Camp Leadership

Leadership

Seanna Johnson

Color Captain

Seanna has been volunteering with CTAS since 2018 in various roles—counselor, cabin liaison and color captain. Becoming a part of the camp community has been life changing and renewing for Seanna. Camp has given her a place to feel brave and grow in confidence as her most authentic self. She continues to always come back to camp because of the deep commitment to friendship and acceptance that camp offers to everyone. The love and connection with the campers has been the best part of her experience with camp too.

Seanna has a degree in Biochemistry with minors in Spanish and Psychology. She is currently working at The Ohio State University as a Clinical Research Coordinator in Cognitive Neurology where she works on clinical trials related to dementia disorders.

For fun, Seanna practices yoga and enjoys rock climbing. She also loves to brew the perfect shot of espresso! She enjoys fun with her cat, Goza, hedgehog, Miss Violet, and her partner, Brandon.

Ben Brown

Color Captain

Ben is a professional school counselor in Western North Carolina! He learned about camp from Megan Kasper when he was studying to be a teacher at Appalachian State University and has been involved for 3 years. Ben is so excited for another great summer!

Amanda Bossi

Color Captain

Amanda Bossi has been a part of Camp Twitch and Shout (CTAS) since 2014, making this 2023 year, a true decade! Bossi has been in the shoes of Camp Counselors, Cabin Leaders and Unit Leaders as she continues building enjoyable moments for others.

Amanda has a large background dedicating many years to Organizations, Tedx Speaking Series and Radio/ Podcast Shows around the TS community after her personal experience with Tourette Syndrome. When she heard about CTAS, it was a true calling and finally found her Camp FAM.

Amanda has a degree in the fields of Human Services and Psychology from Grace University in Winona Lake, IN. Bossi created Mindboss Academy as a DSP (Direct Support Professional), and MindCore Intuitive Coach for Individuals with Developmental Disabilities and Neurodiversity.

Outside of camp, Amanda enjoys simplicity sipping coffee in nature, painting, writing, and traveling with her partner, Felix Medina.

Kelsey Hollis

Color Captain

Hi! My name is Kelsey Hollis. I live in Nashville, Tennessee, where I teach high school English & I recently finished my master's of Education this past December (finally!!). I have been working with camp since 2014 as a counselor and cabin leader/liaison & it's always my favorite part of the summer!

Outside of camp and work, I enjoy spending time with my pets--I have a dog (Teddy) and a cat (Bonney, who is named after a pirate because she is blind in one eye). I also enjoy playing video games and spending time with my friends in various places around Nashville.

Megan

Assistant Director

Megan Kasper has been with Camp Twitch and Shout since 2011 serving in a variety of roles; Counselor, Cabin Leader, Unit Leader, LIT Program Director, CIT Program Director, Transportation Coordinator, and most recently as Assistant Camp Director. She found out about camp while studying to become a teacher. As part of a scholarship requirement, she had to volunteer during the summer. When she saw the words “Camp Twitch and Shout” on a list she thought to herself, “What is this…a camp for kids with Tourette syndrome?” And she was right! She didn’t know anything about Tourette Syndrome and stumbled into such a welcoming, compassionate, and accepting community. She was confronted by many assumptions and stereotypes she had about Tourette Syndrome and about supporting students with diverse abilities. She contributes much of her preparation and continued education for being an inclusive educator to the resilient and inspiring campers of Camp Twitch and Shout.

Megan attended Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina for both her undergraduate degree in Mathematics, Secondary Education and her master’s degree in College Student Development; Student Affairs Practice. She currently works at her alma mater as a Career Coach for students and alumni in the College of Fine & Applied Arts and the Hayes School of Music.

Megan is happily married, an identical twin, and passionate about serving others. When she isn’t at work or at camp, she can be found exploring the Blue Ridge Mountains with her dogs or reading a novel. She is also active with the Watauga Humane Society and Wilkes County Rescue Group serving as a foster home for senior dogs.

Mary Grace

Assistant Director

Mary Grace (MG) Davenport has been working with Camp Twitch and Shout (CTAS) since 2014, and this will be her 4th summer as Camp Director. Outside of living the dream at camp, Mary Grace is a Social Worker serving children in the pediatric hospital setting in Atlanta, GA, a role which she is very passionate about.

Camp holds a special place in Mary Grace’s heart. In addition to spending 3 years on staff with Camp Twin Lakes Will-A-Way, MG also has 3 siblings with Tourette syndrome who attended CTAS over the years. Seeing the change in her siblings’ confidence and ability to embrace themselves in the CTAS community truly solidified MG’s passion for inclusive camp programming.

