it’s all about

CONNECTION

OUR
FAMILY

our staff

The Summer of a Lifetime

Each summer 60 or so adults gather in the Hudson Valley at Odyssey Teen Camp to live in community, work hard, and help teenagers accept themselves for who they are. We work long, tough hours and change lives everyday—while having a lot of fun! Here’s a little bit about our dedicated core staff below, who return year after year to help us run OTC.

lisa gozbekian

Pod Leader

Lisa has been at OTC for 9 great years. Before coming to camp, she had never been to an overnight camp or been in the woods for longer than a few days. She loves dance parties and is ready to bring the support, honesty, and love needed to allow teens to be their best and unique selves.

georgios tsangaris

Pod Leader

Georgios has been at OTC since the beginning. He has toured the country with two different circuses, is a published poet, and is active in the underground theatre scene in New Orleans. His favorite thing at camp is helping weird and shy teens realize how cool they actually are!

sarah schumacher

Pod Leader

Sarah Schu is a poet who paints, an optimist that questions and a New Yorker who comes alive in the woods of OTC each summer. As a self-proclaimed bad artist, Sarah Schu offers the tools, space and support for campers to explore making art, fearlessly and without judgement. When not at OTC, Sarah Schu is dreaming of what classes she’ll teach next year at camp as well as exploring intentional communities looking for inspiration.

riley thomas

Pod Leader

Riley Thomas aims to foster an environment of radical love and acceptance of self and others here at OTC. A firm believer in the healing power of silliness, laughter, and hope she looks forward to returning to camp each summer where these are abundant. Her favorite thing about camp is helping teenagers discover their inner strength and validity in their ideas, thoughts, and feelings. Throughout the year she can be found working toward her M.A in Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies and thinking about the magic of laughter over a campfire.

debbie good

Office Manager

Debbie and her husband Steve have been leading and growing camps for a combined 40 years. Debbie believes that kindness, generosity, and gratefulness are what counts in life. She is a missionary for the message of teen camp and has seen firsthand the results that two weeks of living together in a community brings to our teens.

steve erickson

Jack of All Trades

Steve brings a wonderful, loving presence to everything he does at camp. This includes assisting Debbie in the office, leading Shamanic Journey and Tarot Reading classes, hauling heavy objects where they need to go (like our ping pong tables!), and helping campers and counselors with whatever they might need to have a wonderful experience at camp.

clarissa eck

Program Director

Clarissa is our Program Director and Social Media Manager. This coming summer will be her 6th year at OTC. During the year, Clarissa works as an illustrator and graphic designer. She’s passionate about alternative education and keeping the spirit of Odyssey alive all year round! Her favorite thing about camp is watching teenagers learn how to trust themselves and each other in a supportive and imaginative environment.