Northern Pines is governed by a Board of Directors that meet monthly and work on behalf of the Northern Pines ministry througout the year. If you see a board member at camp, please say hi! We'd love to talk to you and hear your story.
Aaron Wine
Chairman
Aaron and his family first attended Northern Pines in 2012 when they were invited by close friends Brian and Kris Baker. The first time they came to camp, all four children stayed with them in the Lodge. Northern Pines quickly became an integral part of the family’s spiritual growth and refreshment as well as the highlight of their summers. For years, Aaron and his wife Dawn would offer alternatives to Northern Pines, including Disney World and International travel. Their four children always declined such offers because Northern Pines was the only option in their hearts. Over the years, their children have been a part of every program. In 2016, Aaron was honored to join and serve on the Board of Directors from 2016 to 2022. A few years ago, Aaron started getting involved annually with the Men’s Work Retreat. As the incoming Board Chair, Aaron feels tremendously grateful to be able to serve in this capacity. Outside of Northern Pines, Aaron, a Chemical Engineer, stays busy in the manufacturing sector as a Plant Manager for Ardagh Glass Packaging. Aaron has a passion for seeing things continually improve and made better each day.
Chris Dart
Vice Chair
Chris is a husband to Carol, father to three grown children, Ryan, Heidi (Married to Alex Ondercin) and Josh (Married to Riah). He lives in Greenfield Minnesota and has seven grandkids. Having been an attendee at Northern Pines for over 30 years, Chris always has such great memories of past years and has great anticipation of each summer to come at Northern Pines. This ministry has been such a valuable part of Chris’s journey of faith. As a father and husband, seeing the impact of Northern Pines on those he loves most is priceless. When not at Northern Pines, he manages a small storage business and loves to travel with Carol. He also enjoys cross country and downhill skiing and playing tennis.
Kris Baker
Secretary
Kris has been attending Northern Pines since she was in high school in the late 80s. Since that first week of camp, Northern Pines held a special place in her heart and she knew she wanted to return someday with a family of her own. Since then, Kris has attended Northern Pines with her husband Brian and their two children Hanna and Eli who have attended all of the different children and youth programs. If you ask anyone in their family, they would all say that Northern Pines is an integral part of their walk with the Lord and instrumental in their spiritual growth and understanding. Kris works as the Special Education Coordinator for Shelbyville Central Schools and believes Northern Pines is the perfect spiritual reset before beginning each school year. This is Kris’ first year on the board and is thrilled to have the opportunity to serve the ministry that has meant so much to her and her family.
Sue Tobias
Treasurer
Sue has been married to her high school sweetheart, Glen for 34 years. She has three grown children that grew up at Northern Pines, Rachel (husband Tyler), Scott and Ashley. She is grandma to two brilliant grandchildren. Sue first attended Northern Pines in the 70s as a teenager, coming to faith in the junior high program. Sue and Glen have served as part of the transition team in between camps and is glad to be giving back to a place that has shaped her families faith in Jesus.
When not at Northern Pines, Sue has worked in the health insurance industry for HealthPartners for over 20 years. She loves to travel with her husband, Glen loving anywhere close to the ocean. Fishing, biking and quilting are past times and as a new grandma, she is perfectly content sitting on the floor with her brilliant grandchildren.
Martha Koshiol
Martha has been attending Northern Pines since she was in Indian Village as a 4th grader in 1984. It has been the highlight of her summer every year. Growing up at camp has allowed her to grow closer to Jesus through the pivotal teen years & continues to shape their family today. Serving at camp as a CCA, Counselor and Children’s teacher has allowed her to give back to Northern Pines & the Lord. Martha is married to Dan, who also loves Northern Pines. They have three children who all have attended since birth and they too, enjoy both serving & attending camp. Northern Pines, and the amazing counselors & staff, has helped strengthen their marriage, family & personal relationships with the Lord.
