Our Staff

Staff Committed to Working with Kids

The spirit and energy you feel at Camp Chi comes from our staff. We personally screen and select our team from hundreds of applicants from across the country and the world. Our staff have diverse backgrounds and interests, but have one thing in common – a never-ending dedication to working with kids.

Our low 1 to 3 staff-to-camper ratio exceeds the recommendation by the American Camp Association (1 to 6) and assures that each camper and cabin group receives individualized attention.

To achieve our goal of providing the highest quality camp experience, we hire two different groups of exceptional staff: specialists with expertise to provide instruction in activities and nurturing counselors who are solely focused on leading cabin groups and providing camper care. Social workers, qualified health staff, professional food service and countless staff behind-the-scenes provide additional support.

Experienced Camp Leadership

Kyle Kolling, Director

Kyle Kolling has spent every summer at Camp Chi since 2001. Beginning as a young two-week camper he worked his way up to a full time role at the beginning of 2016 and now serves as the Director of Camp Chi. Kyle is a licensed educator, holding a bachelor’s degree in education from Illinois State University. In 2019 Kyle was selected as a Merrin Teen Professional Fellow in 2019 with members of the Jewish professional community from around the country to develop new and innovative opportunities for Jewish Teens. In 2021 Kyle received the Samuel A Goldsmith Young Professionals award from JUF of Chicago. Growing up at Camp Chi, Kyle understands how truly impactful it can be and strives to keep the Chi Flame burning bright year after year. You can reach Kyle at kkolling@jccchicago.org.

Louis Lasko, Associate Director

Louis Lasko is excited to join the Camp Chi team as the Associate Director! With over 13 years of experience in Jewish camping, he has dedicated his career to creating memorable and impactful camp experiences. Louis has worked at the JCC summer camps in Springfield, MA, and Stamford, CT, and most recently served as the Director of Camp Laurelwood, an independent Jewish camp in Madison, CT, for the past eight years. To him, camp is the greatest place in the world—a space where he discovered his true self. His favorite part of the camp experience is witnessing campers grow into counselors, passing on the invaluable lessons they’ve learned. Louis is also looking forward to spending summers in Wisconsin with his wife, Kristin, a 4th grade teacher, and their 20-month-old daughter, Emmie. He can’t wait for them to experience the magic of Camp Chi together!
You can reach Louis at llasko@jccchicago.org.

Natalie Kolling, Business Manager

Natalie Kolling has always had a passion for working at camp. In fact, she spent 6 years working at a Day Camp before she joined the Chi team in 2017. Natalie received her degree in Education at Illinois State University and has a license in teaching. In 2021 Natalie became a part of a JCulture cohort training staff on how to implementing safe, respectful, diverse, inclusive, and equitable workplaces. She believes this mindset is very important in a camp setting since the values learned at Chi can shape who you become. As the business manager, Natalie works on a lot of the behind the scenes processes of camp and is also a certified lifeguard instructor training the Camp Chi aquatics staff each year. Natalie recently became a mom and is excited for her little one to join the Camp Chi family soon. You can reach Natalie at nkolling@jccchicago.org.

Jared London, Teen and Program Manager

Jared, more commonly known as J-Lo around camp, has spent almost two decades at Chi as a camper, SIT of 14, counselor and village leader. J-Lo’s biggest passion is camp and the surrounding culture. He hopes to spend many more years at the greatest place on earth… Camp Chi! As Teen and Program Manager, J-Lo is responsible for the planning and implementation of camp-wide programs and retreats, both in season and offseason, Chi Town Connection- our youth group for teens, and the hiring process for our domestic staff. Over the summer J-Lo supervises Habo and Noar, our 8th, 9th, and 10th grade units. Email J-Lo at jlondon@jccchicago.org.

Ely London, Community Care Manager

Camp Chi has been Ely London’s home for 12 summers as camper, SIT of 2016, and a staff member. At camp she loves stargazing, song sessions, grilled cheese Sundays and spending her summers with her best friends. As the Community Care Manager, she’ll be supervising our younger villages by working closely with the village leaders. She will also be working with the Community Care team to make sure that every member of our community is set up for success before, during and after camp! Ely Graduated from the University of Illinois with a degree in dance. Ely supervises Shoreshim (4th-5th grade) and Tsofim (6th grade) at camp. You can email Ely at elondon@jccchicago.org.

Jonno Appel, Outdoor Adventure Coordinator

Jonno has spent his career developing and facilitating experiences that help folks grow by stepping out of their comfort zones in safe and supported ways. He’s guided, planned, and managed logistics for over 75 multi-day group adventure tours in 8 different countries. Jonno also has years of experience in program development, designing and implementing nature-oriented volunteer programs in Costa Rica and the United States. He has a bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin – Madison, is a certified Wilderness First Responder, and is a certified AcroYoga instructor. At camp Jonno will be directly supervising the Outpost Village, managing the logistics and training for the PNW trip, and running Camp’s overnights and outdoor adventures. You can email Jonno at jappel@jccchicago.org.

Jessie Lankford, Logistics Manager

Jessie has spent the last 15 years at Camp Chi in a variety of roles including camper, counselor, village leader, and most recently programming director. Jessie manages the programmatic sides and behind the scenes of camp as well as works with the American Camping Association to help maintain our accreditation. She received both a Bachelor’s in Social Work from the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign and a Master’s in Social Work from the University of Chicago. Jessie is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) who also treats adolescents, teens, and young adults outside of her time at camp. Over the summer Jessie will continue to supervise all of Camp Chi’s programmatic needs from the daily schedule to field trips and more. Contact Jessie at jlankford@jccchicago.org.

Krystal Wagner, Operations Coordinator

We’re thrilled to welcome Krystal to our team! Krystal has always had a knack for the outdoors and grew up spending most of her free time at her family’s 80-acre cabin just outside of the Wisconsin Dells. As Operations Coordinator, Krystal assists in registering campers and ensures that they are placed in Villages best suited for their needs. Krystal has an incredible attention to detail and is guided by her positive values, this allows her to correspond with families in a timely manner with complete transparency. Krystal takes pride in her work and is always there to answer your questions about camp. Attending Tamarack Camps as an adult has given her a taste of the “Camp Magic” that Chi provides, and she looks forward to seeing how this impacts your families as well. You can reach Krystal at kwagner@jccchicago.org.