Hurricane Island Outward Bound School instructors range in age from 20 to 71. The average age is around 30. Some are full time wilderness instructors; others are working toward bachelor or graduate degrees in a variety of fields; many of them work for most of the year as classroom teachers, firefighters, engineers, consultants, ski instructors, geologists and EMTs. They share a love of wilderness travel and the power of the wilderness classroom on the lives of people of all ages. They believe that traveling through demanding environments and collaboratively and creatively meeting challenges builds skills and habits that students will apply throughout the rest of the lives, wherever their interests take them!
Field Staff
Kate Abraham
Kate Abraham
Instructor
With HIOBS since: 2018
Hometown: Appleton, WI
Fun Fact: Kate has a degree in cartography and a certificate in yoga instruction!
Mel Barrett
Mel Barrett
Bart Blankenship
Bart Blankenship
Hometown of Palmetto, FL
Instructor since 1994
Fun Fact: Bart likes rowing his dinghy with homemade oars.
Hannah Brock
Hannah Brock
Hometown Stuart, Florida
With HIOBS Since 2017
Fun Fact: In college I taught hip hop fitness classes at the school gym.
Sarah "eSBee" Buhlman
Sarah "eSBee" Buhlman
Hometown of Marriottsville, MD
Instructor since 2012
Fun Fact: When not instructing at HIOBS, eSBee teaches health & sex-ed, algebra, and micro-anatomy to high schools students in Portland, Maine.
Julia Carleton
Julia Carleton
Hometown of Camden, ME
Instructor since 2003
Fun Fact: Julia met her future husband working for HIOBS!
Laura Carson
Laura Carson
With HIOBS Since 2016
Lia-Lucine Cary
Lia-Lucine Cary
Hometown of Stuart, FL
Instructor since 2015
Fun Fact: Lia-Lucine’s goal is to find massive amounts of treasure so she can spend her time collecting stories, studying archaeology, inventing things, playing accordion, and pursing hobbies.
Wendy Cirko
Wendy Cirko
With HIOBS Since 2017
Dana Crane
Dana Crane
Hometown of Brunswick, ME
Instructor since 2011
Fun Fact: Dana plays roller derby.
Janny Daniels
Janny Daniels
Hometown of Franklin, VA
Instructor since 2008
Fun Fact: Janny has sailed through the south end of Greenland.
John Donovan
John Donovan
Hometown of Hanover, NH
Instructor since 1976
Fun Fact: John skippered a 35' sailboat on two short-handed transatlantic crossings.
Sam Eakle
Sam Eakle
Hometown of Oakland, CA
Instructor since 2012
Fun Fact: Sam majored in the history of art and visual culture at UC Santa Cruz.
Annie Fagan
Annie Fagan
Lead Instructor
Hometown Camden, Maine
With HIOBS Since 2016
Fun Fact: Annie's newest hobby is learning how to windsurf.
AJ Frithiof
AJ Frithiof
Hometown of Pensacola, FL
Instructor since 2006
Fun Fact: AJ has spent hours with friends looking for moose in Maine over a number of years but has yet to see one. She’s not convinced they actually exist there.
Norm Greenberg
Norm Greenberg
Course Director
With HIOBS since: 1989
Hometown: Baltimore, MD
Fun fact: Semi-pro adventure racer for 7 years.
Erika Hartman
Erika Hartman
Beth Jackson
Beth Jackson
Hometown of Bloomington, IN
Instructor since 2007
Fun Fact: Beth once had a dog that would steal Halloween candy and hide it under pillows. She never opened the candies so it was like getting presents all the time!
Ben Jacques
Ben Jacques
Hometown of Springfield MA
Instructors since 2012
Fun Fact: Ben is a birder and enjoys watching and listening to different bird species in different habitats.
McKenzie Kimball
McKenzie Kimball
With HIOBS Since 2017
Fun Fact: McKenzie has a collection of dinosaur zipper pulls on her jackets and likes to look for puffball mushrooms and berries while hiking.
Elisa Knapp
Elisa Knapp
Instructor and Logistics Coordinator
With HIOBS since: 2017
Hometown: Syracuse, NY
Fun fact: I have lived in the same house my entire life
Dave Menges
Dave Menges
Course Director, Resident Course Director & Instructor
With HIOBS since: 1989
Hometown: Cleveland, Ohio
Fun Fact: Dave was an elementary school principal at an all-boys school in Richmond, VA for 17 years.
Rachel Milito
Rachel Milito
Lead Instructor and Course Director
With HIOBS since: 2015 (instructor since 2013)
Hometown: Cranston, RI
Fun fact: Rachel is fluent in Spanish and has traveled to 13 countries in Latin America.
Allie Miller
Allie Miller
Hometown of Dartmouth, MA
Instructor since 2014
Fun Fact: Allie has built a few wooden canoes.
Nate Miller
Nate Miller
Hometown of Emmaus, PA
Instructor since 2008
Fun Fact: Nate is in a band called Thick Knuckles.
