OUR people
We honor all our mentors, who, directly and indirectly, have enlivened and challenged us to grow as individuals and as an organization, and we are grateful for our instructors, past and present, for showing up with their heart, bright minds, and playful bodies in all weather to help make a difference in the lives of so many children and adults. And we also offer gratitude to our staff past and present who work behind the scenes to ensure that this living breathing community is nourished and nourishing to one and all.
STAFF & mentors
Stacey Hinden, Executive Director
Embodied Leader, Joyful Tender of Connection, Body-Mind-Nature Explorer
Stacey’s ancestral roots trace back to Eastern Europe (Russia and Poland); she and three previous generations of relatives were born in Lenape and Wappinger territory (Bronx, New York). Her Nana says she came dancing out of her mother’s womb, and she’s been exploring movement and body awareness ever since - especially body-mind connections between inner and outer ecology. She fell in love with deep nature connection mentoring and nature-based leadership after she and her family moved to Puyallup territory (Vashon Island) in 2003. She trained with the Wilderness Awareness School, enrolled her three children in their programs on Vashon, and helped found VWP and it’s Wind Gatherer program. Stacey has worn many hats at VWP including founder, board member, consultant, instructor, Program Director, and, since 2010, Executive Director. She still remembers all of those NYC subway commutes to her various non-profit management jobs, and much prefers her current “office” which includes cedar trees and wild meadows, bird language and children’s laughter. When she’s not at work (and sometimes when she is) you’ll find her singing, dancing, and speaking in foreign accents.
Kristy Friend, Program Director
Kristy grew up in the deciduous woods of northeastern Vermont, where moose and black bear may have been more numerous than humans. She spent her childhood wandering the traditional Abenaki land swatting black flies and mosquitoes, picking berries, playing in the brook near her house, and building snow forts and sledding in the winter. She attended the University of Vermont and obtained her degree in Secondary Education and Biology, then promptly moved to the more temperate climate of Seattle in 2008. She fell in love with all the ecosystems of Washington from the ocean to the Cascades to the islands in-between and quickly set roots. She worked at a Montessori school for several years before pursuing continued education/training in outdoor education including Pacific Northwest native medicinal and edible plants, animal tracking and survival skills. She is passionate about connecting to all nature and inspiring nature connection in children. She lives On Vashon with her daughter.
Kimberly Davis, Administrator/Bookkeeper
*Bio coming soon
Rhiannon Simmonds, Administrative Coordinator
Rhiannon is a lifelong resident of Vashon Island, where she grew up on the traditional lands of the sx̌ʷəbabš people. Her passion for nature emerged in the woods near her childhood home, where she crafted enchanting towns for her fairy friends from moss and flowers. This deep appreciation for the natural world led her to earn a BA in Studio Art, specializing in capturing nature’s textures through wool and natural fibers. When she’s not working with the Vashon Wilderness Program, Rhiannon enjoys painting, exploring the Island’s beautiful trails, and immersing herself in a good book.
Dawn Stief, Marketing Coordinator/Photographer
Dawn grew up in central Montana, on the traditional lands of the Apsáalooke people. Her childhood was spent exploring the Beartooth Mountains, where she developed a deep love for the outdoors. During high school, she discovered her passion for photography and has been documenting the people and landscapes around her ever since. Dawn moved to Seattle to further her photography studies and later earned a degree in International Studies from the University of Washington. She now works as a freelance photographer, specializing in documentary and environmental portraiture.
Adrian Moonwood, Guest Mentor
Adrian's ancestors hail from England and Denmark. He was raised in occupied Ohlone land of the east bay area of California, where he discovered his deep sense of love for the natural world playing in the oak-studded foothills. He completed a BA at the University of Oregon in Environmental Education, while volunteering with a half-dozen non-profits leading hundreds of kids into nature. Prior to working with VWP for three years, he worked with Whole Earth Nature School in Eugene. As a self-proclaimed deep ecologist, he loves sharing his passion for ethnobotany, bird language, natural processes, ecology, actually-sustainable living, growing food, geology, permaculture and deep-nature connection with youth!
