Major: Mathematics with an emphasis on Secondary Education
Hometown: Brampton, Canada
Why you work at the OP: I feel the most alive when I am experiencing the outdoors and I want to share those experiences with other people.
Favorite outdoor activity: Highlining and Crack Climbing
Fun Fact: I can solve a Rubix Cube.
Mantra/Fav Quote: Be honest. Be kind.
Major: Cellular, Molecular, and Developmental Biology
Hometown: Salina, Kansas
Why I work at OP: I love doing fun things outdoors, especially with people who share the same interest in outdoor activities.
Favorite Outdoor Activity: Mountain Biking
Fun Fact: I’m on the CMU triathlon team.
Mantra/Fav Quote: A smooth sea never made a skilled sailor.
Major: Elementary Education
Hometown: Littleton, CO
Why I work at OP: To share the therapeutic powers of the outdoors and get to know people I wouldn’t have otherwise met.
Favorite Outdoor Activity: Climbing, rafting, hiking, and skiing.
Fun fact: I can juggle things that are easy to catch and I make linocut prints!
Mantra/Fav Quote: You can’t help others until you help yourself.
Major: Ecology, Evolution, and Organismal Biology
Hometown: Arvada, CO
Why you work at the OP: I wanted to work with a community that shares the same passion for the outdoors to help educate and create opportunities for others to do the same!
Favorite outdoor activity: Skiing, Backpacking, and Climbing.
Fun Fact: I have an identical twin sister!
Mantra/Fav Quote: Be good, or be good at it!
Major: Outdoor Recreation Industry Studies with a minor in Environmental Science
Hometown: Orange, CA
Why do you work at the Outdoor Program? I work at the Outdoor Program because I love introducing people to my favorite outdoor activities, as well as, connecting with others who enjoy going outside.
What is your favorite outdoor activity? Climbing, rafting, and slacklining!
Fun Fact: I love making bread.
Mantra/Fav Quote: “The impediment to action advances action. What stands in the way becomes the way.” - Marcus Aurelius
Major: Nursing and a Spanish minor.
Hometown: Boulder, CO
Why you work at the OP: Nothing excites me more than exercising and exploring nature with like-minded people who are stoked to do things outside. I also enjoy sharing my love for the outdoors with others who haven’t really had the opportunity to do so before.
Favorite Outdoor Activity: trail running, backpacking, skiing, rafting, and so much more!
Fun Fact: I can speak three languages:)
Mantra/Fav Quote: Life begins at the end of your comfort zone.
Major: Outdoor Recreation Industry Studies
Hometown: Palisade, CO
Why you work at the OP: I work at the OP because it allows me to spend time with a community of people who value positivity, passion for their favorite activities, and kindness. I love this place because it's where I have found my people. Nowhere else have I experienced the friendships, kindness, and support that I have here. Additionally, the op allows me to be a part of students finding new and exciting passions for the outdoors!
Favorite outdoor activity: Climbing mountains, ultrarunning, and fly fishing.
Fun Fact: I have absolutely no sense of smell and never have.
Mantra/Fav Quote: Don't stop when you're tired, stop when you're done.
Major: Outdoor Recreation Industry Studies
Hometown: Pine River, MN
Why you work at the OP: I work at the OP to get outside with new people.
Favorite Outdoor Activity: Rafting!
Fun Fact: I used to have an upside-down tooth
Mantra/Fav Quote: Some people live and learn, some people just live.
Major: Outdoor Recreation Industry Studies
Hometown: Broomfield, CO
Why you work at the op: I love to be able to facilitate people's first-time experiences in the outdoors in the hopes of creating ever-lasting changes.
Favorite outdoor activity: I enjoy rock climbing, whitewater rafting, and kayaking. I have been climbing for over 3 years with a predominant amount of time being spent outdoors rather than gym climbing and am all around a trad climber. My favorite type of rafting trips are overnight trips that require more than one day to complete the section of the river. I also do commercial raft guiding during the summer season, recently guiding on the Arkansas River near Buena Vista Colorado. Some of my favorite things about the outdoors are being able to disconnect from the world for a while and immerse myself in my surroundings in the natural world.
Fun Fact: I was born in Florida.
Mantra/Fav Quote: “In a walk with nature, one receives far more than he seeks” – John Muir
Major: Exercise science
Hometown: Anchorage, AK
Why I work at OP: I work at the OP because I love the outdoors and want to share experiences in nature with anyone and everyone. I love taking people out to partake in an outdoor activity - especially for their first time. Whether it be learning to climb, hike, or even just seeing the stars without light pollution - it is very touching to see and feel the joy that comes from these experiences.
Favorite outdoor activity: rock climbing, mountain biking, and skiing.
Fun Fact: I can walk on my hands.
Mantra/Fav Quote: “the universe is basically an animal. It grazes on the ordinary. It creates infinite idiots just to eat them.” - Rick from Rick and Morty
Major: Outdoor Recreation Industry Studies
Why you work at the OP: To continue to express my love for the outdoors, and share an endless passion to make lasting memories and friendships along the way.
Favorite outdoor activity: Backcountry Snowboarding
Fun Fact: I can recite just about any South Park Episode.
