Teachers of Summer 2013

Time to introduce the staff of 2013 at Wynchemna!        Hi I'm Andrea and I'm from Toronto, Ontario, and I'm super pumped to be out west at Wynchemna this summer!  When I'm not at work I love to be outside running, hiking, or just enjoying nature.  I'm athletic and try to spend as much time as I can being active, and basketball is my favourite sport.  I love spending time with my friends and family.  Our favourite thing to do together is share food and drink.  I will occasionally jam on the piano for those that I know, as I have been playing the piano most of my life.  My favourite way to end a long day is to relax with a book before bed.  Hello! My name is Charisa and I am so excited for my first summer teaching at Wynchemna! I have a real passion for adventure and travel, and capturing every moment with my ever-growing collection of cameras! I grew up in five countries overseas prior to moving to Canada, so I can definitely relate to the mishmash of emotions you might be feeling when encountering a new country and culture. I am thoroughly looking forward to sharing stories, as well as new experiences with you throughout our time together. Water sports are definitely one of my favorite parts about this season and I am excited to show you all how much fun and educational a Canadian summer can be!  Hey everyone! I'm super excited for my first summer at Wynchemna. My name is Lisa and I am from Calgary, Alberta and I love living so close to the mountains! I enjoy meeting new people, trying new things, the outdoors, hanging out with friends, teaching and science. Whenever I have free time I love travelling with my family. Some of the places we've been are China, Japan, the Caribbean, Costa Rica and many more! Can't wait to meet all of you and start our adventure at Wynchemna together!  Hi! my name is Jo-Anna and I'm from Toronto.  I love love love to travel (especially to the beach) and see new places. I also love to paint and make all kinds of desserts. But one of my all time favorite pass times is reading, which I hope I can share with all of you! Looking forward to our summer at Wynchemna! Hey guys! I'm Peter, and I just recently returned to Canada and home to Calgary from an incredible time in China and Indonesia. I love travelling and meeting people from other cultures and languages. I enjoy studying languages myself, as well as being outside as much as possible; hiking, camping, snowboarding, etc. I have played music for many years and still jam around with my guitar and trumpet. I also really like tea. I'm very excited to spend the summer with a bunch of great students, learning and exploring!

 Hi I'm Kristina and I am very excited about my first summer with Wynchemna. I am from Kingston, ON but I am currently living in Kuujjuaq, Quebec, which is a small community just below the tree line. Although there are lots of fun activities to do up here, I am excited to return home to the South for the summer and enjoy the warm summer weather, I'm not used to still seeing snow in June. In my free time I love to get outdoors, anything from running to camping. In the summer I especially like spending my time on the lake, swimming, canoeing or just enjoying the sunshine. I have always enjoyed sports and I'm usually game for anything. Most recently I tried archery, which is much harder than it looks. Basketball and ultimate frisbee are probably two of my favorites.  When I'm not being active I enjoy hanging out with friends, playing board games or watching  movies. I think the thing I am looking forward to the most this summer, besides the warm weather, is meeting new people and trying new things. See you all soon!  Hi everyone! My name is Jeffrey but most people call me Jeff without my correction. Either is fine with me! I love getting outside, staying active and playing sports. I am a huge basketball junkie. I grew up just outside Toronto so my favorite team will always be the Toronto Raptors. Everywhere I go, I am always listening to some tunes. I have a wide taste in music which ranges from electronic dance to classical. I am currently learning how to play the piano! I love hanging out with friends and meeting new people. I look forward to meeting you all soon!

