Our Leadership

Cole and Kate Kelly and Family

Cole & Kate Kelly, Directors

Shortly after meeting for the first time in August 2000, the idea of summer camp came up. Kate had spent two summers as a head counselor at wonderful girls camp in western Massachusetts. Cole was finishing his MBA at the University of Georgia and wanted to work with young people, teach, and run a business.

After finishing her Masters of Education at Harvard (Cole’s M.Ed. is from UVa), Kate and Cole decided to pursue their mutual love of camp. Almost two decades in, it continues to be the second best decision they’ve made together.

Cole spends his summers setting the tone for camp, joining in on the fun with the kids, and supporting both the staff members at camp and parents back home in every way possible. While there are too many joys of camp to list, getting the youngest campers’ ‘happies’ each night and leading the weekly Friday Night Campfires are among his favorites. During the off-season, Cole travels to meet potential new families around the world and oversees the preparations for another great summer.

Kate’s day-to-day at camp is focused on ‘creating amazing’ for our campers and staff members. Whether it’s working side by side with our Division Heads, helping with the daily schedule of surprises, leading our nightly ‘Flagpole Nominations’ or just spending time with the campers, Kate is a huge presence each day. Kate spends her off-season guiding our thinking about the upcoming summer. (With two Ivy League degrees, she’s the smart one!)

Both Kate and Cole have come a long way together from their captaining their collegiate teams (soccer at Dartmouth for Kate and golf at Virginia for Cole.) When not talking camp or volunteering in their home community of Athens, GA, Kate and Cole spend their time parenting their three boys – Cole3 (19), Jack (17) and Luke (15) – and caring for Camp Dog Mav.


Sue Baldwin, Associate Director

Sue Baldwin

Associate Director

Dana Stassen, Assistant Director

Dana Stassen

Assistant Director

James Stassen, Assistant Director

James Stassen

Assistant Director

Sam Thomson

Marketing Manager/Staff Coordinator

Leigh Laughlin, Parent Liasion and Health Center Manager

A lifelong friend of Cole’s, Leigh had heard about camp for years but not growing up as a camper herself, she did not understand the full extent of the experience. After much convincing (and the birth of her 3rd son!) Leigh was ready to give camp a chance.

Leigh and her family instantly became huge fans of Weequahic. Leigh started as our very first ‘Food Fairy’ and got to hand out snacks and canteen treats to the campers daily. She loves seeing the campers and getting to check on them to make sure they are doing well. After her first summer at camp, Leigh began working part-time in the winter office. She now enjoys connecting with and supporting our first time camp families and working with the staff in various ways.

After Leigh’s 5th summer at camp, she took on a new role as Health Center Administrator. Being a mom of 3, she feels that one of the worst things is to be sick at camp. No one wants to miss out on all of the special experiences! She wants to do everything she can to get the campers well, whether it’s sending them to the nurse or just giving them lots of “mom love!”

John Wiedner, Maintenance Director

A former collegiate football player and one-time member of the Philadelphia Eagles, John has built a reputation as a respected builder and general contractor in Eastern PA and New Jersey over the past thirty years.

After spending a few months working with Weequahic to repair some winter damage, John decided to join the team full-time during Summer 2018. Since that time, he’s worked closely with Cole to improve Weequahic’s physical property, ensure the safety of our campers and staff, and keep a patient and consistent rein on Cole and Kate’s wild ideas.

The Weequahic family is blessed to have such a thoughtful, talented person leading our Maintenance team.


Summer Camp Staff

Handpicked following an extensive set of face-to-face interviews, reference, and background checks, our summer staff are chosen to fill two roles: amazing bunk counselor and teacher in a specific area at camp. Summer staff join us for a nine-day orientation experience before the campers arrive in order to form a tightly knit community focused on creating amazing in a safe environment.

Hailing from all points of the compass, our staff members have finished at least their first year in college and cannot wait to get to Weequahic to help everyone they meet experience a GAC summer. In addition to our new friends, we are thrilled to welcome back many former campers to serve as bunk counselors and program leaders each summer.