Mark Lipof, LICSW – Director/Co-Owner

Mark’s dream is the Camp Micah reality. With over 32 years of camping experience as a camper, counselor, head counselor and camp administrator, he is now the Co-Owner and Director of Camp Micah.

Mark graduated from the University of Massachusetts with a Bachelor’s Degree in Sociology and earned High School teacher certification. He then graduated from the Boston College Graduate School of Social Work with an MSW and is a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker.
Mark’s experience with youth is extensive and includes evaluation and counseling of at-risk youth and residential camp experience at most administrative levels. In 1995, Mark became the founding Director of the Ansin Religious School of Ohabei Shalom in Brookline, Massachusetts where he also served as Synagogue Administrator, Counselor and Youth Director over a 20 year period. Mark takes pride in the Camp Micah philosophy.

“Our mission is clear. We seek to provide a safe, secure, stimulating and challenging environment, infused with Jewish traditions, customs and values that foster self-esteem, social relationships and skill development. In order to celebrate the world’s diversity, we must first know who we are.”
~Mark

E-mail Mark at markl@campmicah.com

Mike Churwin, LCSW – Assistant Director

Mike is one of three Assistant Directors at Camp Micah and a founding member of the Micah Administrative Team. He has a long history of working with children both at camp and in many other settings.

Mike graduated from the University of Massachusetts with a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science and Social Thought and Political Economy. He earned a Master’s Degree in Social Work from the Boston College Graduate School of Social Work and is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker.

Prior to Camp Micah’s existence, he worked as an administrative staff member at an adolescent group home as well as a counselor at a school for emotional disturbed and troubled youth. More recently, Mike has worked in several capacities at Ohabei Shalom, a Reform Synagogue in Brookline, Massachusetts, where he served as the Facility Manager, an educator and a member of the synagogue’s Youth Team.

Mike’s varied experience with children in different settings brings a unique perspective to his work with campers and staff at Micah. He attends camp with his wife, Shari and three daughters.

“A camp is only as good as its staff. At Camp Micah, our staff understands all that is involved in building a camper’s confidence and self-esteem. And, with a camper-staff ratio of 3:1, counselors have the opportunity to address the needs of each individual camper.”
~Mike
E-mail Mike at michaelc@campmicah.com

Jodi Sokoloff – Assistant Director

Jodi has over 25 years of experience as a camper, counselor and administrator. She is a graduate of Emory University with a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and was Camp Micah’s Girls Head Counselor for eight years.

She has worked in a variety of camps, from day camps to camps for children with HIV/AIDS and brings with her a wide range of experience working with children. Jodi was an assistant elementary school teacher in a fifth grade classroom for two years before becoming a founding member of the Camp Micah administrative team. Along with being a Mom, an Assistant Director and former Girl’s Head Counselor of Camp Micah she has volunteered at Riverside Communities for at-risk teenagers and the Grow Clinic, a clinic for children diagnosed with failure to thrive.

Her patience, experience and counseling skills add much to the Camp Micah community. She spends her summer at camp with her husband, Rob and two sons, Jared and Eli.

“Camp Micah will wrap its arms around each child allowing them to be themselves and feel accepted and special while instilling in them a confidence that will last well beyond the camping experience.”
~Jodi

E-mail Jodi at jodis@campmicah.com

Steve Monge – Assistant Director/Athletic Director

Steve has over 20 years of camping experience as a camper, counselor and administrator. He graduated with a B.A. in philosophy in 1998 from Transylvania University and then went on to obtain his certificate in Tennis Management.

Prior to working full time with Micah, Steve served as an Assistant Men’s and Women’s tennis coach at Bucknell University, Head Men’s and Women’s Tennis Coach at Limestone College, and the Co-Head Coach of the Men’s tennis team at Queens College. These positions allowed him to further develop his supervisory, education and communication skills. Working with a wide array of college student-athletes allowed him to form a varied approach to instruction, one which focuses the attention on the individual. Over his years at Micah, first as Head of Tennis and now Assistant Director/Athletic Director, Steve has brought this individualized teaching approach to the entire Athletic aspect of camp.

