Owners and Directors
Erec Hillis along with Susie and Steve Baskin are the owners and directors at camp. Susie and Steve came to Camp Champions in 1995 and raised their four children at camp. In 2021, they brought Erec on as an Executive Director to begin a smooth, multi-year transition process. Susie, Steve, and Erec are committed to making camp an extraordinary place to serve families.
Erec Sir
Erec Hillis is our Executive Camp Director at CC. He is originally from Austin, TX, and first arrived at camp in the summer of 2000 as a Letterman in Cabin 7. He has had the privilege of seeing camp from almost every angle as a camper, counselor, and leadership team member. He graduated from UC-Berkeley with a degree in biology, but he always spent his college summers back in Central Texas at the mighty Camp Champions.
He plays competitive ultimate Frisbee, representing a couple of teams in the Austin area including the Austin Sol. His favorite things at camp are pickleball, Lake LBJ, Trojan/SpartanGames, Torchlight, and all of our other fantastic traditions!
Steve sir
Steve is a lifelong camper. He first attended camp when he was 8, and he continued for 11 years. In his years as a camper and a counselor, he discovered the power of the camp experience to develop confidence, social skills, and joy.
He even wrote about camp in his college applications as one of the defining experiences of his life. After graduating with honors from Davidson College, he got off the camp track for a few years during which he was an investment banker with Goldman Sachs in New York and Simmons & Company in Houston. He then went to Harvard Business School, where he decided to pursue his true passion: summer camp. He and Susie have been full-time camp owners since 1993. Steve is lucky to have the pleasure of partnering with his wife (and best friend).
Steve has been featured in articles in the Wall Street Journal, American Way magazine, the Houston Chronicle, and the Austin-American Statesman. He has written for Psychology Today on youth development, education, and parenting. Steve chaired the Tri-State Camp Conference (the largest camp conference in the world) from 2008-2010. In 2009, he received the National Service Award from the American Camp Association(ACA). In 2010, he was appointed Treasurer of the ACA and serves on its Executive Committee.
In 2013, Steve was asked to speak at his 20th Harvard reunion as an expert on parenting.
Watch Steve’s Harvard Talk Below:
susie ma’am
Susie loves talking with camper parents all year long and helping them with any concerns, including parental separation anxiety (camp can be hard on first time parents). In addition to being a parent liaison at camp, she also directs our camp health center.
Susie did not attend camp as a child or young woman, but she has become a powerful fan of the camp experience as she watched its positive effect on her own children.
In her past life, Susie was a family and adolescent counselor at a hospital in Wellesley, MA and later became a manager at a Boston hospital. She attended University of Michigan undergrad and Northwestern University for graduate school.
In 2014, the Texas Commissioner of Education appointed Susie as the sole camp representative to the Texas Expanded Learning Opportunities (ELO) Council.
Susie is a die hard Bostonian and thought she’d live there forever until she met Steve, and he convinced her to move to Texas. She is very happy that he did as she could never envision a better place to live than right in the middle of camp on the beautiful shores of Lake LBJ.
Say hello to our senior staff
Phyllis Campbell
Phyllis Campbell is our Director of Parent Experience for Camp Champions. After growing up all over the world in a military family, she went to high school in Dallas and attended Pine Cove for several summers.
Phyllis Ma’am was previously a teacher and an elementary principal before moving to the camp world. She loves kids and especially enjoys working with our camper parents! Phyllis is interested in all types of music, a fanatic about sports, and a diehard Dallas Cowboys fan! Her favorite things at camp are seeing campers smiling, laughing, trying new things, and making new friends, as well as Torchlight each evening! She is so excited to be a support for all of our camp parents as they send their precious campers to Camp Champions this summer!
Contact Phyllis
Corinne Platt
Corinne Ma’am is our Girls Camp Director at Camp Champions! Originally from Asheville, North Carolina, Corinne spent her college summers working at a camp in the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains. Camp holds a particularly special place in her heart as it’s where she met her husband, Josiah Sir!
After graduating from the University of South Carolina, Corinne moved to Winston-Salem, NC where she worked as a Registered Nurse for 4 years. Corinne is so excited to be diving back into the camp world with Josiah and their dog, Oakley Ma’am! In her free time, Corinne loves spending time outside with Josiah and Oakley, reading, and searching for the best coffee shops. She cannot wait to create summer magic with the CC team this year!
Contact Corinne
Josiah Platt
Josiah Sir is our Boys Director at camp! Josiah was born in New York and raised in Asheville, NC. His love for camp began while he was attending Appalachian State University. His summers were spent at a camp in North Carolina where he met his wife, Corinne Ma’am! After graduating with a B.S. in Psychology, he moved to Winston-Salem, NC to work in banking. Josiah then joined the CC family in 2023 and he is so excited to help make camp the best part of every camper’s summer!
Josiah loves sports and is a die-hard Dallas Cowboys fan - so he’s feeling right at home in Texas now! When he’s not at camp, you can find Josiah on a golf course or exploring his new home state with Corinne and their dog Oakley Ma’am.
Contact Josiah
Ali Grello
Ali Grello, or Ali Ma’am, is our Retreats Director and leader of our Girls Leadership Team in the summer. Ali Ma’am came to us all the way from Knoxville, TN and we think we might have made her into a Texan at this point (this will be her 7th summer at CC!). There’s nobody better to hang out with in downtime at camp and she is always willing to jump in the lake at a moment’s notice. Every once in a while she’ll show off her Italian roots at camp - as far as we know, she’s never lost a game of “name that pasta”.
Contact Ali
John Bailey
JB Sir first arrived as a counselor in 2016, and is now our Site Manager at camp. Hailing to you from Leicester, England, JB never had the opportunity to attend camp growing up. He now loves spending 10 weeks a year helping all CC campers get the most out of their 1st, 2nd, 6th, or 10th summer at the place we love the best. JB has a huge passion for football (or soccer, as you call it in the US), playing from when he was very young, through college, and right up until he moved to Texas, and his love for Manchester United follows him wherever he goes. Graduating from The University of Bedfordshire with a degree in Sport and Physical Education, you can often catch JB engaged in some kind of sport around camp! But when he’s not at CC, JB enjoys hiking, camping, and seeing the wonders that the US has to offer – hoping to visit all of the National Parks in the country.
Contact John
Kelly Sanders
As the Activity Director at Camp Champions, Kelly Ma’am gets to combine her passion for youth development and outdoor recreation with her true calling: being an ambassador of FUN!
A proud Texas Hill Country native, Kelly grew up spending summers behind a boat on Lake LBJ where she’d see Camp Champions from the water. Kelly attended a different summer camp, but would often think, “That place looks WAY cooler than my camp!”
Now, as our Activity Director (and a mom herself), Kelly brings a unique perspective on the magic (and parental anxiety) of sending a child to camp. She is excited to be back where it all began and can’t wait to make camp activities special for every camper!
Contact Kelly