Leadership Team
Our organization is managed by a team of directors:
C.G. Stephens, Administrator/Program Director
Jodi Browning, Administrator/Program Director
Michael Jarvis, Program Director
David Knudsen, Founder/Director
Cynthia Knudsen, Director
To learn more about their shared commitments as directors and the paths that brought them to Langskib and Northwaters, please visit the Program Directors page.
Our Staff
These are the people who make our programs extraordinary. Occasionally we hire a professional from outside our community but the vast majority of our staff start out as participants. After working their way up through the ranks, earning a spot on a Bay Trip and then completing our Leadership Program, they begin a multi year apprenticeship to become a leader. All in all, it takes from 5 to 8 years for a young person to become a trip leader.
Leaders are chosen because they have earned our respect and trust, because they have demonstrated a strong ability to relate to young people and because they share our commitment to providing outstanding experiences for young people coming of age.
Once they sign on, leaders tend to stay—many for 10 or more years. Low turnover insures consistent program quality and the capacity to train new leaders. During the off season, we encourage our staff to pursue endeavors which stretch them as individuals and develop them as leaders. This makes for a diverse group of staff with an ability to relate to young people from all walks of life.
Maggie Ballantyne, Trip Leader
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Matt Barber, Trip Leader
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James Bertoia, Trip Leader
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"I first came to Langskib at the age of 13, having spent years in traditional residential camp and spending summers at the cottage. From the moment I stepped out of the float plane I was hooked. Over the years I have traveled the lakes and rivers of Temagami, Quebec and Manitoba, learning the whole way. My leaders passed on the tools that have allowed me to lead a full and rewarding life. They have all helped to shape the person that I am. I have been assisting and leading trips with NWL for 3 years, and it is an honour to have the opportunity to pass on this knowledge and experience to future generations. NWL has provided an incredibly powerful experience that has set the stage for my future career in Outdoor Experiential Education. Through this, I am able to continue and improve the work I do throughout the summer. I am currently pursuing my Honours Bachelor of Outdoor Recreation and Georgraphy, as well as my Bachelor of Education at Lakehead University. In the off-season you can find me working as a ski instructor, running sled dog teams across Northern Ontario, and volunteering as an Advanced Medical First Responder in the city of Thunder Bay."
Lisa Bjorkman, Trip Leader
"During my first summer at Northwaters it rained for seventeen of our twenty-four days on the trail. After a few days of pulling on wet jeans and my soggy Mickey Mouse sweatshirt, I began to wonder if canoeing was my thing. Yet I remember one particularly puddly morning quite vividly as a turning point for me: one of my tent-mates, tugging on her own sodden socks in the (relative) dryness of our tent, turned to me with a deadpan expression and proclaimed, "I'll go out there if you'll go out there." A moment passed and we both burst out laughing, struck by the absurdity of our shared predicament as well as relieved by the realization that neither of us would be alone in facing what promised to be a very challenging day. The sound of our laughter, needless to say, overpowered the ominous pitter-pat of the rain outside. In the backcountry, I discovered my ability to laugh - and to seek out the laughter of others - in the face of adversity, a gift that has served me in more ways than I might count. These days I spend a lot of time in Bombay, where I'm researching the politics of municipal water access for my doctoral dissertation. While this has meant that I spend fewer of my summer months canoeing, I still point my compass north whenever I get a chance."