Michael Proebstle
In 2002, a friend once told Michael that “the best thing we ever did for our marriage was go to Northern Pines”. Convinced to give it a try, the rest is history. Since then, the Proebstle family (including wife Cathy, sons Robbie and David, and an occasional dog) have not missed a year. Their children have grown in their faith through experiencing each program, Michael and Cathy love their annual opportunity to assess and focus on improving their marriage, and the incredible teachings through speakers have consistently enriched their own personal faith journeys and relationships with God. Michael and Cathy have formed close relationships with their “Camping Friends” in the campground and are always welcoming others to their nightly campfires. God has done miraculous things in their marriage and family through their rich experiences at Northern Pines, and each August they eagerly look forward to the blessings of next year’s camp as they are driving away from Green Lake.
Michael is blessed to work as a therapist in private practice in Minnesota. He has a B.S. degree in Christian Ministries and a M.A. in Counseling. In his spare time, Michael enjoys participating in a Rotary club, driving to random places (without a GPS), flying drones, photography, and traveling.
Lynn Schoolmeesters
Lynn has been attending Northern Pines since the first year when she was a high-school camper. She has served in most of the programs through the years. She married her high school sweetheart Scott. They have 3 grown children and 5 grandchildren. Mark Alan (& Jill), Paul (& Liza) and Amy.
Most of them attend now with their families. They have had 4 generations together at camp. NP has been very instrumental in her walk with the Lord; in the good times and hard times. It is an honor and blessing to give back by serving on the board. When not at camp she enjoys gardening, traveling, Gateway prayer ministry, sewing, doing therapy visits with dog Penni and spending time with their grandkids and family.
Bill Cheeseman
The Cheeseman family has attended Northern Pines since 2002. Bill attended that first year with some trepidation as he ‘wasn’t sure he wanted to do church for a whole week’. That anxiety was quickly permanently erased and now the family can’t imagine a year without Northern Pines! The annual respite that is Northern Pines has had a tremendous positive impact on the faith, mental health, and life of the entire family. It is without a doubt the most favored week of the year for the entire family. Our two older children, Alise and Garrett, have graduated and now serve as Jr. High and Senior High counselors and our third child, Nathan, is in the Senior High and serves as a Wilderness counselor. Beyond the teaching, worship, and growth, we look forward every year to spending precious time with the many friends and family that also attend. In addition, Bill is also a huge fan of the annual Men’s retreat. For the other 51 weeks of the year Bill works for Procter and Gamble and Judith is an Area Team Leader for Bible Study Fellowship.
Matt Klee
Matt and his wife Kristi first attended Northern Pines in 2014 after being invited by neighbors. They were immediately impressed with how camp was able to be uplifting, relaxing and hands-down their kid's favorite week of the year. Matt and Kristi and their four kids (Ryland, Annalise, Kinsley, and Hawkin) have been coming to “family camp” every year since that first year. Back at home Matt is a critical care physician and works in the ICU at Mercy Hospital in Coon Rapids, MN. Outside of work Matt enjoys traveling, running, cross-country skiing, alpine skiing, and soccer.
Shawn Gardner
Shawn and his wife Heidi were originally invited to attend Northern Pines in 2009 and after persistent asking they made it in 2010 and they have returned every year since (with the exception of the whole covid thing). The first year they brought their oldest son, Graham, who was two at the time and Matthew followed the next year. Eventually they were also joined by Claire and Emma.
Northern Pines has been a second home to the Gardner family, a place where they have all grown closer in their relationship to one another and more importantly to Jesus. Their adult children make every effort each year to return to serve at the camp that they all look to as being foundational in their faith journeys. Heidi and Shawn both look forward to the day when they welcome the next generation to the Northern Pines family.
When not at camp Shawn works as a Commercial Banker with Minnwest Bank in Minnetonka MN and in his spare time loves to spend as much time possible outdoors camping, hiking, running, biking and playing pickelball.
Andy Smude
Andy married his high school sweetheart, Sheila (Otness), in 2007. In doing so, he also married into the Northern Pines family. Sheila was no stranger to the Northern Pines experience, having grown up through the children’s program all the way thru Senior High, holding many volunteer positions as CCA and Counselor. Andy has joined Sheila as a Children’s program teacher on occasion. Finalizing an adoption in 2019 permanently added four more children to their family for a total of six: Connor, Emma, Nathan, Kai, Nova and Maya. During the work week, Andy is an Aerospace Engineer for AirCorps Aviation, an historic aircraft restoration company in Minnesota. When not busy working or shuttling kids around, he is a private pilot and amateur runner. Andy is honored to be serving on the Northern Pines Board of Directors.
