FACILITATORS

Our program facilitators are here to support your children and your family. Each facilitator brings a unique background in nature-based learning, natural history, and compassionate communication to this work.

We love nature, children, and play!

Andrea Eilers

Andrea (She/her) has been working with Fresh Air Learning since early 2015 and volunteered as a parent for 2 years before that. She has a degree in special education and has been working with elementary and preschool families for 20 years. When she's not volunteering with her two kids' various activities you can find her staying fit and getting inspired outside. She believes that Fresh Air Learning helps give kids resilience, stamina, personal responsibility, and a deep connection to nature, it is her hope that kids fall in love with nature forever and grow to preserve it. Andrea is a reporting teacher with our elementary program. See you in our forest office!

Willoughby Arevelo

Willoughby (He/him) was raised in the Coast Redwoods in southwestern Cascadia (traditional Wiyot and Yurok territories). He fell in love with fungi as a young child, and has been learning from them, along with plants, animals and microbes, ever since. For the past decade he's been offering educational experiences relating to fungi, art and ecology in community contexts and schools. As a parent of a young child, Uma, one of his greatest pleasures has been sharing his knowledge and passion for living beings with her and observing her develop relationships within her ecosystem. Willoughby works to offer ecological teachings woven together with artistic experience and play to help children build relationships with the more-than-human world around them, an embodied awareness of the interconnectedness of all beings, and a place-based sense of belonging, caretaking and gratitude for the gifts of the earth. Some of his other passions include music (He plays percussion in the Carnival Band), and growing, foraging, cooking, preserving and sharing food.

Hana Hermanek

Hana Hermanek has been teaching at Fresh Air Learning since 2017. She was born and raised on Haida Gwaii where she learned to pick mushrooms, hike along salmon rivers and go camping usually when it is raining. She completed an undergraduate degree in Ecology and Spanish at UVIC in 2003 and then travelled across Canada and Ecuador teaching environmental education for 5 years before obtaining her Education Degree. The organic and place-based learning that happens at Fresh Air Learning, is her jam.

She loves supporting children find interesting ways to engage with their surrounding using imaginary play while gaining important life skills. When not found tromping through the North Shore trails with children in raincoats, she can be found riding her e-bike around town, going to or teaching a yoga class, or looking at the sky in search of birds and neat looking clouds.

Fiona Louie

Fiona Louie (She/They) has a Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree from University of British Columbia and has a Lead Independent Certificate from Child and Nature Alliance of Canada. Fiona is interested in plants of the Pacific Northwest and their benefits. She also loves growing mushrooms, edible plants, and building campfires. Fiona is studying Herbalism with Pacific Rim College. She attended the Trek Outdoor Education Program when she was in high school. After University, Fiona spent two years as an Assistant English Teacher in Japan with the JET Program, working at a Japanese Technical High School. Fiona built two creative small businesses in silver jewelry design and a yoga lifestyle brand, and managed the businesses for over two decades. She studied business at BCIT and has many years of hands on business experience. She has travelled extensively; including Asia, Indonesia, Oceania, parts of South America, Galápagos Islands, India, Africa and parts of Europe. She also has certificates in yoga teaching and kids yoga. Fiona’s family life has led her into a beautiful world of home learning and forest adventures with their two young children. She enjoys drawing from all of her experiences and sharing it with the younger generation. Fiona has been interested in many different kinds of education styles. She has experience working with children of all ages. Fiona and her family live on an urban homestead with their 7 pets; 4 chickens, 2 lovebirds, and one bunny.

Meagan Braun

Meagan (She/Her) is a certified teacher who is passionate about place-based learning, play and a strength-based approach to teaching and learning. Meagan has a background as a nurse's aide, Educational Assistant and Early Childhood Educator. Through years of play and connection with community members young and old Meagan has learned the value of relationship and trust in the learning process, and in building safe, healthy and rich learning communities. Meagan loves the outdoors and is thrilled to combine her passion for the outdoors with her teaching career at Fresh Air Learning and other Island Discovery programs.

Tricia Edgar

Tricia (She/they) loves to connect people with places. She is a settler of European ancestry who lives in the Lynn Creek watershed in Squamish, Tsleil-Waututh, and Musqueam territory. For 27 years, Tricia has worked as a nature educator in this watershed, developing programs that explore the streams and forests of the temperate rainforest. She loves watching children fill with enthusiasm and wonder in nature. Tricia has an undergraduate degree in English and Geography and a Masters degree focused on ecological restoration and community development.

