I have serendipitously recently re-connected with Sara Schwartz! We are both social workers by graduate training with a passion for improving child- and family-serving systems, like child welfare. Sara graduated with her MSW degree from the University of Pennsylvania in 2013. I started as a professor at the same school in 2012. Not long after, Sue connected us once she learned of my return to Philly and position at Penn. Fast forward 11 years, and we are once again back in each other’s orbit in a variety of ways, and excited about what the future holds for potentially working together in the child welfare space in Philly. One day she may even consider a return to Penn for a doctoral degree in social work, for which I’d be thrilled to be her advisor! Onas really IS forever!

I started at camp when she was 8 years old. I was a camper from 1984-1988. I was a staff member 1989-1996. In my last year on staff, I was the Director’s Assistant. I keenly remember Sara as a bright, thoughtful, joyful camper, and see the same qualities in her today!

Sara started at camp when she was 10 years old. She was a camper from 1992-1995. She was a staff member from 1996-2001. In her last year on staff, she was a Senior Counselor.

Picture attached from May 2023.

Thank you!! 

Johanna

Doriana Diaz, Onas alum from the early 2000’s, is an artist, curator, and educator from Philadelphia. 

If you’d like to see some of their work, Doriana is the curator and a contributing artist to the exhibition entitled “The In-Between Spaces,” which will be open to the public from November 13th through February, 2024 in West Gallery One of Free Library of Philadelphia’s Parkway Central location.

Additionally, Doriana is working on another exciting project -  the reconstruction of “Big Blue!” Big Blue is a school bus that is being transformed into a traveling, teaching artist sanctuary and community space, and they are currently building out the creative team that will move the project forward. Follow Doriana on instagram (@bydorianadiaz) or check out the GoFundMe page to learn more about the project and how people can support it!

As an artist, Doriana specializes in collage art and poetry, and central themes of her work include multi-generational storytelling and Black womanhood. She still resides in Philly, where she has both intentionally and serendipitously reconnected with fellow Onas alums in recent years.

In August, we celebrated the marriage of Dex and Eliza Gilden here at Camp Onas, which has been their year-round home since 2021, when Dex joined our full-time staff as the Assistant Director. Dex and Eliza's love story began when they met during their second year at Haverford College, and Eliza has been a valuable member of our summer program staff, serving as our first MESH (Mental, Emotional, and Social Health) Coordinator during the summer as she pursues a PhD in School Psychology. 

They were wed in Doylestown the day after the celebration, which was a joyous gathering of the couple’s nearest and dearest, including many Onas alumni. The day was filled with the spirit of Camp! It included rock-climbing, archery, leprechaun house building, heartfelt remarks shared by Onas alumni Nate M. and Tyler S. at the start of a cook-out pool party, a special Quaker-style meeting and Havdalah ceremony at sundown, and concluded with a lively Dining Hall Dance Party.  

A standout moment of the day was Dex's grandmother, Cheryl, setting a new Onas record on the Zip Line!

We extend our warmest congratulations to Dex and Eliza on their special day! Congratulations! 🕊🤍💐💕