John Booth, Trip Leader
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”I started out at Northwaters when I was 15, went on to do the Bay Trip and then was hired on as an assistant trip leader in 1997. Since then, I've assisted and/or lead 11 trips with Northwaters and Langskib including a Langskib Bay Trip. I am currently enrolled at Ontario Veterinary College, University of Guelph and expect to have my Doctor of Veterinary Medicine by spring 2004. In 2002 I participated in "Global Vets" South Africa program working in various South African national parks with wildlife veterinarians doing game capture, relocations and rehabilitation of elephants, rhinos, lions, buffalo etc. I am a member of the Big Brother's program, an avid windsurfer and guitar player.“
John Bowie, Trip Leader
"I first arrived at Langskib as an unsuspecting cherubic 11 year old with a bowl cut. From that young age, I discovered a love of the wilderness and the lessons my mentors at Langskib taught me were invaluable in my development into an adult. Working as a guide has been a journey in itself, teaching me countless things about leadership, group process, and psychology on the individual, group and organizational levels. I am currently living in Canada, working as a tutor and a sales representative for Northwaters & Langskib Wilderness program. In addition to being a canoe guide, I am an aspiring teacher and science fiction writer. I hope to pursue graduate studies in Applied Cognitive Science and Education with an emphasis on the shifting development of male learning as a result of information age recreation. In essence, this is looking at the changing learning behaviors caused by youth exposure to the Internet, and how we can better teach in these conditions.."
Swift Corwin, Trip Leader
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"I first came to Langskib when I was 10 years old in 1996. Since then I have been on many incredible adventures with Northwaters/Langskib and on my own. Some of my adventures include the Langskib Bay trip and the Winisk River Leadership Program. My love for adventure and the outdoors have truly found a home in Temagami. I am currently planning a year off from my studies in which I plan to travel and explore the world for the beauty and adventure other countries have to offer. I hope to attend college in the fall of 2006. In the off season I enjoy skiing/snowboarding, ice boating, white water kayaking, and competitive swimming."
Jon Ehrenfeld, Trip Leader
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"I first came to Langskib when I was 9. The camp, the land, and the people made an immediate impression on me - I felt intrinsically that this was the place for me. I returned every year after that, and after completing my Bay trip, I was invited on the first Great Whale trip, an experience that made a huge impact upon me. To this day I frequently think of it, and the effect that it had on me. My time as a guide at NWL has been a hugely positive experience, and I am profoundly thankful to have had the opportunity. In the offseason I enjoy backpacking, hiking, and camping, and am involved in the nonprofit community as I plan to return to school in international relations or environmental policy."
Deshka Foster, Trip Leader
"When I was eleven, my dad asked me if I would like to spend my summer canoeing in Ontario. ”Sounds great!“ I said and sure enough, I have spent the past ten summers at Northwaters. Initially a participant in the all-girls program, my experiences challenged me, cultivating perseverance and compassion, strength and friendship. I went on The Great Whale Leadership Course in 2002 and as a staff member I have had the opportunity to lead several all-female trips. I am currently excited to explore new territory as Northwaters' Sea-kayaking Programs develop. Besides the woods, I love mountains and spend my winters skiing and snowboarding in Lake Tahoe. I am currently a student of Human Biology at Stanford University, specializing in infectious disease and psychology. I am also a member of The Stanford Improv Team, striving to specialize in spontaneity and mirth!"
Robert Jussup, Trip Leader
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"I've been with Langskib/Northwaters as camper, and eventually became a senior tripping staff over the past 8 years. I've traversed the waters of local Temagami and have ventured to remote Northern Quebec to paddle the Great Whale River. The Canadian Wilderness is an undiscovered adventure to me, and I am always up for the challenges nature and life put forth. NWL gave me strength and heart, and a strong community of which I am proud to be a part of. I am currently in my last year of Classical Studies at Queen's University in Kingston, ON. Besides being an avid outdoorsman, I am a professionally trained dancer: studying at the National Ballet and Royal Winnipeg ballet schools respectively. I've participated in numerous musicals throughout my life and have no intention to stop: my ultimate goal is to one day be on Broadway in New York. I also write, paint and power lift."
