New to the Nest
By Paige Lester-Niles
We are very excited to welcome three new additions to the Nest: Christie Etter, Lydia Odell and Chris Ream. Chris, Lydia and Christie bring with them a wealth of experience, enthusiasm and excitement. It is my pleasure to introduce them to the larger Eagle’s Nest and Outdoor Academy community.
 |
| Christie Etter, Program Director |
Christie Etter began working as our Program Director this May. Prior to joining the ENF team, Christie worked as a teacher in the field of outdoor programming and team-building for 12 years. She started out as a raft guide! She enjoys traveling and has taken the opportunity whenever life presents it, having traveled to the British Virgin Islands, England, New Zealand, Belize, Guatemala, St. Croix, and Alaska. Christie grew up in Maryland and earned a B.A. in Outdoor Leadership from Warren Wilson College. She has participated in an outdoor leader training course with the North Carolina Outward Bound School, has been the director of the Shenandoah Summer Adventure Camp, and has taught yoga at the Learning Community School in Black Mountain. Christie’s favorite outdoor activities include hiking with her dog, gardening, sailing, and napping in a hammock. Christie is a joy to work with and bakes fantastic cookies!
 |
| Lydia Odell, Director of Admissions |
Lydia Odell began working as Director of Admissions for Eagle’s Nest Foundation this summer. Lydia is focused on marketing and enrollment for Eagle’s Nest Foundation, with the majority of her time focused on efforts to enroll students in The Outdoor Academy (OA). Prior to working at Eagle’s Nest, Lydia worked just down the road in the career center at Brevard College. She was first introduced to OA when Mark Meyer-Braun called her to place an advertisement at the college. Lydia was interested in OA then and told Mark that she hoped to work for OA in the future. A couple of years later, the future is NOW! Lydia received a B.A. in History and Women’s Studies for the University of Utah and an M.Ed. in Educational Psychology from Widener University. Lydia is a talented knitter who enjoys running, biking and leading waterfall hikes at DuPont State Park.
 |
| Chris Ream, Admissions Officer for The Outdoor Academy |
Chris Ream joined our staff this summer as the Admissions Officer for The Outdoor Academy. In the short time that Chris has been with us, he’s already traveled to several states across the Southeast giving presentations to school administrators and potential OA students. Prior to starting at The Outdoor Academy, Chris worked in jobs ranging from raft guiding to the corporate business world. Chris received a B.A. in History from Texas Christian University, and still enjoys traveling back to Texas to see family and eat GREAT Tex Mex!
Welcome Christie, Lydia and Chris!
