Meet Our Hante adventures Staff

Beth Venable is the Executive Director of the Eagle’s Nest Foundation. Though new to the organization, the ENF mission resonates deeply with both her professional goals and personal values. She believes strongly there are no better resources for children than those offering real connection and experiences, the natural world, and a chance to know and be known in community.

Though she did not know to call it experiential education in the early 90’s, being an “arts kid” in an outdoor oriented family had a profoundly positive impact on how Beth would orient herself in adulthood. This began with an undergraduate degree in Theater from Florida State University, and was followed by arts in education programming in the late 90s before expanding with addition of outdoor programming. Wanting to better understand child development and families, Beth found her way back to school to study adventure based psychotherapy at Prescott College where she earned an MS in Counseling with a specialization in couples and families.

Beth, her husband Drake, and their daughter Laurel have a strong sense of place on the trails and rivers of Western North Carolina and Upstate South Carolina. As longtime residents of the “golden corner” of SC, they frequently made their way up the winding road to ride in Pisgah and Dupont, to paddle the Tuckaseegee and Nantalala Rivers, and sink deep into the rhythms and culture of local music festivals.

Elizabeth Waite-Kucera (Noni) is the Executive Director of Eagle’s Nest Foundation and serves on The Outdoor Academy Advisory Board. She graduated from Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, N.C., with a B.A. degree in anthropology. Previously, Noni was Camp Director at Eagle’s Nest Camp from 1993-2003 and Business Manager from 1989-1999 for Eagle’s Nest Foundation. She has also been the Swimming Director, and Paddling Director.  Additionally, Noni developed Eagle’s Nest whitewater canoeing and Hante Bicycling programs.

Noni’s grandfather, Alex Waite, head of psychology at Rollins College, founded Eagle’s Nest Camp in 1945. Helen and Mo Waite, Noni’s parents, served as directors for the Eagle’s Nest Carolinas’ Camp for Diabetic Children. Her mother served as director of Eagle’s Nest Camp and executive director of Eagle’s Nest Foundation for many years. Noni spent her childhood years growing up at camp and is honored to carry on the mission of Eagle’s Nest as Executive Director of the foundation.

Cara, a North Carolina transplant from Ohio, now calls Brevard and the Blue Ridge Mountains “home.”  After hiking the Pacific Crest Trail in 2014 she took the role of Paddling Director for ENC before moving to the development office full-time.

Not only is Cara a skilled paddling instructor, she’s a talented experiential educator and an avid outdoorswoman. She holds a BS in Recreation from Ohio University and has worked in the field of outdoor education since 2003 as a wilderness instructor, outdoor program manager, camp counselor and challenge course facilitator. Cara spends her free time paddling, climbing, and hiking, tending to her impressive garden, and adventuring with her family.

Paige graduated with a B.A. degree in English from Salem College in Winston-Salem. While studying education in college, she applied to work at Eagle’s Nest Camp because she loved her own camp experiences as a child and thought that working at a camp would give her invaluable teaching experience. Her first summer at camp, Paige helped direct the musical and taught soccer. Throughout college, she continued to spend her summers at Eagle’s Nest teaching everything from ceramics to swimming to Explorer’s Club and leading Hante Appalachian Trail treks and bike treks. After graduating, she started working full time with Eagle’s Nest and has now worked here for more than 15 years. During that time, she served as the Hante Director, Head Counselor, Junior Counselor Coordinator and Associate Director. Her husband, Andy, whom she met at Eagle’s Nest, is also an educator.

After being born and raised in the concrete flatlands of suburban Chicago, Ed was ready for some place different. It began with attending the University of the South, where he studied ecology and fell in love with camping and trail running amongst pristine old-growth deciduous forests. After graduating in 2016, he passed on that love of nature by teaching biology and environmental science at a boarding school in western Maryland. But as his summer trips to Bolivia, Patagonia, Tanzania, Japan, and Alaska compelled him to lead backpacking and canoeing trips at residential camps in Maine, he realized his passion for the outdoors came from experiencing it for oneself. Thus, he moved west to earn a Master degree in outdoor adventure and expedition leadership from Southern Oregon University, where he gained a foundational understanding of experiential education through research, planning, leading, and teaching in the field. In 2022, he found his way back to southern Appalachia, joining the Eagle’s Nest community as the Hante Adventures and Outdoor Program Manager. He is excited to facilitate new experiences for participants so that they can learn and grow from the challenges they encounter.

Molly Herrmann joined the Eagle’s Nest staff in May of 2014 as the Camp and Hante Registrar and Winston-Salem Office Manager.  Previous to joining the Eagle’s Nest, Molly was a PhD candidate at the University of Buffalo in the History Department studying slavery in Charleston, SC.  Molly brings to the Eagle’s Nest her passion for experiential education and a love of outdoor activities.  In her spare time, Molly can be found hiking, camping, or playing with her two dogs.

Lia graduated from Mount Holyoke College with a B.A. in Computer Science. She has been a part of the Eagle’s Nest community since 2010, beginning as a camper. Since then, Lia has served as a Junior Counselor, an intern in the garden and kitchen, and a camp counselor for several years. Lia has also been a member of the Peer Leadership Team, functioning as the Assistant Program Manager and the Outdoor Logistics Coordinator. Working at Eagle’s Nest has given Lia a passion for helping children connect to the natural world and discover their own passions. Lia is excited to join the full-time Camp staff and create magic for children of all ages.

Isa is a Camp, Outdoor Academy, and Hante alum from Asheville, NC. She has previously worked in the camp kitchen and will now be heading up our kitchen full time as our Whole Foods Program Manager. As someone who grew up attending Eagle’s Nest programming and living in the Blue Ridge Mountains, she was super excited to be able to join the full time team. She has worked in kitchens previously and is excited to work with Eagle’s Nest and bring whole foods and local vendors into our menus. Outside of Eagle’s Nest you can find Isa hanging out with her cat, hiking, playing with computers, and eating lots of good food!

Alex is originally from Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand and immigrated to the United States at a young age. He had been a photographer in western North Carolina for about five years before joining Eagle’s Nest Foundation in 2022. Alex is fluent in Thai, plays the piano, and spends lots of time with his friends. He spends his free time playing board games with his wife, learning new recipes, and lazing around his dog and cat.  Alex works closely with The Outdoor Academy, Eagle’s Nest Camp, and Hante Adventures; photographing the authentic experiences of the day to day life of these programs.