Greer Krembs, Trip Leader
"I must have known on some level that I was going to feel a strong connection with Northwaters & Langskib and Lake Temagami when I was 13 and day-dreaming about cutting my hair short and sporting a baseball hat in order to attend the all-boys canoeing camp my brother went to on the lake. That summer of 1995 I went on the first Northern Lights trip, and on our trip to Blueberry Island I took the first steps on my journey that has continued through to this day. It has been a journey through the waters and woods of Temagami, Ontario, as well as Quebec, Manitoba, and the James and Hudson Bays, and it has brought me to as many lessons and discoveries about myself as it has places on the map. For the past two summers I have co-led the Leadership Expedition down the Hayes River to the Hudson Bay. After graduating from St. Mary’s College of Maryland with a degree in Biology I have spent time as an Outdoor Education Instructor at the Hulbert Outdoor Center, and as a full time volunteer in New Orleans organizing and implementing an after-school program for middle school students in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. I plan to pursue a teaching career in a fusion of environmental and outdoor experiential education to foster a sense of land stewardship and empower today’s youth to grow into their full potential."
Elizabeth Lee, Administrator
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Brad Sablosky, Trip Leader
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Alexandra Skinner, Trip Leader
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Elizabeth has worked for Northwaters and Langskib since November 2003, helping with administrative work in the Westport office and serving as the Executive Director of the Deepwater Experiential Education Project, a 501 ( c) 3 organization which offers scholarships to Northwaters and Langskib and other wilderness programs. In 2004 Elizabeth attended Temagami Experience. She lives on Lake Champlain with her two amazing daughters, Nayeli and Valentina. In 2004 Valentina took her first wilderness trip with Northwaters on the Wasaksina Lake section of Northern Lights.
"I first came to Langskib when I was eleven. I started off as the smallest kid and grew from summer to summer traveling through the wilderness of Ontario, Quebec, and Manitoba. Northwaters/Langskib taught me the immense, empowering possibility of life by enabling me to overcome the adversities of trail and letting me explore the metaphors in nature. NWL is not just a camp to me, but a part of my being, and has helped me develop into who I am now. Right now I'm taking some extended time off from studies at the University of Michigan School of Music. I hope to someday become a professional composer and have spent my current wealt of time traveling, educating myself, and writing and recording music in my home in New York. I also love film, skiing, and photography."
"I was 14 when I first came to Northwaters. I did the Florence Lake trip and after that continued to return every summer as a participant to do the Dumoine River, Harricana River (Bay Trip), and The Great Whale River (Leadership Program). I hold a deep love for the outdoors and the amazing people I've met over the years as a participant. In 2003 I became a staff member at Northwaters. This honor has enabled me to work with young people by leading them through the beautiful native land. Northwaters is place that has taught me a lot about who I am as a person, a woman, and a student through each incredible outdoor journey. I am currently pursuing a degree in the Visual and Performing Arts at Syracuse University. When I'm not canoeing or backpacking you'll find me down hill skiing, water skiing, or singing on stage."
Brad first landed on the dock at Langskib at the age of fifteen having been sent under protest. He hasn't looked back since. As a trip leader for 12 years he led groups throughout the Temagami region before heading out to lead our Leadership Program in Northern Quebec and Manitoba. As a Senior Field Instructor for Aspen Achievement Academy he worked with youth at risk for three years in the Utah desert. Brad has a B.S. from Colorado College, is certified as an A.C.A canoe and kayak instructor, and Emergency Medical Technician. When the lakes are frozen he calls Durango, Colorado home where he spends his day's ski patrolling at Durango Mountain Resort, and his nights staring at maps of rivers in northern Canada.
Estair has been spending summers in Northern Ontario since the year she was born at her family's cottage in Parry Sound, and later at Northwaters. Estair first came to Northwaters in the summer of 1993 as a participant. In 1995 she completed our leadership training course in northern Manitoba and has since led many young people on canoe trips all over northern Ontario and Quebec. In 2002 Estair graduated with distinction from University of Victoria with a degree in Political Science and Environmental Studies. During her time at UVic she studied in Africa, Spain and the Southwest of the US. She is a National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS) Outdoor Educator graduate. Estair is passionate about the natural world and dedicates much of her free time to its preservation, and to enjoying its power and beauty in anyway she can.