CAMP DIRECTOR- Nicole Santeramo (Thuja): Thuja has always known that she wanted to work with children and wildlife. As a child her friends often called her house the "zoo", sharing her home with rabbits, fish, newts, turtles, dogs and cats, just to name a few! From a young age she recognized that animals were sentient beings and that their lives were just as important as our own. Thuja's love of wildlife created a sense of curiosity and a desire to obtain knowledge about the environment. She attended many camps as a child, which allowed her the opportunity to appreciate and interact with nature. Being a "city kid" she was painfully aware of the lack of green space, and looked forward to the rural camps every summer.

After high school, Thuja decided to pursue a career in healthcare. She developed a passion for working with children as a 2nd year nursing student, spending her breaks in the children's wards teaching them whatever they wanted to learn. Years later she became a Dental Hygienist and has been working in the field of pediatric dentistry since 2003. In 2009, Thuja travelled to Ecuador twice to volunteer her professional services, working extensively with indigenous children in the Amazon Rainforest. She has also been involved with the Street Youth Clinic in Toronto providing dental hygiene treatment and education to homeless youth.

Thuja has also been working at Jungle Cat World as a Wildlife Educator, allowing her to share her knowledge and passion for environmental issues with the public, striving to inspire a love for nature and a desire to protect it. Recently she has teamed up with COTERC (Canadian Organization for Tropical Education and Rainforest Conservation) to educate school age children about various environmental issues and to promote rainforest conservation. Thuja is currently working on a project to provide free dental treatment to children in Nunavut, which will be followed by another trip to South America in 2010.

CAMP DIRECTOR- Alec Simpson (J-Raf):

J-Raf has always been fascinated by mother nature and all her inhabitants, including ourselves! With nature nuts for parents and a country home for most of his youth, he was destined for either raising chickens or wildlife conservation. Although his retirement plans are up in the air, he chose the latter!

Given his passion for adventure, a healthy addiction for the outdoors, and an unrivaled grace in full gallop, J-Raf fit in very well when he worked at Zoo Camp in 2007 as an Activity Counsellor. Recently finished with his Guelph University studies in Wildlife Biology, he was thrilled to get a chance to bond with campers and share his knowledge and passion for nature and conservation with everyone at camp. Once that epic summer was over and everyone went home, J-Raf wasn't sure what to do.

He had learned so much from the kids at camp, and was so inspired by their passion, that he felt he had to make a move to protect animals and conserve our wild spaces. He moved on to work and volunteer for a variety of non-governmental organizations, zoos, and national parks advocating for conservation and animal welfare in any way he could. From sharing wildlife stories with people visiting Canadian National Parks, promoting sustainable business, and assisting with media events at the Toronto Zoo, to working long days rehabilitating domestic and wild animals with the Ontario Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (OSPCA), he has kept pretty busy... but then his sense of adventure got the better of him....

J-Raf branched out and decided to travel abroad to help with the conservation of iconic tropical species. He visited the Canadian Organization for Tropical Education and Rainforest Conservation (COTERC) Research Station in Costa Rica to briefly help out with their marine turtle nest monitoring surveys. Shortly after, he found himself in the Belizean jungle where he assisted with an extensive project examining jaguar genetics and population density. With a newly acquired passion for cold bucket showers and huge cockroaches, he is currently hoping to lend his expertise to an Orangutan Health Project deep in the primary rainforests of Indonesia!

HEAD COUNSELLOR- Sam Cadesky (LC):

LC is currently going into his 4th year at the University of Guelph studying Environmental Biology. He is currently our longest standing staff member and first came to Safari Zoo Camp as camper nearly a decade ago! For several years now, he has been acting as the Safari Zoo Camp animal enrichment specialist.

LC has also spent a portion of his previous summers working in a laboratory and researching human hormones as they correlate to reproduction. LC has always had an upbeat and cheery attitude and has always been the life of Zoo Camp!

MALE ACTIVITY COUNSELLOR- Brian Millward (Squid):

Shakespeare once wrote, "Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon ’em." All of these scenarios apply to Squid. Ever since Squid was a child he always had an equal passion for wildlife and the arts.

As a teenager, Squid was enrolled as a drama major at Claude Watson School for the Arts. At that time, Squid explored his love for theatre, music, and dance. He also became the president of his high school's Arts Council. In addition he auditioned for television roles and appeared in a few commercials and music videos.

