Meet Our New Staff Members
Meet the new staff members of the Camp Ondessonk team!
Lori Murphy, Assistant Registrar
Hometown: Galatia, IL
Lori grew up in Galatia, IL and moved Ozark, IL in 1989. She now lives near the town of Crab Orchard. Family and friends are at the center of Lori’s life. She and Jerry, her husband, are extremely proud of Tyler, their adult son. Lori has previously been a bookkeeper and owner of a local convenience store. She is now responsible for guest reservations of school-year visitors, summer camp health form management, and summer camp scholarship distribution, among many other jobs essential to the operation of camp. In her spare time, Lori enjoys camping with Jerry and her favorite dogs, Maggie and Millie.
Shandril Dayton, Equestrian Coordinator
Hometown: Gilbert, South Carolina/Marion, Illinois
Shandril was born and raised in Central South Carolina. In June of 2010, she moved to Southern Illinois; a place she now calls home. She has felt a love for horses since she was a young child. Her family adopted a yearling Thoroughbred when she was eight and that started her passion for horses. Throughout her equestrian career, Shandril has acquired experience in many aspects of the horse industry including (but not limited to) training, doctoring, and breeding/foaling. She attended Southern Illinois University Carbondale and graduated with a degree in Animal Sciences in May 2016. Directly following graduation, she picked up and moved out West where she worked as a Wrangler on a guest ranch with a 58-horse herd in Wyoming. She then moved back to Southern Illinois where she joined the Ondessonk staff as the full-time Equestrian Coordinator in February of 2017. Her favorite part about working with horses is sharing her passion with others. She is overjoyed to introduce new people into the horse world and to teach them to be safe while also having fun. In her free time, Shandril enjoys hiking with her beloved Labrador, writing music, and reading a good book.
Jamie Fields, Director of Development
Hometown: Breese, IL
Jamie began her Camp adventure as a camper, CIT, and volunteer. With a professional background in Marketing, and most recently as the Development Director at a local nonprofit organization, Jamie brings experience, enthusiasm, and a genuine love for all things Camp. Jamie works from her home office in Breese, IL. Her position focuses on ensuring the sustainability of Camp Ondessonk through donor cultivation and retention. Jamie shares her love of Camp with her husband, Adam, and two children who can’t wait until they are old enough to be campers!
Louise McMinn, Event Coordinator
Hometown: London England / Breese, IL
Louise grew up in London, England and first came to Camp Ondessonk in 1999 as a Camp America counselor – a program that has been enriching camp with counselors from abroad for over forty years. She enjoyed her first summer and was eager to return the following Spring to start her first of many seasons as Program Staff. Working at camp until 2005, she married Doug, also a former Ondessonk counselor. As they began raising children, Louise remained involved in camp, eventually assuming a key volunteer role as Chairperson of Camp’s 2015 Gala Benefit – a position requiring hundreds of hours of selfless devotion. She also coordinated or provided support to numerous additional Ondessonk events. Her role as a key volunteer eventually evolved into the fulfillment of camp’s long-term dream to hire a part-time person to manage events. Thus, in the Fall of 2016, Louise was officially hired for as Event Coordinator. She works mostly out of her home in Breese, but is often traveling to drum up sponsorship and other types of support from regional businesses and individuals. Whenever possible, Louise, Doug, and their four boys visit camp for intense exploration of Ondessonk’s rocky canyons.