Directors and Support Staff

Jeff graduated from U.C. Berkeley (’69) and the University of Santa Clara Law School (’72). He has been involved with Skylake since 1984, first as a parent when his daughters began to attend Skylake as campers, and then as the owner/director since 1995. Jeff resides in Marin County with his wife Bonnie during the off season.

Jeff has three primary goals as the director:
Every child is safe both physically and emotionally in their camp experience
Every child experiences the simple and pure joy of a true summer camp experience
Every child returns home happier and more confident

Adrienne Portnoy-Durgin has lived, breathed, and dreamed Skylake most of her life. She first attended Skylake as a 9 year old camper and spent the next 15 summers at Skylake as Camper, CILT, Counselor and Leadership Team member. After graduating from the University of Arizona, Adrienne relocated to Lake Tahoe where she focused on a career in Special Events and Hotel Sales & Marketing. In 2010, Adrienne returned to Skylake and now loves calling Camp her full time career and passion in life as  Co-Director. When Skylake is not in session, Adrienne and her husband Mark, live in Truckee, Ca where they are raising their three sons, Jacob, Miles and Asher.

Jessica Portnoy Sonka spent her first magical summer at Skylake as Chickadee in 1985. She hopped on the bus at age 7 for an adventure that turned into 10 incredible summers as a Camper and CILT, followed by 5 more summers as Jr. Staff, Counselor, Girls Head Counselor and Kitchen Manager. Jessica graduated from the University of California, Santa Cruz with a degree in Anthropology, and went on to earn her Master of Business Administration from the University of Nevada, Reno. After dedicating many years contributing to the success of some great non-profit organizations, Jessica felt a yearning to return to Skylake full time in 2016. She lives in beautiful North Lake Tahoe with her husband Matthew, son Noah, and daughter Morgan.

Lyle joined the Skylake team in 1996 as a High School Student looking for a summer job.  He fell in love with the kitchen responsibilities and was privileged to work with many qualified chefs.  Lyle worked his way up the ladder from a dishwasher, to cooks assistant, to lunch chef and is now our dinner chef.  He is not only a great chef, but a fun personality in the kitchen who motivates the entire kitchen staff.  Lyle's mom Ellie was also working in the kitchen in those early years.  Lyle has also learned the construction business from his dad.  Many years ago, Lyle began to assist our on-site construction contractor, Carl Jackson.  Carl and Lyle rebuilt just about every part of this camp over the last 15 years.  Lyle is our consistent presence in camp 12 months of the year and is a cherished member of the Skylake team.  "Cookie, Cookie, listen while we sing to you…"

Paul returned to Skylake late in 2022 after a 2 year hiatus. He originally joined Skylake in 2016 as PM Director and On Site Facilities Manager. He was immediately struck by the Skylake Magic and fell in love with camp life. During the off season Paul oversees improvements and projects in camp, assists in the office, and supports Adrienne and Jessica on various year round projects. Paul has a degree in Organizational Leadership and spent nearly 30 years managing restaurants before finding his "Dream Job" at Skylake.

Shane is excited to be back working for Skylake, this will be his 3rd summer. Shane works as our Assistant Registrar answering emails, phone calls, and performing other office duties while he pursues his Master’s Degree in International Relations. Shane was a counselor for two seasons at Skylake back in 2011 and 2012. Shane actually met his wife Laura at Skylake who was also a counselor during that time! After he graduated with his BA in 2013, he lived and worked overseas in Morocco, Turkey, Tanzania, and Taiwan for a number of years before returning stateside. Shane speaks several languages, loves the outdoors, but most importantly, knows the amazing impact Skylake has on its staff and campers!