Squid was a camper at Safari Zoo Camp for the first time in 2004. Ever since then Squid has never left. His favourite activities at camp include zoo-keeping, caving, rock-climbing, and rappelling. Zoo Camp acted as a catalyst to Squid’s passion for the environment, wildlife, and sustainability. Since then, Squid was accepted into the University of Guelph for zoology. He also has travelled to England, Greece, Italy, and the Rocky Mountains. As well, Squid has branched out by becoming a street canvasser for Greenpeace. Squid always believed that awareness and knowledge is the key to change. He is looking forward to being able to build on his knowledge from the bright campers this summer.

MALE ACTIVITY COUNSELLOR- Rob Anderson (Frodo):

Growing up, Frodo's favourite time of the year was always going to camp. He went to an overnight called RKY for seven years where he discovered how much he likes hanging out in Nature with his friends and running around the forest with various objectives. Frodo eventually left RKY in 2007 to spend his summer on a soil sampling expedition in the North West Territories. Living in a forest in the middle nowhere for 8 weeks, Fro's love of nature was tested by his hatred of the mosquitoes. However, after a long, bloody war, a great truce was made between Frodo and the mosquitoes. They no longer bother each other and Frodo has since then been free to explore his interests in nature.

Since then Frodo has been studying science at the University of Guelph, but a great deal of his time has been spent mastering various other crafts such as ping pong, foosball, darts, cards, pogo sticking, hackey sacking, frizbee throwing, Wii Sports, some real sports too, and most importantly, RISK... The Game of Global Domination.

In 2009 Frodo had the best summer ever as an Activity Counselor at Safari Zoo Camp, and upon his return he immediately acquired some new pets. He took great care to ensure his new fish, lizards, frog and turtle were all living in harmony, but eventually the turtle grew too large and was banished to a separate tank on charges of conspiracy to commit murder. Despite all this drama, city life is getting old and Frodo cannot wait to be back sitting around a fire with everyone at Zoo Camp.

FEMALE ACTIVITY COUNSELLOR- Nicole Fyall (Gecko):

Gecko is extremely excited to begin her first summer as a Safari Zoo Camp counsellor at Jungle Cat World. After two years at the University of Guelph studying zoology, she is exceptionally eager to share what she's learned with the many campers that will visit the zoo this 2010 season!

Ever since she was a little girl, Gecko always has had a passion for all living creatures. She looks forward to inspiring campers to truly value all life on Earth, as well as the natural environments in which they inhabit. Gecko hopes to ensure that all visiting nature enthusiasts have the time of their life while at camp... so bring on the adventure!

FEMALE ACTIVITY COUNSELLOR- Elizabeth Clark (Zazu):

Zazu is a laid back, nature-loving student at the University of Waterloo who has always had an affinity towards all animals. She's the kid who couldn't turn her back on a baby bird who had fallen out of a nest or on the feral kitten that took swipes at everyone. With patience and an eager willingness to help any creature that came across her path, she discovered her passion for rehabilitation.

Her enthusiasm to try anything from sky-diving to white-water rafting knows no limits. Her time at the Jungle Cat World ten years ago as a camper really fuelled her, and her past experience as a counsellor was completely inspirational. She is really looking forward to another fantastic summer!

FEMALE ACTIVITY COUNSELLOR/SAFARI CLUB COUNSELLOR- Marina Rose:

Marina has always been fascinated by all the wildlife this world has to offer. She knew that hard work and determination would pay off and she would be doing what she loves!

Currently, she is a student at Wilfrid Laurier University. During the summer she likes to make the most out of the amazing weather and enjoy the outdoors. Growing up in a big family conditioned her to pass on her knowledge to others, something she looks forward to do at Zoo Camp with the many campers that share the same passion for the planet!

SPECIAL NEEDS COUNSELLOR- Rachel Thorn:

This is Rachel's first time working at Safari Zoo Camp, but feels like the job was made for her; a place where kids can go to camp, and learn about animals in a very real way. Growing up with the constant presence of domestic cats inside her home, which also played host to an abundance of various other found or rescued animals, she was able to foster a great appreciation for all types of inhabitants of the animal kingdom.

Rachel started volunteering with special needs children in 2003 and received a Teddy Bear Appreciation award for her efforts. Only ever having been to an overnight camp for one week as a camper, she was hooked immediately and applied to work at a summer camp the next summer. Since then she has worked at camps every summer as a cabin leader and later as an assistant director.

She currently attends the University of Guelph studying International Development with a minor in Spanish and hopes to travel to South America to work in the future. Rachel is very excited for her opportunity to work at Jungle Cat World this summer!