Leadership Team

Lori Zeligman,  Director

Lori has a long history with Young Judaea and Camp Judaea as a camper, staffer, and Assistant Director (2009-2011 & 2018-2021).

Lori has a dual B.A. in Judaic Studies and Communication, Arts & Advocacy from the American Jewish University, a Master’s in Judaic Studies focusing on Jewish Education from Siegal College of Case Western University, and a certificate in HR management from the University of Georgia. While in college, Lori studied abroad in Israel at Ben-Gurion University and discovered her love to travel all over the world.

After leaving CJ in 2011, Lori worked at the Marcus Jewish Community Center of Atlanta as the Director of Camp Isidore Alterman. Then she worked in corporate as a Human Resources Generalist at BrandBank. Being extremely passionate about Informal Jewish experiences, Lori returned to Camp Judaea in 2018. 

Lori is originally from Augusta, GA but currently resides in Atlanta where she was recently awarded 2022 Top 40 under 40 by The Atlanta Jewish Times. Lori has been trained as an Associate Visitor for the American Camp Association in hopes of helping other camps in their accreditation process. 

Lori met her husband, Michael, at Camp Judaea and they love sharing the CJ experience with their children, Molly and Bram. Lori’s favorite activity at camp is Rikkud and you can find her every Saturday night, at Havdallah, dancing on the basketball court with the campers and staff!

Francine Safdeye,  Camper Experience Director

Francine brings a wealth of experience in education, child development, and Jewish communal service to her role as Director of Camper Experience at Camp Judaea. Born and raised in Bogotá, Colombia, Francine’s journey has been shaped by her passion for education, her love for Israel, and her dedication to working with children and families. Her time living in Israel, working for Young Judaea Year Course, and studying at the Pardes Institute for Jewish Studies deepened her connection to Jewish culture and values.

Francine holds a B.A. in International Development from Clark University, a Master’s in Education from Boston University, and a Master’s in Occupational Therapy from Nova Southeastern University. Before stepping into her current role at Camp Judaea, Francine worked as a Pediatric Occupational Therapist in South Florida across various settings, including hospitals, private clinics, and most recently, her own private practice. She specializes in helping children meet developmental milestones, overcome sensory challenges, and improve self-care, play, and self-regulation skills.

As a proud Camp Judaea alumna, Francine’s relationship with the camp spans decades. She was a camper from 1993 to 1996, a staff member from 2000 to 2004, and again in 2024, before joining the year-round leadership team. Her return to camp leadership marks a heartfelt homecoming, driven by her desire to create meaningful and joyful camp experiences for future generations.

Francine met her husband, Adam Kolett, while working for Young Judaea’s Israel programs in Jerusalem. Together, they have three children—Matan, Aviva, and Noa—who share her deep love for Camp Judaea, as well as a dog named Luna. After 16 years in South Florida, Francine and her family recently relocated to Charlotte, NC, embarking on a new chapter that blends her professional journey with her love of family and nature. She is excited to create lasting memories full of joy and laughter and have a positive impact on the lives of campers at Camp Judaea.

Joseph Zeuner,  Associate Director

Joseph Zeuner grew up in Boca Raton, Florida, and has been very involved in Camp Judaea as a camper, counselor, photographer, Rosh Operations, and most recently as Rosh Machane. Over the past few years, Joseph has led the development and implementation of our new teen leadership programs: the Gesher Counselor Cohort and the Atid Leadership Seminar.

Joseph has a BA in Sustainability and Commerce and a minor in Computer Science from New York University. He participated in the Kivunim gap year program where he lived in Israel for a year and studied global Jewry. While at NYU Joseph served as the President of Hillel and worked as an intern at the Bronfman Center for Jewish Student Life. He received the Betty Weissman Scholarship for Jewish Student Leadership and the Bronfman Center Exemplar of Excellence Award for his work in the Jewish community. He worked in e-commerce operations after graduating from NYU and is now working at Camp Judaea full-time. Joseph is a graduate of the M²: Institute for Experiential Jewish Education Atlanta Educator Cohort.