Anthony Latora, Mentor
Vitalist Herbal Practitioner, Wild Cuisine Enthusiast, Naturalist, and Rewilder
Anthony's ancestral roots stretch from Zacatecas, Mexico and the Yucatan to Western Europe (England and Spain). Raised in the Tongva and Chumash Territories of Southern California, known as Los Angeles, his earliest memories involve eating pepper seeds from the pepper tree in his family's backyard, signaling his lifelong connection to the plant kingdom.
Anthony's journey into nature reconnection blossomed during his time in the Tewa Pueblos territories of Northern New Mexico, where he deepened his connection with plants and place, archery, backpacking, and exploring bird language. He worked with Taos Tilt, a nonprofit dedicated to high desert permaculture, community outreach and supporting an experiential charter school called Roots and Wings.
Erin Soper, Mentor
Naturalist, Collector of Stories, Fosterer of Relationships, Love & Kindness Ambassador
Erin grew up in rural Tacoma on the traditional lands of the Puyallup people nestled between mountains and salt water. She found her niche in nature-centered education early on and has been teaching in traditional and outdoor classrooms, facilitating programs for all ages, and mentoring educators for over 20 years.
You’ll be able to find Erin by listening for her laughter, typically nestled among cedar, douglas fir, salal, and fern. She enjoys geocaching, sleeping in tents, and reading in hammocks. Erin and her partner love chasing sunsets, exploring wild places, and raising their young niece with healthy doses of puddle jumping and rock collecting.
Jacqui Lown, Mentor
Wild Artist, Playful Guide, and Faithful Friend of the Mystery
The Gichi-Gami feeds a rootbeer colored river that may have been called the Chippewa (St.Croix). This then meets the Muddy Mississippi. It is the land of the Dakota, Ojibwa and Sioux. These waterways were a strong pulse in Jacqui’s early life, both on the waters and the shores. Jacqui’s known physical ancestry is mostly from Ireland, Scotland, England, Wales, Germany and Northern Europe, with a healthy mix of ocean and stars. Always up for an adventure, especially out in the natural world, Jacqui embodies her elder/child with joy, tender strength, and dedication. Holding the space for others to experience the natural world’s cauldron of magic is her happy place.
Jane Valencia, Mentor
Jane is a founder and mentor who has served many roles in VWP. She is delighted to be back on the land with the children. Jane brings her love of who we are when we experience the wonder and magic of nature into all our adventures out in the field.
Nicole Olmstead, Mentor
Nicole grew up on the land of the Duamish (more commonly known as Seattle). They always craved deep nature connection and feeling wild, but didn't really think it was possible in this day and age. When they were 16 they started attending a nature school in the area and it completely changed their perspective of the world. Nicole's mission is to help connect others to nature and to themselves. They've been working with kids at Wilderness Awareness School for the past 4 years and is excited to continue learning and growing as a mentor. In particular, but not limited to, Nicole is excited about survival skills, cold plunges, wanders, listening deeply to nature, building cob ovens, and singing songs.
Christina Riccardo, Substitute Mentor
Christina (she/they) grew up at the intersections of farmland and suburban sprawl on the ancestral lands of the Snohomish people (a place now known as Everett, WA.) Her relationship to the more-than-human world was kindled by long forest walks with her father, medicine-making with her auntie, and a deeply embodied sense of comfort among the ferns and mosses of the PNW. She has facilitated environmental education programs in gardens, on farms, in classrooms, and most recently on the ancestral lands of the Suquamish people that is now Bainbridge Island. She seeks to redefine what a learning ecosystem can look, sound, and feel like by: working within learning communities that focus on marinating in the in-between moments; honoring and holding multiple ways of knowing; fostering belonging in and to our more-than-human-world; and ultimately increasing our capacity to be stewards of the earth. Christina loves to share her enthusiasm for plant medicine, mindfulness, bird language, fiber arts, and food justice with students. She is grateful to be in community with like-minded educators who seek to reconnect to the land, to each other, and to ourselves.