Mary Grace attended the University of Georgia in Athens, GA for her undergraduate degree in Social Work, with additional education in Human Development & Family Studies, and Disability Studies. Following 2 years of work in the public child welfare system, Mary Grace received her Master of Social Work with an emphasis in Community Partnerships from Georgia State University in Atlanta, GA. Mary Grace loves supporting the wellbeing of children and families through access to community, connection, and acceptance.

The rest of the year, you can find MG spending time with her family and friends, playing outdoors with her dog and husband, and wishing she was at back camp with all of your amazing kids!

Zach

Assistant Director

Zach Pursley is 30 years young and this will be his 7th year at Camp Twitch and Shout. When he is not at camp Zach works for Delta Air Lines as a flight attendant based in Detroit, but he lives in Nashville, TN. Zach was diagnosed with TS at age 20, but has lived with it his whole life. Camp Twitch and Shout is his favorite week of the year, and he is excited to meet all of you!

Victor Valentour

Camp Director for Staffing & Logistics

Victor Valentour joined Camp Twitch and Shout in 2023! He discovered Camp Twitch and Shout while waiting to start his master’s in Social Work program through Walden University. He has an undergraduate degree in psychology from the University of West Georgia in Carrollton, Georgia, one of the very few psychology programs in the United States with an emphasis on Humanistic Psychology. He is always looking for opportunities that will allow him to utilize his education and innate skill of person-centered advocacy and compassion. Victor’s work history includes working with individuals from across the spectrum of life with various challenges, specifically those with behavioral health challenges and individuals healing from traumatic experiences.

Victor understands Tourette’s Syndrome as a particularly unique challenge, and its expression is as unique to the individual as we all are to one another. Victor thinks the best approach to supporting people with Tourette’s Syndrome is through person-centered support, compassion, and education about the disorder to those who support or provide care for the individual on their pathway of becoming the person they choose to be. He firmly believes that all individuals with support can transform any limitation into unique strengths and thrive.

Victor’s passion for the behavioral health field started long before he graduated from the University of West Georgia in 2019. Victor was diagnosed with Major Depressive Disorder while in foster care, and he saw that the traditional approach of psychotherapy and treatment left out the holistic nature of the “lived experience” of the person. Victor’s first professional position was at West Georgia Technical College’s Adult Education GED program; in this role, he helped to empower adult and teen learners on their path to graduating with their GED. Victor’s entryway into working directly with individuals with behavioral health challenges started with Pathways Center for Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities in the latter part of 2019; as a Certified Peer Specialist (Peer counselor). Victor became certified as a Peer Specialist for behavioral health through the Georgia Mental Health Consumer Network and the Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities (DBHDD). As a Peer Specialist, Victor utilized the power of lived experience to assist adults, teens, and children with developing safety plans, creating and implementing evidence based psychoeducational skill groups that taught coping and life skills. Since then, he has worked as a case manager for many agencies and as a certified legal advocate for a domestic violence shelter empowering the individual with accessing the justice system as a pathway to healing from trauma. Currently, Victor is a Mobile Crisis Responder for the Georgia Crisis and Access Line, a division of DBHDD.

In his spare time, Victor likes to read anything he can get his hands on, from Marvel comics to novels by his favorite author Dean Koontz, play video games, and hang out with friends and family, including his dog, Adonis. He looks very forward to his adventure with Camp Twitch and Shout!

Olivia Boudwin

Camp Director for Camper & Family Relations

Olivia Boudwin has been working with Camp Twitch and Shout (CTAS) since 2017 as a Counselor, Cabin Leader, Unit Leader, and now Camp Director. She found out about camp when she was a student at Appalachian State University through Megan Kasper, one of Camp Twitch and Shout’s previous Camp Directors. With very limited knowledge about Tourette Syndrome, she “made an impulsive decision to apply to camp” her first year in college and fell in love with the tight knit community. Camp inspired her so much that she applied to work for Camp Twin Lakes for two full summers. She felt permanently changed for the better by camp and is grateful for the chance to give back to the loving community each summer.

Olivia has a degree from Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina for Child Development: Birth-Kindergarten education and works in Boone at Bethel Elementary’s NC Pre-K and Developmental Day Classroom.

Outside of camp, Olivia loves to read, be in the sun, and spend time at home with her two cats and partner, Ben Brown.