Emilee Monson
Emilee Monson
Kelsy Morganwalp
Kelsy Morganwalp
Hometown of Herndon, Virginia
Instructor since 2009
Fun Fact: Kelsy owns over 100 pairs of socks!
Ken Olivier
Ken Olivier
Hometown of Ouray, CO
Instructor since 2013
Fun Fact: Ken lived on a sailboat as a small child with his twin sister and family.
Luke O’Neill
Luke O’Neill
Hometown of Gloucester, MA
Instructor since 1990
Fun Facts: Luke also serves as Program Manager for Outward Bound Peacebuilding’s Emerging Leaders Program—an intensive leadership development program that brings together both Israeli and Palestinian leaders ready to challenge themselves with a 10-day Outward Bound expedition in Croatia. The expedition is the first step in a multi-year involvement designed to build, strengthen, and reinforce connections and inspire personal development. . . . Oh—and he has also enjoyed soaring through the air on the flying trapeze for over 20 years.
Andrew Pape
Andrew Pape
Hometown of Wellsville, NY
Instructor since 2011
Fun Fact: Andrew bought a 28' William Atkins Sloop which he sailed to Virginia, and in summer 2016 will sail back to Maine to live-aboard between courses, and while course directing.
Anna Parker
Anna Parker
Hometown of Lexington, MA
Instructor since 2014
Fun Fact: Anna learned MIG welding basics—even though all the gloves were many sizes too large!
Whitney Pander
Whitney Pander
Suzanne Newsom Pierce
Suzanne Newsom Pierce
Hometown of Newry, ME
Instructor since 1990
Fun Fact: Suzanne was a bank manager before becoming an Outward Bound instructor.
Meganne Radway
Meganne Radway
Hometown of Newry, ME
Instructor since 2015
Fun Fact: Meganne recently trained for her first Triathlon and hopes to compete in many endurance races.
Jeremy Reinerston
Jeremy Reinerston
Assistant Instructor
Hometown: Springfield, IL
With HIOBS Since: 2018
Fun Fact:
Jeremy once wrote a novel which featured a house full of talking furniture, a journey to the underworld, and one very bad haircut. He is still dealing with the aftermath.
Hannah Redmon
Hannah Redmon
Position: Instructor
With HIOBS Since: 2018
Hometown: Lexington, MA
Fun Fact: Hannah spent the past four months living in Madagascar and learning to speak Malagasy at home and in the markets.
Eric Ruben
Eric Ruben
Madison Ruopp
Madison Ruopp
Hometown Mechanicsburg, PA
Fun Fact: For the last two summers I worked at a zoo where I got kisses from an elk on a regular basis in exchange for feeding her corn.
Hannah Ryde
Hannah Ryde
Instructor
With HIOBS since: 2019
Hometown: Concord, MA
Fun FAct: Hannah loves to swim and has gone swimming at elevations that range from sea level to 12,000 feet!
Anna Sand
Anna Sand
Assistant Instructor
With HIOBS since: 2018
Hometown: Pomfret, VT
Fun fact: I've hiked all 46 high peaks in the Adirondack State Park over 4,000ft, making me a "46er."
Marissa Sanzone
Marissa Sanzone
Hometown: Fairfax, VA
Been with HIOBS since: 2019
Nora Spicer
Nora Spicer
Hometown of Cambridge, MA
Instructor since 2012
Fun Fact: Nora attended a Spanish bilingual school and loves backpacking in South America.
Ken Sinapius
Ken Sinapius
Hometown of Lynn MA
Instructor since 1984
Fun Fact: Ken is a member of the first graduating class of Outdoor Recreation majors at Unity College.
Lucia Tonachel
Lucia Tonachel
Position: Instructor, Logistician
With HIOBS since: 2018
Hometown: Cambridge, MA
Fun fact: I currently split my time between India and Maine!
Maria Versteeg
Maria Versteeg
Position: Assistant Instructor, Newry Base
Been with HIOBS since: 2019
Hometown: Owatonna, Minnesota
Fun Fact: I used to grow pigs and rabbits at Conty and State fairs growing up!
Ben Vockley
Ben Vockley
Eli Walker
Eli Walker
Hometown of Thomaston, Topsham, and Union, ME
Instructor since 2011
Fun Fact: Eli was a camper on a 5-week Chewonki Foundation canoe expedition in central Quebec when he was 16. One of his trip leaders was also an Outward Bound instructor. From that year on, he knew that he wanted to work for Outward Bound. He was finally old enough to apply when he was 21, and he became a HIOBS instructor.
Dan Wellehan
Dan Wellehan
Hometown of Newbury MA
Instructor since 1997
Fun Fact: Dan can juggle flaming torches and knives, but not at the same time . . . yet.
Chris Wells
Chris Wells
Hometown of Metuchen, New Jersey.
Instructor since 1982
Fun Fact: Chris attended Woodstock!
Peals Wrobel
Peals Wrobel
Hometown of Buffalo, NY
Fun Facts: Peals used to hitchhike a lot before getting her motorcycle then her car. She’s still not a grown up.
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