Our Community

Noelle Leonard
Trustee, President

Noelle began her Brantwood career as a Permanent Counselor during the very first term of Brantwood for Girls in the summer of 1982. She would go on to serve as Director of the girls’ camp, helping to guide that program across three different sites as it grew and prospered.

Noelle is a psychologist who earned her Ph.D. at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. She is a Senior Research Scientist at the New York University School of Global Public Health and an adjunct Associate Professor of Psychology and Education at Teachers College, Columbia University.

Noelle’s research has been funded by the National Institutes of Health and focuses on the development and evaluation of social/behavioral interventions to address mental and physical health inequities among vulnerable adolescent and adults including youth involved in the criminal justice system, runaway/homeless youth, teen parents, and those at risk for substance use problems, HIV infection, and other health challenges.

Noelle’s favorite part of her job is mentoring students and junior faculty members in their programs of research. Noelle has been a Brantwood trustee for the better part of two decades, serving as Vice

President starting in 2017 and since August, 2022, President of the Board.

Julie Merritt
Trustee, Vice President

Julie has been in healthcare sales for 25 years and has worked for companies such as Livongo/Teladoc, Eliza, and athenahealth. She is currently the Head of Sales for Eleos Health, which is an offering of Artificial Intelligence for Behavioral Health entities. She specializes in building out high producing sales teams. 

Julie resides in Wellesley, MA with her wife Amy Kumpel and their two fur babies, Wyatt and Lacey. In her free time Julie enjoys traveling and spending time on Cape Cod. She is a graduate of St. Mark’s and had the opportunity to work at Brantwood as a counselor in the mid 90’s and has served on the Board of Trustees for roughly 10 years.

Michael Razza
Trustee, Secretary

Mike Razza came to Brantwood from Everett, MA as a camper in 1957. As a counselor, he would rise through the ranks, serving as Assistant Director in 1966 and 1967, and as Director from 1968-1970, hosting the 50th anniversary celebration of the Camp’s affiliation with St. Mark’s School during his final summer at the helm. Mike was elected to the Brantwood Board in 1971, and for more than 50 years has served in a number of trustee offices, including the first former camper to serve as  President of the Board. He is currently Board Secretary for the third time.

Admitted to the Massachusetts Bar in 1972, Mike has been a practicing attorney for more than 50 years. He currently divides his time between Massachusetts and Florida.

John Newell
Trustee, Treasurer

As a Brantwood camper, John Newell was the recipient of the 1978 Kean-Munroe Cup, as “that camper, preferably in his last year, who has shown that he has best profited from Brantwood Camp by exhibiting conspicuous qualities of cheerful enthusiasm, unselfishness, and helpfulness to others.” He returned in 1979 as a Junior Counselor and then served as a Permanent Counselor from 1980-1985, ably filling a number of roles, including Commissary and Junior Program Director. He was a member of the senior staff during the first two summers of Brantwood for Girls in 1982 and 1983. He was the Program Director at Brantwood for Boys in 1985. From 1990-1992, John served as President of the Brantwood Camp Alumni Association.

A Certified Public Accountant, John has served in the Massachusetts State Office of the Comptroller, first as Program Coordinator and most recently as Auditor. He was elected a Brantwood Trustee in 2022 and currently is the Board Treasurer.

Joyce Cadesca
Trustee

Joyce Cadesca, SM ’01 worked at Brantwood during her time as a student at St. Mark’s School, and then during her first couple of years as an undergraduate. She is a social entrepreneur, small business advisor, and career coach. Upon graduating from Columbia University, Joyce began her professional career in education management and became the youngest Director for Beginning with Children Foundation in New York City, where she led the College Access department, serving over 500 students and young professionals. Ms. Cadesca then attended The Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth to earn an MBA degree in General Management.

After graduation, Joyce gained experience in corporate positions within Strategy, Operations, Human Resources, and Corporate Finance functions at leading global financial institutions. However, at the height of the pandemic in 2020, she switched career paths back into the social sector and now coaches new entrepreneurs and MBA applicants. Outside of work, Joyce serves as a nonprofit board trustee with Brantwood Camp in Greenfield, New Hampshire, and as a volunteer with Big Brothers Big Sisters Independence Region. Joyce lives in the greater Philadelphia area with her son.

J. Linzee Coolidge
Trustee

A 1955 graduate of St. Mark’s,  Linzee began his Brantwood career as a shack counselor in 1953 and 1954, also beginning his tenure as a Permanent Counselor that second summer at the Camp. He served as Assistant Director in 1957 and Associate Director in 1958. He graduated from Harvard in 1959.

An active and supportive member of numerous charitable Boards and Foundations (in 1963 he was the youngest trustee in the history of the Peter Bent Brigham Hospital), Linzee joined the Brantwood board in 1961. His uninterrupted 62 years as a Brantwood trustee (still ongoing) is a Camp record. He has held several offices on the Brantwood Board, including more than a decade as Treasurer, beginning in 1977.