“At Micah our goal is for every camper to improve. We emphasize skill-building so that campers can gradually learn the skills needed to achieve success in their activity, not to be better than everyone else, but to be the best they can be.”
~Steve

E-mail Steve at steve@campmicah.com

Shari Churwin – Program Director

Shari is a life-long camper with over 25 years of camping experience. She is a graduate of Indiana University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Sociology/Jewish Studies and a minor in Business Administration. Shari also holds a Certificate in Jewish Family Education from Hebrew College.

She has worked in a variety of camp settings and has served as a part of the administration of several camps including a camp for underprivileged Jewish children. Shari was also a founding member of Camp Micah’s Administrative Team in 2001.

Shari is currently the Director of Education for Ohabei Shalom and the Ansin Religious School in Brookline, MA. Shari enjoys her summers as the extremely creative Program Director at Camp Micah with her husband, Mike and three daughters.

“At Camp Micah we connect the fabric of our community with shared Jewish values as we emphasize our individual and communal responsibility to help make the world a better place for all. By taking the best of our Jewish tradition and infusing it into the Camp Micah community, we create an environment where each child should feel safe to be who s/he is.”
~Shari

Kate Mikesh – Girls’ Head Counselor

Kate is right at home at camp with over 20 years of experience as a camper, counselor and administrator, which has all led up to her becoming the Girls’ Head Counselor at Camp Micah. Her leadership, programming and administrative skills pale in comparison to her enthusiasm and love of children.

Kate spends her time away from camp as the Director of Informal Education at Temple Ohabei Shalom in Brookline, MA where she coordinates all youth programming for the synagogue. She is a dedicated Jewish educator in primary, middle and high school programs.

She grew up in Longmeadow, MA and graduated from Ithaca College, where she studied Anthropology and Religion. Kate has taught and worked closely with Jewish youth for over 14 years at congregations and summer camps in New York, Massachusetts and Maine. She is currently pursuing a Certificate in Informal Jewish Education, Youth Leadership and Camping at Hebrew College.

“Camp Micah is a place where everyone feels comfortable being themselves and embracing their own individuality. We celebrate each person’s unique contributions to the Micah Community by showing off our
spunk and S-P-I-R-I-T.”
~Kate

Avi Cohen – Assistant Program Director/Multimedia Team Leader

Avi was a founding administrator and Camp Micah’s first Athletic Director. With over 21 years of camp experience, Avi has an extensive camp resume including counselor, athletic director, upper administrator and the founding Micah In Israel Trip Leader, taking sixty-two Micah campers to Poland and Israel during the summer of 2006.

In 1998, Avi graduated from Savannah College of Art and Design with a B.F.A in Computer Art and a Minor in Art History. He is responsible for all Micah publications including the brochure and annual yearbooks. During the off-season he works as a graphic designer for a Waltham MA based company and as a Freelance Graphic Artist.

In his spare time, Avi has taught for over ten years at Ohabei Shalom in Brookline, MA where he is a member of the youth team. He has worked with youth ages 5-16, planning and implementing overnight and day programs. He is also an avid soccer player and coach, having coached in High School, Olympic Development Programs, town youth soccer programs, Jewish camps and the regional Maccabi Games.

As a founding administrator of Camp Micah, Avi has been involved in the ongoing development and implementation of the Micah Philosophy. His passion for camp and kids goes well beyond our camp gates as his resume clearly shows and we are fortunate to have him as part of the Micah Team.

“Teaching skills has always been something that we strive for at Micah. Campers are encouraged to try, learn and achieve at all activities no matter their skill level. I am lucky to have been here from the beginning to see Camp Micah, and our campers, grow, learn and develop into such an amazing community.”
~Avi