By Jolene Brink
Jolene is part of the Wolf Ridge marketing team. Her favorite season is the North Shore of Minnesota right about now.
Hannah Edstrom was a Graduate Naturalist from 2016-2019.
“I live in Port Angeles, Washington where I am currently a “future teacher” which for me looks like substitute teaching and enjoying the adventures of the Olympic Peninsula!
I learned about the Naturalist Training Program and Wolf Ridge from my college advisor and dear family friend, Kris MacPherson (she knew I would love it before I ever did!) The other reason I really knew I wanted to learn and grow at Wolf Ridge was because I had spent so much of my early years adventuring in the outdoors with the Red Wing ELC where I gained an unfathomable appreciation for nature.
The Naturalist Training Program felt like a perfect meld of ideal location, personal growth opportunities, and a place to fill my desire to give others’ nurturing outdoor experiences. The skills and experiences I gained from the program are innumerable but a few highlights include:
- becoming someone with the confidence to lead people of any age through quite literally any activity
- having a passion for gaining a deeper understanding of the landscape around me through plant and animal identification and appreciation
- building community through adventure, cooking, and games.
I now spend my time using these same skills and experiences to navigate my way through the public school system and formal classroom with a goal of helping students discover new ways of learning about content and themselves.”