Mantra/Fav Quote: It's all mental
Major: Criminal Justice
Hometown: Eagle, CO
Why you work at the OP: To get outside and enjoy the world.
Favorite outdoor activity: Off-roading in my truck
Fun Fact: I go off-roading in my Tacoma.
Mantra/Fav Quote: Ride for those who cannot.
Major: Outdoor Recreation Industry Studies, EMT Basic
Hometown: Appleton, WI
Why I work at the OP: I love all types of outdoor activities and I think helping people have fun and memorable experiences in the outdoors is super rad.
Favorite Outdoor Activity: Mountain Biking
Fun Fact: I've knocked my front teeth out twice.
Mantra/Fav Quote: Ride fast, take chances.
Major: Studio Art, Environmental Science
Hometown: Denver, CO
Why I work at the OP: I love being surrounded by people who share a similar mindset and similar passions as I do, and working in an environment full of respectful and kind people who all seek to raise each other up. (See also: what always makes me smile)
Favorite outdoor activity: Immersing myself completely in the experience and allowing myself to be completely awestruck by the little things; to lose myself in the little inkling corner of the universe that we get to be aware of. (Backpacking and rafting are my favorite for this kind of experience, climbing is super fun too)
Fun Fact: I'm a painter.
Mantra/Fav Quote: C'est la vie. That's life.
Major: Social Work
Hometown: Virginia Beach, VA
Why I work at the OP: To connect students to nature.
Favorite outdoor activity: Skateboarding
Fun Fact: I eat way too much ice cream.
Mantra/Fav Quote: You can either make yourself miserable or you can make yourself strong, the amount of work is the same.
Major: Outdoor Recreation Industry Studies with minors in Spanish and International Studies
Hometown: Steamboat Springs, CO
Why I work at the OP: I work at the OP because I love spending time outdoors and want to help others have great experiences in the outdoors as well.
Favorite outdoor activity: Rafting and skiing.
Fun Fact: When I was 5 I lived in a 1987 VW van named Lucky Blue with my family for 5 months and traveled around the US and Canada.
Mantra/Fav Quote: "-and then I decided adventures are the best way to learn"
Major: Pre-Nursing
Hometown: Grand Junction, CO
Why I work at the OP: I work at the OP so I can spend time outside, with other stoked folks, while also developing leadership and facilitation skills.
Favorite outdoor activity: Rock climbing
Fun Fact: I was named after my great-grandma.
Mantra/Fav Quote: When I am on a challenging trad route, I bring myself back to the present moment and my breath by reminding myself "I'm still here, I'm still present, I'm still in it"
Major: Outdoor Recreation Industry Studies
Hometown: Norwalk, IA
Why I work at the OP: I’m stoked about sharing outdoor experiences with others. The OP is the most amazing resource to do that.
Favorite outdoor activity: Biking and Skiing!!
Fun Fact: I own a hermit crab named Henrita.
Mantra/Fav Quote: "The universe provides”
Major: Environmental Science
Hometown: Grand Lake, CO
Why I work at the OP: It's a great community!
Favorite outdoor activity: Snowboarding
Fun Fact: I used to be a wildland firefighter.
Mantra/Fav Quote: Life's for living!
Major: Outdoor Recreation Industry Studies
Hometown: Castle Rock, CO
Why I work at the OP: I work at the OP because I love the outdoor community and the opportunities that it gives students!!
Favorite outdoor activity: Rock Climbing
Fun Fact: I know all the lyrics to Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen.
Mantra/Fav Quote: Seek discomfort.
Major: Mechanical Engineering
Hometown: Erie, CO
Why I work at the OP: I want to share the outdoor experiences that I love.
Favorite outdoor activity: Mountain Biking
Fun Fact: I have a huge love for dogs.
Mantra/Fav Quote: Of all the paths in life, make sure a few are dirt.
Major: Outdoor Recreation Industry Studies with a minor in Social Work
Hometown: Memphis, TN
Why I work at the OP: I work at the OP because I really love watching new students grow in their outdoor adventures and getting Veterans back outdoors!
Favorite outdoor activity: Rafting!
Fun Fact: I have a three-legged dog
Mantra/Fav Quote: "I don't know where I'm going, but I promise it won't be boring" -David Bowie
Major: Outdoor Recreation Industry Studies with a minor in Social Work
Hometown: Grand Junction, CO
Why I work at the OP: I work at the OP for all of the opportunities that are available: from honing my skills to learning new skills from people who are passionate about what they do; to being able to share my skills and experiences with others; and most of all, I work there for the atmosphere and the connections and friends I continue to make the more involved at the OP I get.
Favorite outdoor activity: Whitewater kayaking and snowboarding
Fun Fact: I love the outdoors, but my all-time favorite hobby/ activity involves cars. Driving really fast in a fast car is my all-time favorite hobby, along with working on and building cars for on and off-road purposes. It is a very expensive hobby though, so it is not something that I get the opportunity to do very often anymore.
Mantra/Fav Quote: “I don’t look on the bright side, I’ve built a house there.” Bliss n Eso- Off the Grid