I grew up near Milwaukee and spent a lot of time as a kid exploring the woods and lake near our house. I was especially fascinated by the birds. As a teen we camped and canoed the lakes of Northern Wisconsin and my love and curiosity about the wild blossomed. In the 1980's I attended Tom Brown's Tracker School and learned a set of skills and an awareness that gave me a new way to be in Nature. In the 90's I went on several wilderness retreats in California, then joined the guide team as a co-leader. These trips tested me and made it clear that Nature offers many teachings if we have eyes to see them. For over ten years I've volunteered as a mentor in Shabazz High School's Coming of Age program for juniors and seniors, and have seen their faces light up as they come back from their time in the woods. It's a joy to support Wild Harmony's Wild Tenders as a grandparent, as these young people discover and deepen their connections in Nature.

Grant Abert  is in a grandparent role for Thursday Wild Tenders, and serves as the Board Treasurer.

David serves an advisory role as a Board Member.

Drew is a grandparent for the Thursday Wild Explorers.

Annette is a grandparent for the Wednesday Wild Explorers.

Meg (she/her) grew up in the heart of the Driftless region among the bluffs and marshes of La Crosse, WI. Her love of the outdoors was nurtured in childhood, especially while experiencing the solitude and wonder of wild spaces. Meg is also trained as an occupational therapist pediatric, and she is particularly passionate about the importance of nature connection in supporting holistic child development and human health/wellbeing. In 2019, she completed her Nature-Led certification with OT Kathleen Lockyer, an approach that connects the science of human health/development and the wisdom of nature connection. 

In her free time, you'll find Meg playing outside with her family, Anna and Zoe, making plant and bird friends, fiddling, or working on a handcraft of some sort. She is grateful to be part of the Wild Harmony community and to see the world through children's eyes. 

Meg is currently a support mentor for the Wild Saplings groups.

Kati Lambert (she/her) grew up in Buffalo Grove, Illinois (a northwest suburb of Chicago). Her love of secret wild places within urban spaces took seed there. She explored the often forbidden underground water tunnels and patches of mysterious forest that welcomed the diverted water creeks. She caught fire flies and played "ghosts in the graveyard" till the sun went down. Kati attended the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and graduated with a B.F.A. in painting and drawing and later the UW - Madison graduating with a M.S. in Counseling Psychology. Kati's Nature Connection journey began in 2015 when she joined Wild Harvest's (now Harmony) first Trees and Saplings family program as a participant with her three children. She's been on a deep dive into Nature Connection practices ever since and has brought her entire family along for the ride. Kati is currently a student of Earth Nectar (Sarah Fontaine): The Voice of the Animals, Mentoring Path and a student of Jon Young's 8 Shields Institute and Living Connection First. Kati is also a professional illustrator and owner of Coyote Fire Arts.  In her spare time you can find her making paints and inks from plants, stones, and mud. (Look for her occasional creative/art workshops).  If she’s not painting or drinking coffee, she’s tracking animals with her family at the pond behind their home on occupied Ho-Chunk land.

Kati is currently a mentor with Thursday Wild Explorers.

Justin (he/him) is a dad to 3 boys, spouse, and caretaker of chickens. He grew up in Illinois working summer jobs mowing lawns, hauling dirt, pulling tassels in corn fields, and working on survey crews. These experiences outside, in all kinds of weather, in the smells of morning dew, and stumbling upon wildlife are memories that are reawakened around Wisconsin's lakes, fields, forests, and the Ice Age Trail.

Justin is committed to nonviolence as a way of life (albeit a work in progress), as well as a method for social change. He and his wife Andrea practice nonviolence in their activism and social justice, their intentional parenting, their land ethic, and wellness practices. Justin left his full-time job in 2019 to pursue making change in the world at the intersection of racial healing and climate justice. He has been mostly stay-at-home dad-ing since that time, trying to raise anti-racist, climate aware boys (and chickens). 

Justin is currently a mentor with Thursday Wild Explorers.

Donelle (she/her) grew up on the shores of Lake Michigan in Milwaukee and loved exploring the creeks, beaches, and bluffs of Grant Park, one of the last (and largest) remaining natural areas in the metro area with public access to the great lake.

She moved to Dane County in 2020 and finding the Wild Harvest community was the best thing that could have happened. She is inspired by the enthusiasm of children and thrives on making connections and witnessing growth in others (and herself).  

She brings a spirit of curiosity and openness and loves fishing, foraging, climbing trees and singing. She feels whole when in reciprocity, when in harmony with the life around her.

