Hometown: New Haven, CT
Current location: Brookline, MA
Years at camp: 1993-200. I'm a lifer: Amelim through working on staff after going on Workshop 51.
How did you learn about Galil: My older cousins went to Galil in the '80s so when my sister, Kate, and I were old enough my mom sent us, too.
Favorite camp memory: Definitely Zap! Flash light tag was the best evening activity even though I was always terrible at it. I would never make it past Hyde Park.
Favorite camp activity: I spend as much time in the arts and crafts studio (melechet yad) as they would let me! Be it weaving lanyards, tie dye, candle making -- I could get enough! I loved being in the melechet yad so much that I came back from Workshop and ran the melechet yad for the summer of 2002.
Favorite camp song: Red Fly the Banner HighAre you still in touch with friends from your Galil days: Of course! My age group (kvutzah) established an e-mail list which remains active for almost 10 years! Some of my closest friendships started at Galil.
How did your camp experience impact your adult life: Galil taught me the importance of sharing. From sharing my candy (kupah!) to sharing my feelings, Galil taught me that a community is a group of people who share. They share their success and happiness in times of celebration, and they share their sorrow and look to the community for support. I have carried that tenet of sharing with me forward into adulthood and it has continued to inform the way I've conducted my personal and professional life to great effect.
What are you up to these days: I passed the MA Bar in 2012 and worked in e-commerce operations for my sister's eco-friendly start-up, the Green Bride Guide. In 2013, I founded my own company, OMG, Cute! LLC, focusing on seriously cute product design. I actually just launched my first Kickstarter campaign for Dust Panda: Changing the Face of Dustpans!
What inspired you to create Dust Panda: I've always loved word play and for as long as I can remember, pandas have been my power-animal. So the day I came up with the Dust Panda pun, I knew I had to make it! Having the JD degree and a background in retail operations gave me the encouragement I needed to pursue bringing my design to market.
Where can we find more information on Dust Panda: There's a pretty goofy promo video that I shot and edited that you can check out here.
What's the best way to help: The Kickstarter campaign ends on May 16th -- and I'm looking for all the support I can get! Galilnikim can help me most by sharing the project with their friends, liking the Dust Panda Facebook page, and/or helping to fund my start-up. Even small contributions make a big difference!