Kacia Hosmer
Kacia has been attending Northern Pines for over 30 years, now returning with her husband and three kids, parents, in-laws, sisters, nieces, and nephew. Since the first year she attended with her immediate family as a child, she’s rarely missed a summer — seeing the impact first hand on her own life both as a child, teen and young adult, and now as a wife and mother. Now living in California, it’s no small feat getting to camp each year, but one that each member of the family cannot imagine Northern Pines not being part of their summer routine. Kacia is honored to have joined the Board of Directors in 2023 as the Marketing lead. A creative through and through, Kacia has worked in a variety of fields from church to healthcare focusing on marketing, communications, and operations. In her (not so frequent) free time, Kacia loves running, yoga, quilt and bag pattern design, and finding new hobbies she doesn’t have time for. Kacia is so thankful for the financial sacrifice her parents made years ago to get to camp — and the ongoing commitment to keep going back.
Reid Kilberg
Reid and his wife, Carrie and their 4 children (Ben, Olivia, Tessa, Annika) have been attending Northern Pines since 2005. They were lucky enough to have been introduced to NP by some friends after the birth of their 4th child, and have been attending ever since. It has been a blessing to watch our children grow in their faith as they have progressed through the programs. Equally important has been our own understanding of how Christ strengthens our family and marriage. It is uplifting to have a place to take your family each year where you know you are surrounded by others who share your values and faith. When not at camp, Reid does Institutional Sales for a large investment management firm. He enjoys traveling, hunting, fishing and especially time on the Lawsonia golf courses.
Lyn White
Lyn and her amazing husband Jeff have been married for 29 years. She has one grown child, Josh, a 6th-grade math teacher. Lyn and her family began attending Northern Pines in 2009 after a good friend had gone the year before and shared that they absolutely should give it a try. They were hooked! Over the years Lyn and Jeff have had the opportunity to serve in various roles including technology for the worship leaders and speakers, and spend many years on the weekend team between camp weeks ensuring our young volunteers rest up for week 2. Outside of Northern Pines Lyn lives in the St. Louis area and celebrates working over 23 years for McCarthy, an employee-owned commercial construction company. She is a Learning & Development Manager focused on Leadership Development programs supporting over 3,500 partners. Lyn has also attended BSF (Bible Study Fellowship) since 2002, and gets to enjoy St. Louis Cardinals baseball games regularly. In addition to setting aside precious time to vacation at Northern Pines each year, Lyn and her family enjoy visiting Walt Disney World any time possible.
Jacque Bolt
Jacque, husband, Dick, and their 4 children were first-timers at Northern Pines in 1977 and they have missed only 2-3 times since. Jacque and Dick agree NP is the best legacy investment they could have made in their family. They smile about that because their first year was kind of miserable. Their oldest daughter in Jr High was extremely homesick and sad. They said mid-week “we will never come back”. But God had other plans—he challenged them that week mostly in their marriage. Leaving camp they said, “we have to come back”. Their daughter’s best friend came to camp the next year and that made their daughter’s NP experience better. God has used every NP program positively and camp has become a yearly “must” for 4 generations. Their 4 children (+spouses) and 11 grandchildren (+spouses) and 1 great-grandchild all attend NP whenever they can and several are now teachers and counselors in the programs. Jacque is humbled and excited to serve on the NP board. She is retired from her ministry position but she still loves ministry and believes in the local church so she invests in it whenever she can. Currently, she writes and leads Women’s Bible studies and serves on committees. She also volunteers regularly at Set Free Ministries. And she’s an avid Detroit Tigers fan!
Iris Johnson
Historian — Life Board
Iris is a wife, mom, and gramma. Her history with Northern Pines began in 1984 when she and her family attended their first Northern Pines' conference at the urging and with the help of her mom. She has been on the Northern Pines board for many years and has served in many roles. Her daughters, Joette and Leah, participated in the programs, and also served on staff as CCAs, teachers, and as counselors in the youth programs. They now attend with their husbands and children. Northern Pines has become a legacy for Iris and her husband, Doug, as the whole family finds spiritual refreshment and relaxation at Northern Pines.