She has a background in permaculture education and also facilitates the Forest School Practitioners' Course through the Child and Nature Alliance of Canada. When she is not teaching, learning, and immersing herself in nature, you can find her hanging out with her daughter (a home learning graduate), reading fantasy novels, baking gluten-free goodies, writing stories with her students, or rehabilitating foster cats!

Liz Raymond

Liz (they/them) is a BIPOC mixed-raced child of immigrants, born and raised in San Diego, California. They hold two degrees related to education, a BA in English with Single Subject Teaching from San Diego State University and a Masters of Arts in Teaching from The University of Southern California. They have had the pleasure to live in beautiful Vancouver, BC for the last seven years. Liz decided to be an educator because they wanted to make sure that BIPOC children would have a familiar face in the classroom, one that knew and understood their struggles to belong in society.

Liz has enjoyed building upon their passion for nature through attending workshops like Wild Wisdom. Some nature related activities that they enjoy are: weaving, carving, hiking, in plein air painting, and reflective journaling (sit spot). Liz experiences nature through a learning lens and strives to keep that sense of wonder alive for their students and themselves. One of their goals is to encourage all children to find harmony and peace in natural spaces. Another goal is to reach out to BIPOC communities and get children in nature who don't have easy access to it. Liz loves spending time with their partner and dogs in Stanley Park. They also enjoy journaling with fountain pens, reading, and making footbags. Liz looks forward to connecting with you and your children in nature.

Jessica Curry

Jessica (She/her) has a background in outdoor education, travel and tourism, and holds an elementary teaching degree. She has a passion for exploring nature and sharing that love with others. She believes that all children should have a chance to explore their natural world around them and keep being curious about what they find.

Jessica loves going canoeing, hiking and camping with her husband and two boys. She also loves keeping herself busy with sewing, soap making, canning, and tending to her garden. Jessica also volunteers her time as a Scout leader, and helps facilitate support groups for families who have children with special needs.

Cara Goggs

Cara (she/her) is very excited to be joining the amazing group of facilitators at FAL. She has been a preschool teacher for 30 years, the last 10 of which have been in nature. Cara has worked in a variety of nature connections programs and can’t imagine doing anything else with her life. She can be found birding in the early hours at Maplewood Flats as well as wandering the hills and valleys of the North Shore. She also enjoys combing the rivers and beaches, rockhounding and agate hunting. Cara is passionate about storytelling, singing, crafting and eating snacks under old trees in dappled sunlight.

Kate MacDonald

Kate (she/her) has long been inspired by working with children of all ages in various community and educational settings. As a life-long learner she first got involved in outdoor education with Fresh Air Learning in 2018 and she is grateful to be continuously learning from the land and from the teachings of the long-time stewards of the unceded Coast Salish territories. Kate holds a BA in Child and Youth Studies, MA in Social Justice and Equity Studies, and is currently a doctoral student in the Faculty of Education at SFU with her research focusing on place and nature-based education within the public school system. Kate is certified as a Forest School Practitioner with the Child and Nature Alliance/Forest School Canada and is passionate about connecting with nature through exploration and play, and about fostering caring and compassionate learning communities with young people. Stemming from an interest in food security, eco-social justice, and system sustainability, Kate is an avid community gardener and can often be found tending her gardens and enjoying local parks with human and more-than-human companions.

Britt (she/they)

Born and raised here on the wet west coast. I am deeply in love with the Pacific ocean and the Cedar trees. I began teaching with the Vancouver School Board in 2013, and found my way to nature programs through Windsor House Democratic School and now PIE (Partners in Education)/Fresh Air
Learning. I am committed to teaching in a way that honors and centers BIPOC voices and pedagogies, social-emotional wellbeing, somatic practices, play, experiential learning. I love creating spaces for
children to be their authentic selves. As a lifelong learner, I am dedicated to decolonizing my practice and continually evolving as an educator.

Outside of the classroom, I am an experienced musician, producer, DJ, and event host, blending creativity with a passion for community and connection.

DJ MacKinnon

I’m a homeschooling mom of two mostly grown children. Both of them participated in outdoor education programs including FAL and I am now happy to be back in the woods with children. I am passionat about sharing and facilitating childrens’ sense of awe and wonder in the natural world while also holding space for their own input and reflection.

I have completed Early Childhood Education training through the Lifeways program - the early childhood extension of the Waldorf school system.