These passages, along with so many others from Robin Wall Kimmerer, speak to her: “Knowing that you love the earth changes you, activates you to defend and protect and celebrate. But when you feel that the earth loves you in return, that feeling transforms the relationship from a one-way street to a sacred bond.” “Let us live in a way that Earth will be grateful for us.” 

Donelle is currently a mentor with Thursday Wild Tenders.

Coral Conant Gilles (she/her/hers) grew up in the suburbs of St Louis picking her way through overgrown woods. Her family camped and she was deeply involved in an adventure-based scout group, but it wasn’t until she had the opportunity to work at a backpacking camp in New Mexico that she found people she felt held similar connections to the Earth. As a young woman in Portland, OR she discovered storytelling and deep community - human and non-human. Coming into oneself is a beautiful thing.

Since moving to Madison in 2013, Coral has become a professional storyteller and found community within Wild Harvest. Coral works to build curiosity, empathy, and connection with ourselves, each other, and the natural world through storytelling and outdoor exploration. She has been through two years of Wild Harvest’s (now Harmony) adult mentoring program and has collaborated for Nature Adventures and Storytelling summer camp during the 2021-24 seasons. Fall 2025 will be her fourth season as a school year mentor! Coral is grateful, honored, and excited to continue diving into this opportunity.

Coral (often with her two kids (born 2014 and 2017) and her partner) can frequently be found exploring wild places, camping, paddling, foraging, cross-country skiing, biking, and playing ultimate frisbee. 

Coral is currently a mentor with Wednesday Wild Saplings.

Laura McNeill (she/her) I grew up in Virginia Beach, VA next to a patch of woods and a creek that barely froze in the winter, where praying mantises navigated leafy bushes and blue herons made their nests in tall red pines. Running through the woods, my feet knew the stories of the earth. It was a knowing that comes from having the space to explore and time to play. We camped only once while growing up, after which my Dad said 'Never again!', yet he taught me the importance of growing our own food, hands in the earth and taking care of the land.  I love immersing into the rhythms of each season, following the patterns of plants and animals at various stages, foraging, tracking and learning as much as I can about the natural world around me alongside so many great teachers. Through my racial justice work, I’ve gained experience in supporting youth leadership development and cultural repair which I love weaving into the fabric of Wild Harmony. For the past 9 years, I’ve worked with Wild Explorers and Wild Tenders classes, a variety of family and adult groups, as well as public after school groups.  I love being the teacher as well the learner. The kids, animals and plants give voice each week to the wonders surrounding us in any given moment.  Listening, with my heart and ears wide open, is where you’ll find me.  

Laura is currently a mentor with Wednesday Wild Explorers and Thursday Wild Tenders.

Emily Mortenson (she/ki) Emily was fortunate to be raised in beautiful Driftless WI swimming in the river, climbing sandstone bluffs, and playing in the magical woods. The land has been calling her to nature connection through self, Spirit and community ever since! With a background in social work and yoga, Emily is now sharing those fun skills homeschooling her four children. Wild Harmony Nature Connection has woven an integral role in her family’s life for 6 years and she loves exploring nature with the wonderful kids of Wild Harmony.  

Emily is currently a mentor with Thursday Wild Saplings.

Tom (he/him) is a proud dad to two bug-loving teenage daughters and a twelve-year-old pup. He's hooked on growing and sharing food, expanding native plants, and exploring nature's tiny gems through macro photography. He has a degree in journalism, elementary education, and is a student of mindfulness.

Tom is currently a mentor with Thursday Wild Explorers.

I am an artist and educator from Mt. Horeb, Wisconsin. I care deeply about building positive, supportive relationships with the people and world around around me.  In an effort to move through the world with curiosity at the forefront, I love to ask questions and engage with my senses. My time is often spent finding things to delight in. Recently, I have been delighted by the rich greens I see in hills, familiar flowers in my neighborhood, noticing how the wind moves things, and the thrill of solving crossword puzzles with my friends! My art practice is also centered around noticing, and I am continuously drawn to patterns, connections, and textures. 

This is my first season with Wild Harmony, and I am so looking forward to getting to expand and explore my own community alongside others. It is a joy and an honor to be guiding young people into a way of experiencing the world, that is centered around curiosity, understanding, and empathy.

Ryan (he/him) grew up under the giant Oaks on the near west side of Madison and has called this place home for nearly all his life. His childhood nickname was "nature boy" as he always wanted to be outside exploring and connecting with the more than human world. His adult life has been dedicated to studying and working at the intersection of human health, ecological healing, and social change. He brings a gentle, grounded, playful, and reflective spirit to his work in the world. 

