Our Staff

Matt grew up in Tennessee attending summer camp each summer. In 2006, while in college at Abilene Christian University, he fell in love with camping as a summer camp counselor. He went on to spend several years in the camping industry in Texas, at Camp Olympia. There, he directed retreat groups and ran the waterfront program.

Matt has a passion for all areas of camp, but most of all likes working with the wide variety of groups that we host here. He enjoys traveling the world and watching college football!

Makayla grew up in Fulton, MO as the daughter as a professional horse trainer, thus she has spent her whole life with horses. Makayla attended William Woods University and after college, went on to work with many top trainers in the industry. After 8 years, Makayla decided to change her focus and come to Widji to focus on creating magical and educational experiences for campers. In her spare time, she loves being outside her with family and spending time with her horse, Cece.

Danielle is from Frisco, Texas and began attending summer camp at YMCA Camp Grady Spruce at the age of 8 where she fell in love with summer camp, never missing a summer as a camper. Danielle has worked in a variety of capacities, including retreats and summer camp. She loves all the different aspects that camp has to offer but her favorite is to watch connections and relationships grow. 

Danielle worked previously at YMCA Camp Silver Beach as a Program Director and is now the Day Camp Director at Widji. In her spare time, Danielle enjoys reading and playing with her dog, Hank.

AJ is well-versed in the YMCA camping world, having started his camp journey in 2012 at YMCA Camp Harrison as a camp counselor. After graduating from North Carolina A&T State University, AJ was a sports director for the YMCA of Greensboro before returning to YMCA Camp Harrison in 2018 as the Overnight Camp Director. Now part of the Widji team, AJ is using his extensive YMCA camping knowledge to bring magic to the campers at Widji.

Kaitlin is a familiar face at Widji having worked in a variety of roles from counselor to Theme Camp Coordinator to Ropes Coordinator. Most recently, Kaitlin worked for YMCA Camp Erdman in Hawaii and now re-joins the Widji team as Assistant Overnight Camp Director.

Kaitlin is a big fan of everything theme camp and Big Game. In her spare time, Kaitlin can be found camping, wakeboarding and playing with her two pups, Kona and Krispy.

Julie first volunteered at Camp Widjiwagan’s Equestrian Center in 1998 with her daughter, Christy. Since then, she has served us in multiple roles, currently acting as development director. Originally from Holland, MI, she and her husband have lived next to camp for the last 19 years, where they raised their three children and numerous pets. Julie loves working at camp because of her passion for families and the outdoors. When not working, she enjoys spending time with her family, running, going for bike rides and doing yard work.

Bethany is a Nashville expert, having previously worked at different museums around Nashville in education and summer camp roles, most recently at the Adventure Science Center! Now, Bethany has brought her talents to Widji to assist the Groups & Events department, ensuring every guest has nothing but an exceptional experience here at Widji.

Previously a Membership Coordinator at the Donelson YMCA, Shelia is now the Camp Widji Registration Coordinator. Shelia is the go-to for parents, and helps answer any and all questions and get kiddos signed-up for camp. Behind the scenes, Shelia handles all of the nitty-gritty details that come with setting up summer and year-round programming and keeps everything with registration and scheduling running smoothly.