin and his staff are responsible for many of the new additions that you can see on our campus each and every year. Fermin came to Crestwood back in 1987 and has been here ever since. All three of his boys have attended both Crestwood’s private school and camp.
Year Round Office Staff
Beverly Stein
Office Administrator
Beverly has been part of the Crestwood family since the summer of 1999. Beverly has worked several positions at Crestwood including Counselor and Group Leader. She is currently an Administrator where she helps with both our school and camp programs and everything in between. Her sharp memory is relied upon when anyone needs information about anything! She received her Master's in Special Education from Dowling. “Ask Beverly” is a very common term heard around Crestwood!
Debbie Kalmus
Head Bookkeeper
Debbie has a B.S. in Management from SUNY Binghamton and an M.B.A. in Accounting from NYU. She is a C.P.A. who started her career at the then Big 8 accounting firm of Coopers & Lybrand and later worked in corporate accounting at Columbia Pictures and Colgate Palmolive. Debbie took some time off after the birth of her two sons, and has been a year-round fixture in the Crestwood office since the fall of 1994. She is responsible for our customer billing and receipts, our payroll, and is the go-to person for anything financial! Debbie lives in Bellmore with her husband, Ken, who is also a C.P.A. Her two now-grown and married sons are Crestwood Alumni and former staff members who have flown the nest and are now working in Management Consulting and Finance.
Elyse Pollack
Office Administrator
Elyse has been one of Crestwood’s year round Office Administrators since 2011. Elyse handles all aspects of the camp enrollment process plus grouping, and keeping track of special dietary needs for campers with allergies. Before Crestwood, Elyse worked for 10 years as a Marketing Manager for various companies including Marvel. Elyse’s daughter, Leah, started at Crestwood when she was just a toddler in the Parent/Child Program and she also graduated from Crestwood’s School Kindergarten Class. Elyse lives in Merrick with her husband, Jonah, and daughter where it takes her only 22 minutes to commute to work each day!
Kristy Zimmerman
Office Administrator
Kristy started working at Crestwood in Summer 2018 and loved it so much that she has been a year round Office Administrator ever since. She handles all of the accounts payable responsibilities, assists with payroll and camp enrollments, and any other office work needed. She lives in Old Bethpage with her husband, Andrew, and their daughters. Her daughters attend Crestwood camp and her youngest also attended Pre-K at Crestwood. Summer is their favorite time of the year!
Jackie Papavera
Office Administrator
Jackie started working at Crestwood in the Summer of 2016. She started off as a counselor for the Super/Senior Rec girls until Summer 2019. She became a part of the Summer office staff in 2020 and now works in the office all year long! Jackie runs our Crestwood social media pages. As social media coordinator, she believes that nothing is more rewarding than being able to bring together the best of Crestwood through a lens and sharing it with families. She also loves seeing all the smiles and “pure joy” from campers and staff that happen beyond the camera. During her free time, she enjoys cruising, the beach, telling jokes, and making people smile. If you see Jackie, be sure to say hello and tell her your best joke.
Julia Baltera
Office Administrator
Julia started at Crestwood when she was just 3 years old as a school student and camper. She grew up on Long Island, and then moved to California for many years, eventually moving back home to Northport with her family. Julia has five children of which three are Crestwood campers and her youngest also attends Crestwood school. She loves to be able to share the same Crestwood magic with her kids that she had growing up. Julia has worked year-round in the Crestwood office since the Summer of 2023 and enjoys every aspect of her job, especially seeing all the smiling kids’ faces.