  My name is Amy.  Well, in my spare time I enjoy fine arts: going to plays and musicals, taking photographs and editing them in Photoshop. I am the leader of my Church College and Career Group, and I enjoy planning events and attending church services with the people here. Morality and integrity are important to me, but I also love adventure and thrill seeking! I have a love of old movies, cooking, white water rafting, roller coasters, and camping.  I currently live in Saskatoon and work as a substitute teacher.  Nicole - My two greatest passions are teaching and traveling as I have always found it thrilling to immerse myself in new environments and discover what I can both offer and borrow from other cultures. I also love camping, hiking, running, swimming, and painting. I have most recently taken up yoga and fund-raising work with Great Strides - both of which I have greatly been enjoying.  Hi! My name is Julia and I am really excited to be teaching at Wynchemna this summer! There is so much to look forward too, and I can’t wait to meet so many new faces! In my spare time, when I’m not at school or work, I love spending time with family and friends. Whether it’s being active outside or simply enjoying one another’s company I love to learn and share experiences. I am committed to being a life long learner, always looking for opportunities to expand my knowledge so that I can become an effective mentor. As I continue to learn and develop from the experiences around me, Wynchemna is one experience that I’m most excited to add to my list! See you all soon!  Hey, my name is Ajay! I am super pumped to be back at Wynchemna again this summer! I like snowboarding, hiking, and barbecuing. Did i mention the sun? Turns out it is summer time and I am so ready for it. Hope to see you soon!  Dustin is from the small mountainous village of Trail, British Columbia. He enjoys mountain biking, skiing, hiking, and yodelling. Not very many people know this, but Dustin is well-known for being one of the best yodellers in the Northern Hemisphere. Some may consider this to be his best quality, however we know he has much more to offer. Some of his favourite activities at Wynchemna include: kayaking, ice skating, rock climbing, camping, and of course... yodelling around the fire. Hello! My name is Julia Lovgren and I am a native of Toronto.  I am very passionate about the arts, especially film, literature, and music. I try to watch films, read books, and listen to albums as often as is possible. In addition, I have been learning to sing and play the ukulele over the past six months and have been thoroughly enjoying the process. Over the last several years, I been fortunate enough to teach and travel throughout Asia, including China, Vietnam, and Turkey. While abroad, I discovered a love of experiencing new cultures, traditions, and environments. For instance, I try to take every opportunity I can to go hiking in natural landscapes from the rice patty fields of Indonesia to the temperate rainforests of Vancouver Island. I am looking forward to experiencing more of the beautiful landscapes of Western Canada this summer while working with everyone at Wynchemna!  Jay - I have always been interested in art and am always searching for new mediums of expression. I grew up playing music, starting with piano and guitar, and have also experimented with many other instruments throughout my lifetime. Music is probably one of my favorite forms of art because it can be shared and used to socialize with others, and will definitely remain a major aspect of my life. Aside from music, I am very passionate about writing and have been attempting to write a novel for the past couple of years, with some difficulty of course. I have a desire to learn and am always searching for new challenges, both physical and mental. Windsurfing has become one of my favorite sports because it remains a test every time I do it, with attempts use the changing and unexpected wind conditions. I am always be searching for new opportunities to learn and develop as a person, and look forward to growing through my experiences as an instructor at Wynchemna.   Hey my name is Natalia. I'm a city girl from Oakville, Ontario that fell in love with the Canadian Rockies- and I guarantee you will too! I am super excited to be back at Wynchemna this year. I love meeting new people, going on awesome adventures and having fun. If you like to do the same things look no further. I promise you this will be a summer you'll never forget!  Anyways, my name is Daniel, I am a very outgoing, friendly individual. I love traveling the world whenever I have enough money to do so and interacting with different people from all over the world. Some of my hobbies are soccer, rugby, hockey, basketball and snowboarding.  Simon - In my spare time I generally enjoy reading and gaming. I read pretty much anything, though mostly history and science fiction these days, and play pretty much anything as well, from computer to tabletop When I have a bit more time open to me I tend to hike or canoe. I love exploring the woods and wandering off the beaten path. I am also a decent, if rusty, archer and fencer. Essentially if the skill would have been useful 500 years ago, chances are I have learned the basics for fun. Hey there, My name is Anna and I’m from Toronto, Ontario. Well, let’s see what can I tell you about myself. Fun fact, I love to Karaoke, even though I am not very good at it. I love travelling, meeting new people and discovering new places. I just got back to Canada after an amazing year teaching in France and I loved every minute of it.  I love to joke around and I try my best to make people laugh (sometimes it works).  I like to read, play tennis, go hiking and take pictures, watch movies. I also like to meddle in different things like pottery, photography, dance, painting and the list goes on. I can’t wait to meet everyone.  See you all real soon.  Hey! My name is Gillian and I am very excited to be teaching at Wynchemna this summer!  I was born and raised in Calgary and currently live in Cochrane, Alberta. My passions include traveling, going for runs, singing along to the radio in my car and finding new adventures. In my spare time I love reading, cooking new foods, eating ice cream, going to farmers’ markets and spending time with friends and family. I’m looking forward to a great summer and meeting everyone soon!  I'm Adam, originally from the prairie province of Saskatchewan, but now living, working, and studying in southern Quebec. This is my fifth year as a Wynchemna teacher, mostly working and planning camping, lessons, and activities in Calgary. I grew up loving the wilderness, and being a Wynchemna teacher combines a lot of my interests in a meaningful way through education. Given a week off I can usually be found doing my own hiking trips, long-distance running, biking anywhere there is a trail, and refining my French. As a teacher I like to connect language learning in meaningful ways, linking English pop culture and music with Canadiana  and environmental education. To students coming to study with us this summer, welcome! There's a reason so many of us -teachers and students- come back every summer. You're going to have a blast!