Staff
Joseph Napolitan
Founder | Director | Content Creator
Joe discovered his passion for the wilderness during a trip to the Great Smoky Mountains in 2008. He continued to explore that passion by attending a 90-day National Outdoor Leadership School Semester in 2010. The following year he assumed the role of Grand Valley State University’s Backpacking Club president, where he had the opportunity to develop his craft as a trip leader. While working as a trip leader for a camp in the summer of 2012, Joe began contemplating and documenting a framework for a wilderness education program.
Joe’s accomplishments in the outdoors include an Appalachian Trail thru-hike, lead climbing the Grand Teton’s Exum Ridge and several ski mountaineering feats. Having led trips for various programs ranging from summer camps to wilderness therapy, he has spent over 400 days in the field leading wilderness excursions for both youth and adults.
Joe spends his winters in Pagosa Springs, Colorado, where he works for Wolf Creek Ski Patrol. He enjoys spending his free time backcountry skiing, canoeing, alpine climbing, and running,
Education, certifications, and training:
NICOLE MATHAISZ
Course Proctor | Yoga Instructor | Naturalist
Sharing the wonders of nature with the next generation has been a long-time passion for Nicole. Watching others be inspired and changed by the simple connection to a sunset or the tiniest of flowers is where she finds her greatest joys. As a mother of two teens, she knows the importance of creating a village of positive influence on developing hearts. She believes that the wilderness allows us to take time away from the demands that regularly distract our minds from the very things we should prioritize. This is why Nicole can fill her basket with foraged foods in the summer months and scaling ice walls in the winter.
Education, certifications, and training:
200-hour Yoga Teacher Training
Wilderness First Aid
Swift-water Rescue Certification
JAY VAN DAM
Photographer | Trip Leader
Jay has thru-hiked all three major long-distance trails in the US, known as the "Triple Crown of Hiking." The Appalachian Trail, the Pacific Crest Trail, and the Continental Divide Trail combined included over 8,000 miles and roughly a year and a half with a pack on Jay's back and camera in hand. He found his love for the outdoors on the Appalachian Trail after a successful five years in the photography industry of New York City and graduating at the top of his class with a degree in photography and digital imaging at Ringling College of Art in Design in Florida. He's currently working on his second degree in Computer Science at Grand Valley State University in Michigan, his current home.
Through colorful photo essays, Jay tells stories of people and places that fascinate him, with a particular focus on those whose narratives typically live outside the spotlight. From the wilderness to the city, Jay has an eye for it all.
JEFF BRYDON
President of the Board of Directors
Jeff grew up scrambling up rocks in Yosemite and has loved the wilderness ever since. Studying Environmental Science at UC Santa Barbara, he came to appreciate the incredible diversity, balance, and interconnectedness of ecosystems. He also learned how to take full advantage of the abiotic environment: surfing waves, climbing rocks, backpacking across mountains, and snowboarding.
MARA LEVIN
Secretary of the Board of Directors
Mara is a Wilderness Therapy Field Guide that works with adolescent and young adult clients to provide therapeutically rich environments in which students grow and thrive. Growing up in Southern California allowed Mara to love nature through backpacking trips in the eastern Sierras, camping along jagged coastlines, and surfing. Mara is passionate about the power that wilderness holds in its ability to build success-oriented identities for people by increasing self-concept, resilience and reconnect people to the earth.
Mara holds a BS in neuroscience with a minor in psychology and has balanced her career in both clinical and research settings. She is certified in Applied Behavioral Analysis and spent three years working in social work with patients with severe mental illnesses. Mara implemented nature as a therapeutic intervention in both of these settings, which eventually led her to work in wilderness therapy. She has published several journal articles through her research in the field and plans to collect data about the relationship between wilderness and cortisol levels.
MIA DUEBNER
Treasurer of the Board of Directors | Fundraising Director | Sustainability Director
Currently living in Austin, Texas, but a proud Michigan native, Mia earned her Bachelor of Science in Hospitality & Tourism Management and Dance from Grand Valley State University. There Mia stepped outside of her comfort zone and, having never camped before, joined the Backpacking Club and Student Environmental & Coalition Club, where she gained a deepened appreciation for sustainability and wilderness immersion. Given her passion for serving neighborhoods with access to fewer opportunities, building community through meaningful engagement, and the existential importance of environmental sustainability and wildlife preservation, Mia is delighted to serve as Origin Expeditions’ Board Treasurer as well as the Director of Fundraising and Sustainability.
Outside of work, Mia is an active volunteer with her local community’s non-profit organizations. Mia enjoys hiking Austin’s trails, roaming farmers' markets for seasonal produce, visiting craft breweries, and getting out of the Texas heat by floating down local rivers and swimming in natural freshwater springs with her husband, Thomas.