Jami, a nature lover and hiking enthusiast, moved to Seattle from Ohio in 2005. Active in atheist and freethought groups, they became a board member of Seattle Atheists.
When a radio evangelist predicted the end of the world in 2011, Jami assisted in the Rapture Relief Campaign, which led to the creation of Camp Quest NorthWest. They have been on the organizing team since and serve as the board’s secretary.
Jami values the organization’s conflict resolution skills and finds joy in being part of a community that promotes secular humanist values.
Room for Growth
I aspire to improve my skills in working with children. Growing up, I did not have previous experience with youth like many others, so working at Camp Quest alongside talented teachers makes me feel like an impostor, but I aim to be more engaged and confident in this supportive environment and will work on being more open and vulnerable.
Most CQ Thing About Me
In some ways, it’s just being a queer, neurodivergent, nonreligious person. It’s easy to feel like I’m the only one when I’m out in the real world but I never feel alone or like an outsider when I am at camp.
Camp Favorites
I really enjoy archery and have been our archery instructor at every session I’ve attended at Kirby. I also enjoy working with campers on arts and crafts (upcycled fashion, paper beads, and fiber arts). I enjoy having a role at camp that lets me be involved in a lot of the operational support, filling in gaps and solving problems that come up.
Important Life Lesson
My first year as a counselor I was able to join an LT campfire at the end of a long day. We were doing a circle activity, and a couple of the LTs ended up in tears as they shared how much CQNW meant to them. They felt that camp was an extraordinarily safe space and really the first place they felt such a deep sense of belonging. I remember that night vividly because it was the first time it really hit me that camp was something truly special and significant. I felt so much empathy for those campers. I felt joy that they were able to truly be themselves and to explore their identities without judgment or fear. It brought me to tears and I feel like it was the first time I truly understood how important and life-changing camp could be. I also felt good about myself too, because I knew I helped make it happen. That night still inspires me.
Passion
I went to a religious camp, but I was a shy neurodivergent kid that was bullied. I was an only child, adopted, and kept to myself a lot. Camp is healing for me because I get to be part of creating the supportive, accepting community I could have used as a kid. I have so much passion for growing our organization in ways that make it even more inclusive, accessible, and available to all who need a place like Camp Quest. I want to see us reaching more kids and families from different backgrounds than we typically serve. This is why I like to be part of the organization behind the scenes, doing bureaucratic work that is not always the most exciting but needs to get done to make things run smoothly. I try to help out in all the ways I can to build our organizational capacity so we can grow our efforts to become more inclusive and antiracist.
I take pride in my relationship with my cat, Pangur. She brings love and joy to my life, especially during difficult times. Our routines and connection bring comfort to both of us. One of my favorite quirks about her is that she soothes herself by suckling on her own belly, a habit that seems to have grown out of being separated from her mother too soon. I relate to her and I am proud of how well we care for each other.