Camp Be'chol Lashon Staff Bios
 Davis |
 S. Spencer |
 Kahn |
 K. Spencer |
 Steneck |
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Denise Davis
Camp Be'chol Lashon Director
Dr. Denise Davis finds her work as a physician and as clinical faculty at the University of California-San Francisco School of Medicine very satisfying. Denise received the Kaiser Foundation Award for Excellence in Teaching in 2005 and was nominated for the same award in 2008. Readers of J magazine, the Northern California Jewish weekly, voted Denise one of the top 2 primary care physicians in the Bay Area twice. She received a 2008 Patient's Choice award for the relationship centered care she offers to her patients. Denise is a faculty member of the American Academy on Communication in Healthcare. Her research, teaching and speaking are currently focused on improving the doctor patient relationship and recognizing the impact of race on the both doctor-patient relationship and team work in health care.
Denise feels fortunate to live in San Francisco Bay Area, where she is able to participate in the Bay Area Bechol Lashon's activities. Denise is Director for Camp Bechol Lashon, a new residential Jewish summer camp for children of diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds. She proudly serves on the Institute for Jewish & Community Research Advisory Board.
Temple Beth Abraham, a Conservative congregation in Oakland, California is her spiritual and Jewish home, where Denise chants the Misheberach, the prayer for the healing of the sick, on Shabbat mornings. Denise is well acquainted with the delicate balance between her most important role as the mother of her nine-year-old daughter, Aviva Ruth, and her professional career.
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Camp Be'chol Lashon Director
Dr. Denise Davis finds her work as a physician and as clinical faculty at the University of California-San Francisco School of Medicine very satisfying. Denise received the Kaiser Foundation Award for Excellence in Teaching in 2005 and was nominated for the same award in 2008. Readers of J magazine, the Northern California Jewish weekly, voted Denise one of the top 2 primary care physicians in the Bay Area twice. She received a 2008 Patient's Choice award for the relationship centered care she offers to her patients. Denise is a faculty member of the American Academy on Communication in Healthcare. Her research, teaching and speaking are currently focused on improving the doctor patient relationship and recognizing the impact of race on the both doctor-patient relationship and team work in health care.
Denise feels fortunate to live in San Francisco Bay Area, where she is able to participate in the Bay Area Bechol Lashon's activities. Denise is Director for Camp Bechol Lashon, a new residential Jewish summer camp for children of diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds. She proudly serves on the Institute for Jewish & Community Research Advisory Board.
Temple Beth Abraham, a Conservative congregation in Oakland, California is her spiritual and Jewish home, where Denise chants the Misheberach, the prayer for the healing of the sick, on Shabbat mornings. Denise is well acquainted with the delicate balance between her most important role as the mother of her nine-year-old daughter, Aviva Ruth, and her professional career.
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Sarah Spencer
Camp Be'chol Lashon Co-Director
Sarah was raised in San Francisco in a large, blended multicultural family. She had a formal Hebrew school education until her tween years when she chose to attend public school where she hoped to learn more about the many cultures that inhabit the Bay Area. She graduated from a large San Francisco public school with a strong sense of social need and a growing curiosity for the world that existed outside of her Jewish Identity.
She attended the California College of the Arts in Oakland where she studied many fine art mediums. She majored in textiles because the study allowed her to focus on a variety of world cultures. This exploration of the world through fabric introduced Sarah to the world Jewish community, and reignited Sarah's own Jewish cultural history and identity.
Sarah used her curiosity, experience and degree to become a non -formal Jewish educator with children and adolescents. Sarah helped to develop the Club 18 teen program at the JCCSF into a space for teens of every background to come explore and express their identities through a variety of social, educational and leadership activities.
Sarah directed Club 18 for five years before attending the University of San Francisco where she obtained her Masters in Counseling Psychology with an emphasis on Marriage and Family Therapy. Sarah focuses her work as a therapist on adolescent identity development and multi-cultural, multi-racial and multi religious blended families. Sarah has a San Francisco based private psychotherapy practice, and works in schools as a diversity counselor.
Sarah is also intimately connected to Bechol Lashon personally as well as professionally as it is her familiy’s business. She is the daughter of Gary and Diane Tobin.
Sarah lives in San Francisco with her husband Kirk, and their one year old son Josiah. Kirk is originally from Jamaica and identifies as a “Jewmaican”. Sarah and Kirk continue to explore and expand the vast cultural identities within Judaism together, and look forward to passing this passion on to their children.
