The Hole in the Wall Gang Camp announced today that Nicole Bontrager has been named its first Maryland camp director to run all aspects of programming at Hole in the Wall’s second location on Maryland’s Eastern Shore. She first joined the Camp community in 2016 as the family and parent coordinator.
“With her longstanding commitment to serving families of children facing serious illnesses and deep understanding of the cultural underpinnings of The Hole in the Wall Gang Camp, Nicole brings the ideal skillset to lead our second location in Maryland,” said CEO James Canton. “Her demonstrated leadership and passion for Camp’s mission will be critical in our expansion and ensure that those children and families in the Mid-Atlantic most in need of ‘a different kind of healing’ find a home in Hole in the Wall.”
Bontrager has dedicated her career to youth programs after working as a camp counselor in Ohio during her undergraduate years, where she saw firsthand the empowering effects camp has on children. Prior to joining Hole in the Wall, she served as an assistant director for a children’s program specializing in childhood trauma in Colorado. Most recently, as family and parent coordinator at Hole in the Wall, she supported Camp’s caregivers, facilitating parent programming on family weekends and volunteer days. Bontrager received a master’s degree in clinical and mental health counseling from Adams State University and a bachelor’s degree in youth ministry and recreation from Bluffton University.
As camp director, Bontrager will be responsible for all aspects of the Camp program, including hiring, recruitment, training, program development, volunteer coordination and food services.
“I am absolutely thrilled to be taking on this exciting new challenge as Camp begins its next chapter in Maryland,” said Bontrager. “There are so many possibilities to be explored as we combine the magic of Hole in the Wall with the beauty and history of the Wye River community. As the new Maryland Camp Director, I’m excited to help bring Paul Newman’s vision to this new region and cannot wait to welcome even more families and volunteers into the Camp family. Together we will build a program filled with just as much love, joy, and mischief as our Connecticut site.”
Bontrager will reside on the Eastern Shore with her family and is excited to immerse herself in the local community, starting with a bushel of steamed blue crabs next summer.
About The Hole in the Wall Gang Camp
Founded in 1988 by Paul Newman, The Hole in the Wall Gang Camp provides “a different kind of healing” to more than 20,000 seriously ill children and family members annually – all completely free of charge. For many of these children and families, Hole in the Wall provides multiple Camp experiences throughout the year at the facility in Ashford, Conn., in more than 40 hospitals and clinics, directly in camper homes and communities, and through other outreach activities across the Northeast and mid-Atlantic. Learn more at www.holeinthewallgang.org.
