Meet Our Team 2011: Tara and Gary Paxton!

Each and every year, volunteers and visitors from across the United States visit camp to contribute their time and talents, and to share memorable and meaningful experiences with campers, counselors and other volunteers.  They bring skills and experiences of all kinds, and a spirit of fun, collaboration, excitement, and love for our Lord.

This year, we are excited to welcome Tara and Gary Paxton, who will be visiting with their two daughters, Larisa (10 years old) and Reanna (7 years old), who will be campers at St. Andrew’s for the first time.  Tara and Gary have been married for 13 years.  Hailing from Brick, NJ, the Paxton family are parishioners at The Annunciation Orthodox Church.

Together, Tara and Gary will be leading this summer’s ecology program, taking place during the first week of camp (July 10-16).

Welcome, Tara and Gary!!

Name: Gary Ronald Nicholas Paxton
Place of Residence: Brick, NJ on the Jersey Shore
Current / Previous Career: My previous career was as an auto mechanic and parts service counter technician, but I went back to college and earned my degree in engineering with a minor in math. After I achieved my degree, I decided I wanted to teach math and science at the middle school level. I am currently a sixth grade math and science teacher at one of our local middle schools.
Church Ministries: I currently serve as a Church School Teacher at the Annunciation Church for the 3-5th grade children.
Favorite Camping Activity: I am not much of a camper, but I love to cook on the grill and swim.
Favorite Sport: My favorite sport is hockey. I am a devoted Philadelphia Flyers fan. I am also a long time New York Jets fan and my favorite baseball team is the Kansas City Royals.
Favorite Saint(s) and Why: St. Nicholas because he is my patron saint and for his generosity and love of children.
Random fun facts: I have three cats; Annie, Allie and Ashley and we had a sweet golden retriever named Brandy who passed away on Palm Sunday this year, she was 15 years old. I also have 30 quail that I am helping my students raise that we will release into the forest sometime this summer – it is part of a program called NJ Quails in the Classroom.
What you will be doing at camp: Instructing field and learning activities relative to the local ecology and environment. This is our first time at St. Andrew’s. We knew our daughters wouldn’t go away to camp without us, so we thought we’d be able to give them this experience by volunteering to teach and still be close by if they needed us.

Name: Tara Bogajevski Anne Paxton
Place of Residence: Brick, NJ on the Jersey Shore
Current / Previous Career: I am a Town Planner in my hometown of Brick, New Jersey. Most people ask “what is a planner?” The answer isn’t so clear cut. Much of what I do is related to how people develop and use land and the impacts that development causes to the environment. I also work for the local mayor and governing body to adopt laws to protect the environment and regulate how we use our lands. I oversee projects like park development, recreation programs and write studies.
Church Ministries: I am currently serving as a Church Council Member. I coordinate fellowship activities and attend adult education classes to learn more about my faith and teachings of our church fathers.
Favorite Camping Activity: I have never been away to camp, but in college I went on a team building training where we zip lined in the forest! I loved that!
Favorite Sport: I am not much of an athlete, but I like to swim and I have a pretty strong soccer ball kick!
Favorite Saint(s) and Why: My favorite Saint is St. Anna because she is my patron saint and the mother of the most holy Theotokos.
Random fun facts: I love spending time with my girls and husband and am looking so forward to our week at St. Andrews. I also love dogs and cats and all kinds of animals. Gary and I are looking forward to exploring the lake with the campers and discovering all of the critters and vegetation that are native to the area. We are anxious to share our love of the environment and ecology with the campers!
What you will be doing at camp: Teaching ecology with my husband and helping out any way I can!

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