Cyndi O’Brien, Substitute Mentor
Cyndi (she/her/they) comes from a long lineage of Scottish, Irish and Celtic ancestors. She grew up running wild on the traditional lands of the Togva/Gabrieleno people in Southern California before moving up north to Ohlone territory in the Santa Cruz Bay area. There she connected with other naturalists who were excited about animal tracking and began studying with Jon Young while taking classes at Tom Brown Jr’s Tracker School. This path lead her to study with and then teach/work for Wilderness Awareness School. Cyndi helped found the Wind Gatherers program and is one of the first program directors for Vashon Wilderness Program. Since leaving VWP she has had adventures in Bellingham, on Orcas Island and is currently living in Tacoma. She is happy to be back among the towhees, fir/cedar trees, and VWP community of Vashon.
Board of Directors
Shanna Clinton (President) she/her was mostly deprived of wild nature connection until adulthood, but cherishes sparse childhood memories like watching Perseid meteor showers in the high desert of southern California and stomping through cypress swamps in Florida. She was drawn to the Pacific NW for college, and returned for a MA in Existential and Phenomenological Psychology at Seattle University. She also received a MA in Medical Anthropology at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa, where she studied contemporary practices of Kānaka Maoli cultural medicine in healthcare settings. She has been a clinician in community mental health services in Seattle, Chicago, Honolulu, and Bremerton, taught courses about culture and psychology, and now works in public administration of behavioral health services and supportive housing for people who have experienced homelessness. Since 2012 Shanna has lived on Vashon, homeland of the sx̌ʷəbabs and other Salish peoples, and she’s been engaged in VWP since 2015 as a parent of 3 children who each started programs at age 4; she joined the board in 2020.
Jeff Stevenson (Treasurer and Founding Member) grew up in New York City and has explored the wilds of nature his whole life, including living in a tree house, rock climbing, night diving with manta rays, ski racing, and surviving in the Scottish Highlands for 4 days with nothing but some fishing line and a knife. He is a lover of story, family, myth, singing, cooking for friends and family, playing music and the power of community. Jeff holds a B.S in Biochemistry from McGill University and has worked in the field of imaging research and MRI for over 30 years at New York University Medical Center and the University of Washington. VWP has been a foundational component of his three children’s learning and growth.
Elizabeth Mendana Shaw, she/her, grew up in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains in Colorado on the land of the Arapaho, Cheyenne, Ute, and Apache. Dancing, hiking and camping were, and are, her antidote for the stressors of life. After a first career in dance and theatre in San Francisco, she moved to Vashon in 2010 and joined the VWP community in 2014 by enrolling her eldest in the Wind Gatherers program. In 2017, she moved with her family to Vancouver Island in British Columbia to the land of the Scia’new First Nation and then the land of the T’Sou-ke First Nation. It was inspiring to live in that landscape and to be surrounded by indigenous stories, art, and wisdom. Life brought her back to Vashon in 2024 and she enrolled her youngest in Forest Trackers and joined the board, grateful to return to the VWP community.
Lauren Holton – bio coming soon
Grace Quiroz – bio coming soon
Elder Council
Estavan Roache – bio coming soon
Nan Draper is honored to be part of the VWP Elder Council, and excited to engage her love of nature’s seasonal cycles with other humans, creepy crawlies, winged ones, and four legged of all kinds - across generations and in all weather. She feels so blessed to be in the mildness of this Puget Sound Salish Duwamish world under the loving gaze of T’swak (Mount Rainier). Nan’s love of movement, adventure, exploration, singing and community are some of what she brings to enliven the VWP world.
Mary Shackelford is honored to serve as an elder with VWP since the first years. Coming from the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia, Manahoac territory, Mary is grateful for the welcome she has received in Duwamish land, 40 years her home now on the Island. Mary has several decades of leadership experience exploring creative collaboration, learning and working with others to bring forward what really matters. In all her various activities, Mary shares her capacity to connect in service to life, aligning from the heart to cultivate awareness through listening, witnessing and sharing.
Mark Smythe – pic and bio coming soon
Mark P. Timken, MA, LMHCA has been a part of the Vashon Wilderness Program community for more than 14 years as a founding member, stakeholder, and now as an Elder. He graduated from Pacifica Graduate Institute in 2015 with a Masters in Counseling with an emphasis in depth psychology, and is currently in private practice as a nature-based psychotherapist. Mark is passionate about VWP’s mission to connect people more deeply with themselves, each other, and the natural world.