Peter J. DiMaggi
Trustee

Peter first became involved with Brantwood Camp as a rising Senior at Saint Mark’s School when he was recruited by then Headmaster Ned Hall to volunteer for a term at BWC. Peter served as a “Shackie” during that summer of 1973 in Amoskeag and went on to serve as a Permanent Counselor. He attended the University of New Hampshire, earning a degree in mechanical engineering and economics. Since 2009 Peter has sat on the Board of Trustees of Brantwood Camp serving as the Secretary of the Board from 2011 to 2017. In more than a dozen years as a Brantwood trustee, Mr. DiMaggio served as Secretary of the Board and a member of the Executive Committee. Most recently, he has been an active member of the Buildings & Grounds, Committee on Trustees and Program committees.

Peter is a business owner, having spent the bulk of his 40-year carrier in Engineering and Technical Sales. He has worked in a variety of industries over the years: power systems, aerospace, renewable energy, defense, and packaging and textile manufacturing. He is President and Founder of DiMaggio Technical Products Group, based in Westford, MA and a Partner and Board Secretary at Delaware Valley, Corporation in Tewksbury, MA. Peter is a partner in two real estate firms.

His dedication to BWC is wrought out of his family’s philosophy to give back by serving those who are in need. Peter’s hope is for BWC to continue long into the future providing campers, who would otherwise not have similar opportunity, a break from their year-round routine with a respite full of friendship, competition, and personal growth as can only be had in the safety and beauty of the New Hampshire lakes and mountains.

D’Laija Francis-Abdulla
Trustee

D’Laija’s affiliation with Brantwood Camp began in 1990, first as a camper, then as a Junior and Permanent Counselor.  Over the last two years, she has sat on the board of trustees, honoring the noble mission to serve those who may not have had an opportunity otherwise.  The personal growth, development and opportunities/experiences afforded to both campers and staffers who attend BWC is at the heart of D’Laija’ s commitment, dedication, and service at BWC.  

An advocator of Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Access, D’Laija supports BWC commitment to creating and maintaining an educational camping experience that is rooted in IDEA and welcoming to ALL.

D’Laija is a 20-year civil servant, who has provided vocational rehabilitation, education, employment, and home accommodation assistance to persons with severe disabilities.  She has held leadership positions within her organization for more than 10 years and attributes her desire to working in her field based on her early BWC camper experiences. She is credentialed in the areas of Social Work, Education with emphasis in Rehabilitative Services, Traumatic Brain Injury, Basic mediation skills, and a plethora of training hours in leadership and organizational development. 

D’Laija’ s favorite mantra is Onward and Upward, we must go!

Bill Gurney
Trustee

Brantwood has been part of Bill Gurney’s life for almost 60 years. He was a new camper from Medford, MA, in 1964. He became a junior counselor in 1970 and a Permanent Counselor in 1971, serving as Utility Director, Assistant Director, and for four years as Director of Brantwood for Boys. Bill was elected an Associate Trustee in 1980 and becameva full Grustee by the end of the decade. He would serve as President of the Brantwood Board from 2017-2021 and most recently he filled the role of Acting Executive Director for the entire Brantwood program.

During his 40 year career in education, Mr. Gurney served as both a teacher and an administrator. He was both assistant superintendent and then co-superintendent for the Keene (NH) School District, and was then President and CEO of the Vermont Center for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing and Austine School until his retirement.

A longtime resident of Dublin, NH, Bill was married for 35 years to Margaret Cook, a staffer during the earliest years of Brantwood for Girls and the daughter of longtime Brantwood director and trustee Charlie Cook, until her passing in 2022. Both of their sons—Henry and Charlie Gurney—were campers and counselors at Brantwood.

Curt Henderson
Trustee

Curt Henderson is the progenitor of a genuine Brantwood dynasty, as both children and grandchildren of his have been both campers and counselors at the Camp. Curt began his Brantwood journey some 65 years ago, as a camper from Peabody, MA. He was the first camper to win the Brantwood Cup, the Camp’s top individual honor, three times. In 1958 and 1959 he was awarded the Junior Brantwood Cup, and at Final Prize Night in 1961 he received the Brantwood Cup Senior. Mr. Henderson would serve as a Brantwood counselor, and he would go on to attend Northeastern University. He is President and Founder of Donaldson and Associates, with whom he has been associated since 1974.

A Brantwood Trustee for the better part of three decades, Mr. Henderson has been both active and effective as chair of the Risk Management Committee, addressing issues of safety, insurance, and liability.

Christopher Perkins
Trustee

A 1987 graduate of St. Mark’s School, Chris Perkins was both a volunteer shack counselor and a member of the Permanent Staff at Brantwood. He earned His undergraduate degree from Connecticut College and his M.S. from West Virginia University, before embarking on a career in finance and investment. Mr. Perkins then made a career course change into education. For the past decade he has been on the faculty of The Berkshire School in Sheffield, MA, teaching history and coaching varsity lacrosse and varsity squash.

Mr. Perkins has been a dedicated member of the Brantwood Board for more than  dozen years. Currently he is co-chair of the Finance Committee.

