Mission
We provide youth (ages 10-19) an experiential education along the rivers and canyons of the Southwest in an effort to promote personal growth, environmental awareness, community involvement, and teamwork among people of diverse backgrounds.
For more information 928.773.7921
When not guiding Grand Canyon Youth trips, they work as teachers, students, artists, conservationists, and healthcare providers, among other things. Given their sense of humor and ability to facilitate, we are proud to have such talented and conscientious guides leading our trips. Here are some of our dedicated river guides:
Kate Morley, President
Angela Keith, Vice President
Sarah Holcomb, Secretary
Eric Scott, Treasurer
Ian Austin
Bonnie Baker
Jocelyn Gibbon
Oscar Landa Samano
Eleanor McDonough
Scott Pettitt
Helen Ranney
Ashlynn Roberson
Jon Streit
Marieke Taney
Dania Wilson
We have a lot of opportunities in our office/warehouse for volunteers to come in and help behind the scenes with getting trips out on the water. Volunteers help keep the warehouse working by checking tents, packing sleep kits, and tidying our gear borrowing room. Our volunteers also help out at local community events in Flagstaff and our Annual FUNdraiser, Rivers & Reels Silent Auction and Film Fest.
If you are interested in volunteering, please contact our volunteer manager.
Field Staff at Grand Canyon Youth consists of river guides, hiking guides, expedition leaders, and drivers. Our main program season is March-July, but we run programs almost year-round. We do our hiring in the December – February window, but it is never too early or late to send your information in. While we aim to have all spots filled before our first trip of the season there are regular adjustments made to the schedule to meet programmatic needs throughout the season.
Please contact us if you are interested and we will send you the official job description(s).
When not guiding Grand Canyon Youth trips, they work as teachers, students, artists, conservationists, and healthcare providers, among other things. Given their sense of humor and ability to facilitate, we are proud to have such talented and conscientious guides leading our trips. Here are some of our dedicated river guides:
Kate Morley, President
Angela Keith, Vice President
Sarah Holcomb, Secretary
Eric Scott, Treasurer
Ian Austin
Bonnie Baker
Jocelyn Gibbon
Oscar Landa Samano
Eleanor McDonough
Scott Pettitt
Helen Ranney
Ashlynn Roberson
Jon Streit
Marieke Taney
Dania Wilson
We have a lot of opportunities in our office/warehouse for volunteers to come in and help behind the scenes with getting trips out on the water. Volunteers help keep the warehouse working by checking tents, packing sleep kits, and tidying our gear borrowing room. Our volunteers also help out at local community events in Flagstaff and our Annual FUNdraiser, Rivers & Reels Silent Auction and Film Fest.
If you are interested in volunteering, please contact our volunteer manager.
Field Staff at Grand Canyon Youth consists of river guides, hiking guides, expedition leaders, and drivers. Our main program season is March-July, but we run programs almost year-round. We do our hiring in the December – February window, but it is never too early or late to send your information in. While we aim to have all spots filled before our first trip of the season there are regular adjustments made to the schedule to meet programmatic needs throughout the season.
Please contact us if you are interested and we will send you the official job description(s).
Hometown: Flagstaff, AZ
Year started at GCY: 2017
Tory has worked in the nonprofit sector for many years as an environmental educator and executive director. Her areas of expertise include fundraising, communications, and project management. Tory holds an MFA in Creative Writing and an MS in Urban Planning, both from University of Arizona. Her first river trip through Grand Canyon at the age of fourteen had a profound and lasting influence on her life. She is thrilled to help provide that experience for others through her work at Grand Canyon Youth.
“To play a wrong note is insignificant; to play without passion is inexcusable.” – Beethoven
Hometown: Houston, TX
Year started at GCY: 2016
Jordan joins Grand Canyon Youth after 3 years of living and teaching in the Tetons. While completing Teton Science Schools’ Graduate Program, she expanded her love of outdoor science education and developed a lifelong passion for watching youth flourish in wild places. Jordan believes wild spaces are the best teachers; the greater you understand a place, the greater you will appreciate it!
