Meet Our Board

Get to know the amazing individuals serving on our Board of Trustees.

Board of Trustees

Sarah Friesen

Chair
Community Volunteer

I became a Christian while a camper in Sherwood Forest, renewed my commitment to God while participating in the AIM program, and was honored to serve others on their faith journeys during my five summers on staff. I love the campfire area in Sherwood Forest. This area provides the perfect combination of bright colorful banners and playful, fun, and silly songs as well as serving as the ideal location for the staff and the Friar to proclaim God’s message of love and salvation. I enjoy serving as a volunteer at Calvin Crest, at our church, at my kid’s schools, and in community organizations. I appreciate opportunities to invest in my friendships, and I love to spend time with my husband and three children. I am excited to see where God is leading Calvin Crest in this new season. I look forward to expanding the tribe of people we serve and see a new generation rise up as leaders. I am hopeful that we can invest in the current facilities and invest in new ones that will increase our capacity to be increasingly hospitable to our guests. Calvin Crest is my very favorite place on Earth.

Eric Escobar

Vice Chair
Principal Consultant, SecureWorks

To me, Calvin Crest is where I’ve experienced closeness to God through the beauty of his creation, the relationships I’ve formed and in the growth I’ve experienced each and every summer. I’ve been making the trip up the mountain to Calvin Crest for over 20 years. I started my camp journey in Sherwood Forest (go Greenwell), to junior high camp, winter camp, and high school camps. I’ve also served as a counselor, volunteer, and staff member. The beauty of this place is that it is always so familiar even through the multitude of changes over the years. Through Calvin Crest I’ve met many of my closest lifelong friends, as well as my best friend and wife. It’s been extra sweet the past few years to take our growing family up the hill and watch our children play and explore.

Ginny Harrison

Treasurer
Retired, Presbyterian Camps & Conference Center

Calvin Crest has played an integral role in my life and faith journey through multiple seasons of life. I got engaged at Calvin Crest, spent my formative 20’s working summers and then year-round at CC, and raised my family within the CC community while my husband Rick was the Executive Director. Woven throughout, my walk with the Lord has grown and been challenged, my theology sharpened, and relationships and lifelong friendships formed. It is impossible to imagine what I would be like without the influence of Calvin Crest’s unique ministry in my life. One of my favorite places on earth is Sherwood Forest! It is an honor and privilege to be returning to ministry at Calvin Crest as a member of the Board after 13 years of living and working in camping ministry in Southern California. It has been so fun to be on the grounds again and to reconnect with the CC community. I look forward to many more years of service and association.

Doug Haas

Secretary
Retired, Chief Deputy District Attorney

I am honored and humbled to serve on the CC Board. My connection is via my children, Josh and Abby, who both started out as MIWOK campers many years ago, and my wife Marci’s volunteer work at Calvin Crest. When Josh attended MIWOK it rained, and that group was literally showered with God’s love. He was happy, exuberant, and excited when I brought him home. God obviously had blessed him richly despite the rain. Josh went to camp every summer through high school, then became a staff member, and ultimately, served as the head of food services. Abby camped every year through high school as well as served as CCA and AIMer. She served a term as a CC board member just a few years ago. Seeing both their love of and faith in God while walking with Jesus is truly an inspiration to me. As an adult, I attended UPC Session retreats and men’s retreats at Calvin Crest, and I always feel a sense of excitement and the presence of God after I turn onto Calvin Crest Road. My faith has been strengthened exponentially by my association with Calvin Crest, and my prayer is to learn to work to further and promote the mission and dream of Calvin Crest.

Board Members

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Rev. Dave Dack

Lemoore Presbyterian Church

Calvin Crest is my favorite “thin place,” a place where heaven and earth seem to merge and God’s presence is more easily discerned. God has been meeting me at Calvin Crest since childhood, first as a camper starting in third grade, then summer staff (200-2002), guest group hosting, numerous retreats, and now as a board member. It’s where my faith was forged, where I first sensed a call to pastoral ministry, where I met my wife, and where we now take our children as part of the next generation to encounter Jesus Christ in a uniquely sacred setting. I believe with all my heart that God has plans to prosper the ministry of Calvin Crest in the years to come, and it’s truly an honor to participate in God’s on-going work by serving on the board.

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Tyler Davis

The Whiting-Turner Contracting Company

Calvin Crest has made life changing impacts on many lives, and I have been lucky enough to witness those changed lives since I was a young camper in Sherwood First. Shortly after my first summers in Sherwood Forest my father was offered the opportunity to serve as the Buildings and Grounds Director. During that 7 year period Calvin Crest also changed my life forever. I met my wife at CC, developed long lasting relationships with the CC community and my faith became my own. It has been 15 years since I was a summer staffer and 17 years since I was a staff kid. A lot has changed since then, but the mission of Calvin Crest has not. There are more exciting changes ahead. I am blessed to have been asked to serve again and I look forward to using my gifts and past knowledge of CC to humbly serve God, the holy grounds, the staff, and campers.

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Rev. Dr. Bill Ekhardt

Westminster Presbyterian Church, Des Moines

I have been attending Calvin Crest as a camper since I was 8 years old and my dad was a friar in Sherwood Forest. Throughout college and seminary, I served for 10 years on staff. At one point, I serve as Associate Executive Director at Calvin Crest. I love serving on the Board of Trustees, and my wife, Tracy, and four children attend family camp every summer. When not at camp, I am Chief of Staff at Westminster Presbyterian Church in Des Moines, IA or volunteering for other organizations that need business consulting.

Suzanne Grimmessey
Suzanne Grimmesey

County Of Santa Barbara Behavioral Wellness

My family moved from Las Vegas to Santa Barbara when I was 7 years old. Meeting our church family friends from Las Vegas at Calvin Crest Family Camp is what kept us connected to each other and to our shared faith. It is also what began my relationship with Calvin Crest, lifelong friendships, and ultimately what has shaped my faith and who I am as a person today. I was blessed to spend every summer thereafter, returning to the excitement and life-changing experiences of Calvin Crest, and as a parent, watching my children do the same. Experiencing the staff at Calvin Crest as a camper and later joining this team on staff has provided the richest leadership skills training imaginable and has shaped my work within my local community. I look forward to returning each summer to the magic of Week in the Forest, basking in the serenity of the grounds, feeling God’s powerful presence, watching the amazing staff team at work, and seeing God’s work every moment of the day. I am richly blessed with the opportunity to serve on the Calvin Crest Board and be a part of the many lives it shapes and changes.

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Diane Vaccaro

Western Sierra Charter Schools

Calvin Crest has been a special part of my life since I was a Sherwood Forest camper. I gave my life to Jesus as a junior high camper and returned year after year because of the life changing moments that camp provided. My time as a counselor and an AIMer, as well as 6 years on summer staff, provided opportunities to grow as a leader, deepen my faith, and understand what it means to be engaged in ministry. I met my husband while on summer staff, and we have served the Lord together ever since. I have always loved what camp offers – a place for people to experience God, His love, and His community. I’m honored to serve on the board and to continue to participate in the ongoing ministry of Calvin Crest

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Cindy Zellman

Bio Coming Soon!

Learn More About Calvin Crest

Current Staff

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Core Values

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