Staff and Board
Year Round Staff
Carey Fay Horowitz, Founding & Executive Director, is a graduate of New York University’s Gallatin School of Individualized Study, where she earned a B.A. in writing and community activism while playing drums for a variety of underground bands. Throughout high school and college, she spent summers working at the Berkeley Tuolumne Family Camp, where she developed an understanding of the power of camp to create community. She plays in the all-female band Songs For Moms, and her spirit animal is her cat, Sketchy.
Natalie Ruiz Tofano, Programs, Finances and Operations Coordinator, is a documentary filmmaker-in-progress, a music lover, a busy bee in her community, and a seeker of all things awesome. She hopes to some day have a Welsh Corgi, a Labrador mutt, and a fluffy cat.
Voula O’Grady, Development Coordinator, is new to the BAGRC staff as of October 2011. Bio to come soon!
Board of Directors
Esther Pearl, President, spent 10 years working in Production
Management in the entertainment industry, most recently at Pixar where
her feature film credits included Academy Award winning films The
Incredibles and Wall-e, as well as Monsters, Inc. She has an MBA
from The Presidio Graduate School. Currently she is a Project
and Strategic Management Consultant and mother to Lotus and Lucian.
Dana Jae, Vice President, has been teaching audio courses at City College of San Francisco in the Broadcast department for over 10 years and has owned and operated dcj Productions (live, film, studio recording and mixing) since the late 80's. She has served on the Board of Bay Area Girls Rock Camp since its inception and believes in the mission that empowers girls through music.
Melissa Connelly, Secretary, is a BAGRC camper parent whose daughter gained so much from the camp that Melissa volunteered to participate as a board member to help the camp grow and thrive. Melissa is a social worker currently working for UC Berkeley at the California Social Work Education Center planning and revising curricula for training child welfare social workers in California.
Andrea Goldman is a family law attorney based on Oakland. As young girl and teen she became an avid rock 'n' roll and folk music fan, and played piano and guitar. She currently is relearning classical piano. She is the proud mother of two BAGRC campers, Lily and Sasha, who play guitar and keyboards.
Ellie Erickson is currently the Director of Operations at Community Works West and is a bass player with Erase Errata. She has been on the Board since Sept 2010.
Erin Porter joined the board after volunteering at summer camp, and is the master of the merch table due to her incredible organizing skills.
Kerry Fiero has been a music industry professional since 1996 as a personal manager; artist liaison on music videos and award shows; artist publicity, booking and promotion at music venues and producer of many events. Kerry is focused these days on Event Planning & Production but also teaches at San Francisco State University in the Music/Recording Industry Program and mentors up and coming artists and music industry professionals.
Lauren Hall has worked in the nonprofit/youth arts sector for the past ten years, currently working with young people in the Bay Area on their literacy and writing skills through 826 Valencia. She’s served as a program coordinator, event planner, grant writer and development director during her tenure at 826 Valencia and has been involved with BAGRC since 2008.
Lori Zook is a development manager with the arts management firm Quinn Associates, and has been involved with the Oakland and Bay Area arts and cultural community for two decades, including co-founding the Oakland Metro in 2001, serving as executive director of Oakland Opera Theater from 99-05, serving on the Oakland Cultural Affairs Commission, and serving on numerous funding panels, boards and committees. Her daughter Tasha attended the inaugural year of BAGRC, and Lori is delighted to be involved with this organization!
Sari Flowers is a local musician and mother of a BAGRC alumn. She believes devoutly in the camp mission.
Sharon Flynn is a wannabe rock star who torments people with her unrecognizable karaoke renditions of songs, who will one day make it to Ladies Rock Camp to torture the fine people there as well. She believes in the power of girls to change the world and is honored to serve BAGRC.
Susan Donaldson is a rocker and mother of a future BAGRC camper. She sings in San Francisco's The Gun & Doll Show and has toured the globe as a performer in Gogol Bordello. She proudly holds an undergraduate degree in Studio Art from Mills College and an MBA in Sustainable Management from the Presidio Graduate School, and is currently the Director of Merchandise for eco-retailer, VivaTerra.