“Nature is not a place to visit – it is home.” – Gary Snyder
Hometown: Flagstaff, AZ
Year started at GCY: 2015
Camping, fishing, hiking and mountain climbing captured Bryan’s spirit as a kid. When working as a camp counselor in Colorado, kid campers suggested he become a science teacher, a path he followed for 40 years, while interweaving outdoor experiential learning and science. His great love is providing kids with experiences similar to those he enjoyed in his youth.
“It’s good if you’re a human being; it’s better when you’re being human”
Hometown: Brea, CA
Year started at GCY: 2016
Caitlin has a love and passion for working with youth in wilderness settings. When she’s not on the river with Grand Canyon Youth, she is guiding backpacking trips in the Grand Canyon or working wilderness therapy for youth in Utah. The desert Southwest and its canyons, rivers and biodiversity are her constant inspiration and she loves sharing that with all who come to visit. She brings fun, laughter, and curiosity to every trip.
“Wilderness is not a luxury but a necessity of the human spirit.” – Edward Abbey
Hometown: Montana
Year started at GCY: 2016
When not at GCY, Kate can be found wandering around the deserts and mountains of the West. She enjoys seeing new places, whether that be through backpacking, birding, rock climbing or road tripping. When at home, Kate can be found cooking, gardening, reading and beekeeping.
“It’s strange how deserts turn us into believers. I believe in walking in a landscape of mirages, because you learn humility. I believe in living in a land of little water because life is drawn together.” – Terry Tempest Williams
Hometown: Sobieski, WI
Year started at GCY: 2017
Chris never lived in the 80s and yet he loves everything about them from acid washed jeans to feathered mullets. He loves all kinds of outdoor sports like skiing and biking. Above all else Chris really just loves having a good laugh.
“Sometimes you just have to grab life by the figs.” – Stephen Colbert
Hometown: Flagstaff, AZ
Year started at GCY: 2014
Corinne has a background in biology and earth science research and education. She enjoys sharing her scientific knowledge and experience running rivers with youth in an expedition environment. She has experience rafting, kayaking and facilitating adventure!
“In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous.” – Aristotle
Hometown: Flagstaff, AZ
Year started at GCY: 2016
Jak grew up in Flagstaff and was lucky enough to have parents to take him on rivers when he was young. Jak went on his first GCY trip when he was in 7th grade and kept coming back as a participant and later as a guide. Jak is currently in school at U of A in Tucson where he is studying ecology and evolutionary biology, and works in a social insect lab. YAY SCIENCE!! He likes to read, rock climb, and cook good food in his free time.
“I must not fear. Fear is the mind-killer. Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration. I will face my fear. I will permit it to pass over me and through me. And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path. Where the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only I will remain.” – Frank Herbert
Hometown: Atwater, California
Year started at GCY: Since the beginning (1998)!
Mary Ellen enjoys living a life with many hats – past and present. She’s been a CPA in San Francisco. A river guide in Grand Canyon. A CFO at a nonprofit in Boise. A writer and editor for travel and lifestyle magazines as well as her blog, CamperGroove.com. A partner to her husband, Sean, and parent to their daughter, Mia, at their home in Flagstaff. She’s lived in seven states and traveled through many more, and hopes to get to know the rest of them in the coming years.
“Do one thing every day that scares you” – Eleanor Roosevelt
Hometown: Julian, CA
Year started at GCY: 2014
Cricket was a youth with GCY starting in 2007. As soon as she could, she jumped on the oars and quickly knew that she found exactly where she belonged. She calls the canyons and rivers of the desert Southwest her home without hesitation! Cricket is passionate about the Colorado Plateau and how to protect it for future generations to enjoy and wander in. On program she is usually blending in with the youth and coordinating some shenanigans and/or nerding out with the citizen science projects!
“When the pursuit of natural harmony is a shared journey, great heights can be attained.” – Lynn Hill
Hometown: Flagstaff, AZ
Year started at GCY: 2008
Will fell in love with the river on a GCY trip in high school. Since that first trip, he has spent the last ten years working with youth in the outdoors and in traditional classroom education. His experiences in Grand Canyon helped lead him to degrees in geology and hydrology as well as time spent rafting around the country and world.
“Life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans.”