Joseph’s background in operations and Jewish experiences brings a unique perspective to the Camp Judaea team. In his current role, he works strategically to innovate and improve across the organization, driving mission-driven impact. He also oversees daily operations, leadership programs, education, and marketing to ensure a seamless and meaningful camp experience.

Oversee daily operations, leadership programs, education, and marketing to ensure a seamless and meaningful camp experience.
Focus on big-picture, cross-functional strategic initiatives, driving organizational efficiency and mission-driven impact.

Joseph is passionate about experiential Judaism, pluralism, and all things tech. He loves to spend time outdoors and is so excited to spend this upcoming summer in Hendersonville with our camp community.

Email Joseph

Ilana Schlam, Assistant Director

Ilana grew up in New Orleans, Louisiana and was very involved in Young Judaea in her teen years, both in year round programming and summer camping. She then attended college the University of Georgia and during her time there, was both a Young Judaea year round advisor and staff member at Camp Judaea in the summers. After graduation, Ilana was the Childrens Programming Director and Day Camps Assistant Director at the Metairie JCC in Louisiana. When Katrina hit, Ilana decided to make a transition and started working professionally with Camp Judaea. From 2006-2009 Ilana served as CJ’s assistant director, and so for Ilana, this is a return home.

When deciding to start her family, Ilana took a year-round role closer to home and for the last twelve years, she has worked at Atlanta’s Marcus Jewish Community Center as the Director of Day Camps at Shirley Blumenthal Park and then the Director of Theme Camps at Zaban Park. These programs host over 1700 campers a summer across the board which is a massive and impressive operation. In addition, Ilana has spoken at the Tri State camping conference which is one of the largest camping conferences in the world twice now about effectively running Theme Camps. In short, Ilana has been a camping professional for over 20 years and brings additional depth and complementary experience and skills to our staff. 

Ilana is married to Greg Schlam, also a long-time CJ camper and staff member and a former professional staff member at CJ as well. Greg and Ilana have two children, Payton — who spent her first summer at CJ this year — and her younger brother Hunter who is so excited to start his CJ journey. 

Email Ilana

 

Gayle Kaplan, Camp Administrator

Gayle Kaplan, our Camp Administrator, works full-time for Camp Judaea. During the academic year, she runs the office in Atlanta and then moves to camp in Hendersonville, NC for the summer season. Gayle joined us with many years of experience, both as a camp-mom and as our camp administrator. Organized, thorough, and personable, Gayle is a leader in her field. Her sunny disposition is well-known among campers, counselors, staff, and parents.

Gayle lives in Marietta, GA with her husband, Seth, and her two children. Originally from South Florida, she has been a part of the southern Jewish community her whole life. Gayle is eager to answer your questions and help each camp family get the most from their summers at Camp Judaea.

Email Gayle

Jeremy Serkin, Development Officer

Jeremy was born and raised in Florida and maintains a lifelong connection with Israel and Jewish programming. He attended Jewish summer camps and the Alexander Muss High School in Israel — and also previously served as a summer camp counselor.

Jeremy came to Camp Judaea after 10 years in higher education, where he guided communications, institutional campaigns and strategic projects at the University of Virginia and UNC School of the Arts. He previously worked in the high-tech sector, and his Jewish professional experience includes managing campaign communications and donor stewardship for the Anti-Defamation League in New York City.

While at ADL, Jeremy led a summer Taglit-Birthright Israel trip. He also competed for the United States in the 17th & 18th World Maccabiah Games in Israel. And as a college intern with the Ziv Tzedakah Fund in Jerusalem, Jeremy helped introduce USY Pilgrimage participants to Danny Siegel’s famous mitzvah heroes.

Jeremy earned undergraduate and graduate degrees from the University of Florida. He lives in Winston-Salem with his wife Maria and two daughters, and is active in its quintessentially small southern Jewish community. He has served on the board of governors at Temple Emanuel in Winston-Salem and the Winston Under-40 Advisory Board. He is a recipient of the Winston Under-40 Leadership Award and is an Ambassador for Greater Winston-Salem, Inc.

Jeremy is eager to build meaningful relationships with CJ alumni, families and friends throughout the Carolinas, the South and beyond.