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Camp Be'chol Lashon Co-Director
Sarah was raised in San Francisco in a large, blended multicultural family. She had a formal Hebrew school education until her tween years when she chose to attend public school where she hoped to learn more about the many cultures that inhabit the Bay Area. She graduated from a large San Francisco public school with a strong sense of social need and a growing curiosity for the world that existed outside of her Jewish Identity.
She attended the California College of the Arts in Oakland where she studied many fine art mediums. She majored in textiles because the study allowed her to focus on a variety of world cultures. This exploration of the world through fabric introduced Sarah to the world Jewish community, and reignited Sarah's own Jewish cultural history and identity.
Sarah used her curiosity, experience and degree to become a non -formal Jewish educator with children and adolescents. Sarah helped to develop the Club 18 teen program at the JCCSF into a space for teens of every background to come explore and express their identities through a variety of social, educational and leadership activities.
Sarah directed Club 18 for five years before attending the University of San Francisco where she obtained her Masters in Counseling Psychology with an emphasis on Marriage and Family Therapy. Sarah focuses her work as a therapist on adolescent identity development and multi-cultural, multi-racial and multi religious blended families. Sarah has a San Francisco based private psychotherapy practice, and works in schools as a diversity counselor.
Sarah is also intimately connected to Bechol Lashon personally as well as professionally as it is her familiy’s business. She is the daughter of Gary and Diane Tobin.
Sarah lives in San Francisco with her husband Kirk, and their one year old son Josiah. Kirk is originally from Jamaica and identifies as a “Jewmaican”. Sarah and Kirk continue to explore and expand the vast cultural identities within Judaism together, and look forward to passing this passion on to their children.
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Kenny Kahn
Camp Be'chol Lashon Head Counselor
Kenny Kahn is an English teacher and football coach at El Cerrito High School. Raised in Richmond, CA, Kenny has been invovled with Be'chol Lashon since its founding. He received a bachelor's degree in literature, creative writing and poetry and a master's of education from UC Santa Cruz.
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Camp Be'chol Lashon Head Counselor
Kenny Kahn is an English teacher and football coach at El Cerrito High School. Raised in Richmond, CA, Kenny has been invovled with Be'chol Lashon since its founding. He received a bachelor's degree in literature, creative writing and poetry and a master's of education from UC Santa Cruz.
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Kirk Spencer
Soccer Coach
Kirk grew up in Jamaica, playing soccer and dreaming about a larger and more efficient world. Both of these skills brought him to Princeton, where he continued to play soccer and studied computer engineering and systems development.
Kirk refers to himself as a Jewmaican and resides in San Francisco with his wife Sarah Spencer (Camp Be'chol Lashon Co-Director), 2 1/2 year old son Josiah and a new son on the way in May. Kirk is thrilled to be able to spend his vacation at Camp Be'chol Lashon playing soccer, jumping off the raft in the middle of the lake and celebrating his multicultural Jewish identity.
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Soccer Coach
Kirk grew up in Jamaica, playing soccer and dreaming about a larger and more efficient world. Both of these skills brought him to Princeton, where he continued to play soccer and studied computer engineering and systems development.
Kirk refers to himself as a Jewmaican and resides in San Francisco with his wife Sarah Spencer (Camp Be'chol Lashon Co-Director), 2 1/2 year old son Josiah and a new son on the way in May. Kirk is thrilled to be able to spend his vacation at Camp Be'chol Lashon playing soccer, jumping off the raft in the middle of the lake and celebrating his multicultural Jewish identity.
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Camille Steneck
Director of Performing Arts
Camille lives in San Francisco with her daughter three-year-old daughter Ananda. Camille is an energetic and passionate woman who loves her job as a middle school teacher. Camille did not grow up in a Jewish family, but chose to grow up in a Jewish community. She attended Camp Tawonga as a child and then again later as a counselor.
Camille has always been a dancer, and has been studying, teaching and performing a variety of dance forms, specializing in Haitian and West African dance. Camille is dedicated to and has been active in the Be'chol Lashon community for over 12 years. Camille will be joining camp this summer along with her daughter Ananda, and will be sharing her love of dance through daily performing arts workshops.
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Director of Performing Arts
Camille lives in San Francisco with her daughter three-year-old daughter Ananda. Camille is an energetic and passionate woman who loves her job as a middle school teacher. Camille did not grow up in a Jewish family, but chose to grow up in a Jewish community. She attended Camp Tawonga as a child and then again later as a counselor.
Camille has always been a dancer, and has been studying, teaching and performing a variety of dance forms, specializing in Haitian and West African dance. Camille is dedicated to and has been active in the Be'chol Lashon community for over 12 years. Camille will be joining camp this summer along with her daughter Ananda, and will be sharing her love of dance through daily performing arts workshops.
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