In addition to teaching at Wild Harmony, Ryan is a leadership and wellness coach who takes inspiration from the natural world, an avid gardener, a prairie restorationist, and an adventure learning facilitator with MSCR. He is passionate about restoring connection to self, others, and the more than human world and finds great joy in doing so with Madison youth. He is dedicated to healing the historic and ongoing harms of colonization and building community around the question of how to live honorably, joyfully, and responsibly in these times of profound social and ecological change.  

Ryan is currently a mentor with Wednesday Wild Explorers and Thursday Wild Tenders.

Bio coming soon!

Taylor is currently a mentor with Thursday Wild Saplings.

Zach Seaborne (they/them) was raised in the Madison area by a community of farmers, makers, musicians, food lovers and clowns. Community in nature has always been a central element of Zach's world, and they are grateful to be entering a new space that shares those values. 

Zach is an experimental fermenter, a picker of wild foods, a cultivator of many plants and fungi, and a parent of one precocious child. Ask them about mushrooms!

Zach is currently a mentor with Wednesday Wild Saplings.

Leslie's background demonstrates a blend of practical skills, community engagement, and a deep connection to nature. She enjoyed fourteen years as a stay-at-home homeschooling parent which provided her the flexibility of time to deepen into exploring traditional textile production from hand twining wild cordage, learning to weave with a floor loom, and hand tanning buckskins. She has become similarly accomplished in foraging all the wild goodies - nuts, berries, mushrooms. These avenues to connect in ways fundamental, tactile, and untamed to such basic parts of life as food and clothing, have been informative in directing her daily life ever since. 

In that same time, Leslie led several impassioned local advocacy movements including efforts which changed city policy around retaining canopy trees. For her work she has received awards in such diverse realms as local LGBTQ advocacy and historic restoration and preservation.

She also established a modest but rewarding profession offering personalized ceremonies to her local community. Currently Leslie feels called to spend most of her time enthusiastically working to bring everything that she has in passion and organizing skill into reviving a fiber-flax industry in Wisconsin. 

She sleeps outside whenever she can.

Leslie is currently a summer camp and substitute mentor.

Colleen Larsen (she/her/hers), feels most alive in spaces where learning, creativity, and nature collide. She has worked at schools and camps around the world and is especially grateful to be a part of the Wild Harvest community. Colleen has a PhD in Education and has experimented with making art from nature since she was a child.  Colleen can't wait to nurture authentic connections to self, others, and the natural world through singing songs, exploring questions, playing games, and creating nature art.  

Colleen is currently a summer camp mentor.

My name is Clare, and I am a nature-inspired pediatric occupational therapist working in schools throughout southwestern WI. Originally from Eau Claire, WI, I spent my childhood with my 5 older brothers climbing trees, running through the woods, and playing in the creek. As I entered young adulthood, I began to deepen my connection with nature as I explored camping, backpacking, and hiking. As an occupational therapist, I am interested in sensory integration, co-regulation, mental health, mindfulness, and social connection. As an OT student at UW-Madison, I completed my doctoral capstone with OT Kathleen Lockyer at RxOutside, using the NatureLed Approach to pilot a nature connection program at a local public school for students in need of additional social/behavioral support. I love to read, sing, dance, crochet, learn, travel, and play with my cat Bitters. You will always catch me stopping to smell the flowers and forage for some berries :)  

Clare is currently a summer camp mentor.

Sena Pollock (she/her) is a longtime Wild Harvest participant and Youth Mentor who is stepping into a new role as an adult Mentor. Sena loves plants and is happiest when surrounded by them. She is passionate about (re)building relationships between humans and the rest of the natural world. She is a skilled cordage maker and an avid forager. Sena is excited to share her curiosity, enthusiasm, and knowledge; to sing songs, play games, tell stories, and cultivate awareness of the world around us.

Sena is currently a summer camp mentor.

Sahale (Sa-ha-lee) Burgess has been mentoring with Wild Harmony for 4 years this September, and has been a student for 7. Sahale enjoys dance, music, laughter, and collects quotes from peers. (Please say something if you would like to be left anonymous in the Quotebook.) 

Sahale is currently a mentor with the Wednesday Wild Explorers.

Joey grew up on the far west side of Madison. He knows Owen Conservation Park like the back of his hand, and spent a lot of time there during lockdown. He currently attends UW-Madison and is studying to become a pediatric nurse. In his spare time he enjoys playing ultimate frisbee. Joey is excited to get into backpacking more, and is planning a trip to the Upper Peninsula this summer. He was first introduced to Wild Harvest Nature Connection in 2021 when he participated in "Wild Tenders". He has been a Youth Mentor for several summer camps, and is excited to be an Apprentice Mentor for this summer. He appreciates how creative kids are, and knows that not only will he be a mentor, but a student himself. 

Joey currently mentors with summer camps.