Leader Profiles – CC, Micah, Addie & Mason

CC GENSHEIMER


A family-oriented world-traveler,  Caroline (“CC”) Gensheimer has explored Europe, the United States and Central America.   She has had a monkey perch on her shoulder and sea-kayaked alongside whales in Alaska’s glacier-rimmed fjords.   This summer, the forest trails and rocky archipelagos of New England will be her home as CC leads our  Downeast Explorer and  New England Mountains & Coast trips. A native of western Pennsylvania and a rising junior at the College of William and Mary, CC is president of her sorority and spends time tutoring at the local middle school.   Her passion for working with young people started early, when CC and her sister (famed Apogee leader Hannah Gensheimer) founded a successful and continuing summer camp for children in her hometown.   In high school, CC was captain of her school’s varsity tennis team but always maintained an interest in the true outdoors.   Her love for the outdoors blossomed over summer wilderness trips, especially last summer’s wilderness leader training program in Alaska.   CC can’t wait to share her skills and passion for outdoor living with her Apogee groups this summer. CC is certified in Wilderness First Aid and CPR.

 

MICAH ROSE


Micah Rose, a native of the green hills of Williston, Vermont, grew up hiking on Vermont’s Long Trail, paddling on Lake Champlain, and skiing his way through the long Vermont winters.  Micah studied anthropology and sociology at Swarthmore College, and is looking forward to graduating this spring.  We’re thrilled to have Micah onboard to lead our Pacific Coast trips this summer!   While in school, Micah wrote for the Swarthmore newspaper and organized trips for the Outing Club.   Additionally, he studied abroad in New Zealand, where he filled his weekends with camping and backpacking trips to explore the country.  Undoubtedly, however, the center of Micah’s life in and out of Swarthmore has been soccer.   To say that Micah has spent some time on the soccer field would be a gross understatement. At Swarthmore, Micah was a key player, two year Captain, and two-time NCAA Division III All-American athlete on the men’s varsity team.   His passion for soccer, and for the values that team sports instill in participants, has led him to work as a soccer camp counselor and referee here in the States, and it also inspired a trip to South Africa where he developed a soccer program for kids in rural areas (and was able to take in the sound of the vuvuzelas at the 2010 World Cup).  Additionally, Micah is a member of the Sue Pasco Memorial Williston Precision Lawn Chair March and Drill Team (it’s true — look for them on YouTube…).   Even without a soccer field (or lawn chair) in sight, Micah can’t wait to spend his summer adventuring on America’s Pacific Coast with his Apogee groups!   Micah is certified in First Aid and CPR.

ADDIE THOMPSON


Addie Thompson had her first taste of an Apogee adventure eight summers ago when she biked the length of Cape Cod before returning the following summer to cycle through the Great Plains and high peaks of Glacier National Park on our Montana Service Adventure.   We’re delighted to welcome her back into the Apogee family to lead both our Montana Service Adventure and Northwest Explorer trips this summer!  A native Mainer, and now a graduating senior at Brown University, Addie has had a number of adventures since her early days with Apogee.  Addie has led trips, and made great friends, through the Brown Outdoor Leadership program.   Last spring, Addie took a semester off from school to hike through Patagonia, work on a farm in the Galapagos Islands and immerse herself in the Spanish language in Ecuador.  Addie brings a cosmopolitan flair to the table, too, as she has spent a summer living and working in Manhattan and another working with dynamic entrepreneurs participating in the DELL Social Innovation Competition.  Whether living in Manhattan or back in Maine, Addie finds she’s happiest when spending time being active, whether this be climbing, kayaking, running, or doing yoga in Brown’s Library while studying for finals.  Among her other talents, Addie can juggle, touch her tongue to her nose, and sound an award-winning loon call.  Addie is certified in CPR and is a Wilderness First Responder.

MASON MOSS


Though he hails from the bright lights and big city of Los Angeles, California, Mason Moss is remarkably down to earth.   Returning to Apogee after a thoroughly successful summer leading our Vermont to Montreal trip, Mason is shifting gears, slapping on the sunscreen and practicing his best “buenos dias!” as he heads south to lead our Caribbean Service Adventure.   A graduating senior at Bowdoin College, Mason double majored in Economics and Theater.   At Bowdoin, Mason is a man of many hats.   He is a leader with the Outing Club, a Tour Guide for the Admissions Department, an officer with his College House, and a javelin-throwing member of the varsity Track & Field team.   During high school, Mason was captain of his varsity baseball and football teams, and as team quarterback, he led his football team to their divisional championship.   Mason is even more than the sum of his parts, though.   As his Apogee groups learned last summer, he is a unique, and outstanding, combination of responsibility and hilarity.   Mason can’t wait to get down to the Caribbean this summer where he looks forward to making a lasting, positive impact through service and creating lifelong memories with his Apogee groups.   Mason is a Lifeguard, a Wilderness First Responder and certified in CPR.