Rock n' Roll Camp for Girls San Diego
Empowering Girls And Non-binary Youth Through Music
Melissa grove (she/Her)
Founder & Rockin' Board Member
Since 2010, Melissa has been involved in a community that uses music as the foundation for improving lives and contributing to others. While watching the success of rock camps globally and seeing the positive results, in 2015 she created a team of musicians and nonprofit professionals to bring the rock camp mission of empowering girls through music to San Diego.
Melissa’s background in theater and child development allowed her to work as a youth activities coordinator on cruise ships and a Disney event coordinator and host. Her true passion for music and the performing arts inspires her to work with nonprofits that encourage youth to experience performance and complete self-expression. Her days are filled with program possibilities for the Jason Mraz Foundation. Her extra time is spent teaching simple songs to her cat.
2020 girls rock camp VIRTUAL team
2017 rock camp team
Rosie Mann-Deibert (she/they)
Board Secretary
Rosie has an undergraduate degree in radio-tv-film and an MBA in digital media and entertainment. She has worked in project management and product development roles in the tech industry for over 25 years.
Rosie grew up in the southwest corner of Ohio and started taking guitar lessons in the 5th grade. Her middle school jazz ensemble instructor suggested the idea of taking up bass guitar, and she was hooked. She continued playing electric bass in garage bands in high school, while also playing upright bass in the regional youth orchestra. Today she occasionally jams in garage bands with friends.
Rosie has lived all over the country, but her family settled in San Diego in 2014. She has been active in the LGBTQ+ community through volunteer work with San Diego Pride and She Fest. Her journey with Gxrl’s Rock Camp started in 2023 when she volunteered as a “roadie”. After volunteering as a band coach the next year, her commitment was cemented and she applied to join the board. She is excited to serve on the board as secretary and continue empowering girls and non-binary kiddos through music.
2019 Ladies rock camp team
2018 ladies rock camp team
Join our team!
Summer camp TEAM APPLICATION here
Questions? EMAIL US @ ROCKCAMPFORGIRLSSD@GMAIL.COM
JENNIFER MAYES (SHE/THEY)
Board Treasurer
Jennifer brings over 20 years of experience in the music industry, with a diverse background spanning retail sales, musical instrument manufacturing, and live performance across various bands. Throughout her career, she has remained dedicated to supporting music education programs, expanding access to the arts, and fostering creative, expressive outlets for individuals. Her passion for these causes has been central to her professional journey and her efforts to drive meaningful growth in these areas.
Outside of her professional work, Jennifer enjoys painting and exploring music creation with friends. She is a self-taught musician, proficient in guitar, bass, drums, synth, and music production software (DAW). As a Women of NAMM scholarship recipient and an award-winning data analyst specializing in organizational operations, Jennifer combines her technical expertise with her passion for music and community empowerment.
She recently joined Rock n' Roll Camp for Girls San Diego, eager to get hands-on with a program that empowers and impacts the local community. Jennifer is thrilled to contribute to this vital mission and looks forward to helping shape a positive, creative future for young people in San Diego.
LILIANA HUESO (SHE/THEY/ELLA)
Managing Director
Liliana is dedicated to youth advocacy and development through the arts, with over 20 years of experience in the nonprofit sector, blending her commitment to supporting youth with her passion for the arts. She is a queer, bi-national, bilingual award winning photographer, filmmaker, producer, college professor, mentor, community organizer, and activist.
With a B.A. in Mass Media Communications, Liliana focused on film production and storytelling through moving images. It wasn’t until she began her Master’s in 2016 that she started exploring her creative journey through photography. Her experiences living in both Mexico and the U.S. have given her a unique perspective and the tools to navigate diverse cultural landscapes. Liliana has extensive experience teaching various aspects of media, facilitating workshops, and organizing community events and photo exhibitions on both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border.
She is committed to bringing arts and empowerment to youth and is deeply invested in the mission and growth of RnRCGSD. Liliana is excited to join the Rock and Roll Camp for Girls team as Managing Director.
2018 girls rock camp team
Justice Bailey (She/her)
Rockin' Board Member
Born and raised in Louisiana, Justice Bailey is a professional musician with over 20 years of musical experience. As Justice’s mother was a musician for many churches, Justice was exposed to music at an early age which began her passion and devotion to music arts with drums and percussion being her primary instrument. Justice has auditioned and participated in various music programs, workshops, and musical training as a youth to help develop her into the musician she is today. In 2017, Justice received her Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Louisiana Lafayette. In 2020, she began a postgraduate degree of Music Therapy at Saint Mary of the Woods College in Indiana. In 2021, she joined Rock n' Roll Camp for Girls San Diego where she was a band coach and instrument instructor. She developed a love for the program and its mission of empowering females and female identifying youth through music - which is a male dominated industry. Rock n' Roll Camp for Girls inspired and moved Justice as she watched how life changing and empowering this program was for young girls. She returned to camp in 2022 to continue to be a part of such an empowering movement. As of 2023, Justice has eagerly joined Rock n' Roll Camp for Girls San Diego Board of Directors to continue assisting in positively changing the lives of young girls through music empowerment.
Justice believes in the power of music and the positive influence that Rock n' Roll Camp for Girls has for the community. Justice also teaches piano, music theory, and drums to people of all ages in a military community. Justice is a board certified music therapist (MT-BC) current my working full time in the San Diego community serving various populations. Justice moved to San Diego in 2018 and is the proud wife to her husband, mother to their beautiful daughter, and one fur baby.
2021 girls rock camp VIRTUAL team
2024 gXrls rock camp team!
2016 INAUGURAL rock camp team
Yvonne Schmeltz (SHE/THEY/FLUID)
Rockin' Board Member
Yvonne was born in the small state of Indiana in the United States. After 22 years of being surrounded by cornfields and cemeteries; they moved to San Diego, California. Yvonne Schmeltz’s career and passion revolves around creativity, education, advocacy, and lifelong learning. With more than 18 years of experience in the San Diego Community College District, she has worked at both San Diego City College, and the College of Continuing Education, building community, supporting, and advocating for peers, students, and efforts like the Annual Social Justice In Education Conference, and the AFT Immigrant Student Support Committee. Yvonne is well versed in mediation, contracts, connection, communication, community building, and leading. Currently working full time for AFT Guild 1931 as a Member Advocate for both the San Diego Community College District, and the Grossomont-Cuyamaca Community College District, Yvonne continues to fight the good fight, get into good trouble, and probably drinks entirely too much coffee.
Aside from parenting, spending time and being creative with family and friends, Yvonne spends any extra moments playing and listening to music, doing book arts, reading, writing, embroidering, and laughing loudly as much as possible.
2019 girls rock camp team
Sandy Haasis (she/her)
Board President
Sandy Haasis has a passion for supporting powerful programs for youth in her community. Her background includes twenty years of experience in arts education, art program development and administration. She earned her Bachelor of Arts in Fine Art from Northern Arizona University. Sandy first experienced the power of Rock Camp as a participant in Ladies Rock LA. At Rock Camp she found a brave, safe place to try, fail, try again, and find her inner rock star. Not just on stage…in life. Now it is her turn to empower young girls and she could not be more excited to be a part of the team that created Rock n' Roll Camp for Girls to San Diego.