Ed Puliafico began his affiliation with Brantwood Camp as a camper in 1984 until 1988. After being a camper, he continued his summers from 1989 to 1995 as a Junior Counselor, Permanent Councilor, and Boys Program Director. After a few summers off, he returned as the Boys Program Director from 2000 to 2002. After working at Brantwood, he was fortunate to be a sponsor for many campers and staff members. He has also been a parent of three Brantwood Camp campers and staff members.

Ed has a Bachelor’s Degree in Elementary Education from Fitchburg State College and a Master’s Degree in Special Education From Eastern Nazarene College. He was a fellow of the Lynch Leadership Academy at the Boston College Carroll School of Management. In the Boston Public School, Ed has been a Special Education teacher, Special Education Administrator, Vice Principal, and is currently a School Principal.

Rev. Katie Solter
Trustee

Rev. Katie Solter is the Head Chaplain of St. Mark’s School and teaches in the Religion Department. Katie also serves as the Vicar of Our Lady of the Evergreens summer chapel in Harborside, Maine, where she serves on the board of the Brooksville Scholarship Foundation. Katie has served in churches and independent schools in Washington, DC, Maine, France, New Hampshire, and Connecticut, teaching history, religion, and English, and working as an admissions officer, college counselor, and Assistant Dean of Students. Katie has a passion for travel, writing, and helping students explore meaning and purpose in their lives. She lives on the campus of St. Mark’s School, with her husband and three children.

Maura Navin Webster
Trustee

Maura Navin is a Mindful Marketing Coach and Consultant, a podcaster, and the Founder, CEO, & Chief Strategist at LillaBlu Strategies. 

Maura was introduced to Brantwood while at St. Mark’s, and after begging to be a “Shackie” for years, finally got to experience Camp during the summer of 1994, the last summer the Girls’ Camp was at Camp Quinapoxet. She was a Permanent Counselor for the next two summers, the first two of the girls’ program its permanent home. Maura went on to serve as Co-President of  the Brantwood Camp Alumni Association. and now serves on the Board. She has two daughters that have come up as campers, one who has volunteered as a JC and one a LIT. 

Brantwood, as it does for so many, laid the foundation for who Maura is today. When not engaging in fun brainstorming sessions with her clients or being “social,” Maura can be found teaching marketing at Clark University, traveling, outdoor adventuring, cooking, or sitting by the ocean. That is when she’s not keeping up with Maddy and Emma, and their Great Dane, Merlin!

Jeffrey Delaware
Associate Trustee

Jeff was a Brantwood camper from 1971 through 1976 and a Junior Counselor in 1977. He graduated from St. Mark’s in 1980.

He graduated from the University of Massachusetts with a BS in Mechanical Engineering in 1985 and has held many positions with various companies designing and manufacturing of Semiconductor Manufacture Equipment.  Over many years Jeff has been a strong supporter of Brantwood Camp and a believer in the mission of the Camp.  Both his children were campers and counselors, one with the girls; program and one with the boys’ program. He was honored to be was elected to the Board of Trustees in 2020.

Bilal Wilsom
Trustee

Bilal Wilson former camper of Brantwood Camp is a Policy Advisor in the Office of the Ambassador at the Permanent Mission of Saudi Arabia to the United Nations. Bilal has an undergraduate degree from Lake Forest College and a Masters in International Relations from Fairleigh Dickinson University. Bilal has been an Advisor at the Permanent Mission of Saudi Arabia since 2009, initially working on the budgetary committee of the General Assembly including on the 2010 Haiti Earthquake, UN reform and UN oversight of peacekeeping missions. By 2012, Bilal was elected Vice-Chair of the budget committee of the United Nations by consensus.

In 2014 Bilal was assigned to help negotiate the post 2015 development agenda called the Sustainable Development Goals; an ambitious set of 16 goals dealing with poverty, education, water, land, oceans, among other issues, to meet by 2030.

In 2015 Bilal was assigned to the committee in charge of human rights and humanitarian issues, where he negotiated consensus resolutions to advance the rights of the Rohingya minority in Myanmar as well as in the Commission for the Status of Women.

In 2016 H.E. Ambassador Abdalla Al-Mouallomi requested Bilal serve as an adviser to him in the Office of the Ambassador where he has been since.

In 2017 Bilal was the focal point for the Vice-Presidency of Saudi Arabia as they served on the UNICEF Executive Board helping navigate the new UN reform initiatives being implemented across the UN system.

In 2020 Bilal helped coordinate the international COVID-19 response ensuring the United Nations had business continuity measures in place to continue effective mandate delivery.

Bilal has travelled to South Sudan, Mali, Ethiopia, Guinea Bissau, and Senegal visiting peacekeeping operations on the ground. Most recently Bilal has travelled to South Africa and Lesotho on behalf of UNICEF to see the positive impact country programs are having on the lives of children. Bilal has a wealth of experience being on the front lines at the United Nations during the tail end of the financial crisis in 2009, the Arab Spring in 2011, the international migration crisis in 2014 and multiple US administrations and is an expert in the understanding of the United Nations.