Hometown: Flagstaff, AZ
Year started at GCY: 2018
Sarah is a Flagstaff native and GCY alumna. She is currently working on a Master’s degree at NAU researching river conservation. She loves to travel and be outside as much as possible in her free time. She enjoys spending time with youth so she can be silly and learn the latest trending dance moves.
“Never stop believing that fighting for what’s right is worth it.” – Hillary Clinton
Hometown: Prescott, AZ
Year started at GCY: 2018
Sequoyah is a Grand Canyon Youth alumna and grew up in Prescott, AZ. She is currently pursuing her bachelor’s degree at Northern Arizona University in Environmental Sciences. Sequoyah is very excited to be working for Grand Canyon Youth because Grand Canyon Youth helped foster her love for the outdoors and protecting wild places. She hopes to help pass on this love to future youths, and help take part even further in Grand Canyon Youth’s mission.
“You have brains in your head and feet in your shoes, you can steer yourself in any direction you choose!” – Dr. Seuss
Hometown: Tucson, AZ
Year started at GCY: 2014
“Nothing is worth more than laughter. It is strength to laugh and to abandon oneself, to be light. Tragedy is the most ridiculous thing.” – Frida Kahlo
Hometown: Shonto, AZ
Year started at GCY: 2007
Stephanie puts her heart and soul into her work with Grand Canyon Youth. With a master’s degree in Climate Change and Solutions, she brings a wealth of knowledge and understanding with which to engage participants. She enriches each trip with her love of art, cooking, photography and laughing.
“Drink some water”
Hometown: Flagstaff, AZ
Year started at GCY: 2009
Jean-Philippe came to Grand Canyon Youth in 2007 as a youth himself. Inspired by the water, the people, and the experience, he decided to simply never grow up. Now years later, he still finds his home sitting on a boat with nowhere to go but downstream and a heartfelt duty to play.
“We’re all stories, in the end… just make it a good one.” – The Doctor
Hometown: Porterville, CA
Year started at GCY: 2016
“If it’s worth doing, then it’s worth doing right”
Hometown: Fair Lawn, NJ
Year started at GCY: 2012
Working as a teacher with kids with special needs for many years, Tony has seen first-hand, time and again, the joy and empowerment that comes from connecting youth with nature. He is a natural leader and young people respond to his great energy and love of the river.
“You can’t be unhappy in the middle of a big, beautiful river.” – Jim Harrison
Hometown: Flagstaff, AZ
Year started at GCY: 2014
Megan is a Grand Canyon Youth alumna and Flagstaff native. She completed her B.A. in International Relations and Russian Language in the Pacific Northwest, but quickly returned to her roots in Flagstaff. Under beautiful desert skies, Megan spent several summers guiding for Grand Canyon Youth. She loves fostering an environment where youth break free from societal pressures and labels. Now, she is thrilled to have the opportunity to be a part of Grand Canyon Youth’s mission in a whole new way.
“In this world you must be oh so smart or oh so pleasant. For years, I was smart. I recommend pleasant” – Elwood P. Dowd
Hometown: Flagstaff, AZ
Year started at GCY: 2012
Eleanor McDonough is a GCY Alumni who spent most of her time growing up in Flagstaff, Arizona. She is now a student at the University of Arizona studying Geosciences and Marine science. She is an apprentice and upcoming boatman for GCY and AZRA and hopes to continue to work in educational outreach programs.
“We must begin thinking like a river if we are to leave a legacy of beauty and life for future generations” – David Brower
Hometown: Flagstaff, AZ
Year started at GCY: 2013
Madeline is a proud GCY alum and guide. Her first GCY trip introduced her to river science, inspiring her to earn a BS in Environmental Sciences-Biology from Northern Arizona University and a MS in Watershed Sciences – Geomorphology and Earth Surface Processes from Utah State University. She has boated extensively in the US, Canada, Brazil, Ecuador, Peru, and Colombia, but loves to circle the eddies of Western US rivers best. She guides for OARS Dories in Idaho and Grand Canyon Youth in Arizona and Utah.
“You are young. So you know everything. You leap
into the boat and begin rowing. But listen to me.
Without fanfare, without embarrassment, without
any doubt, I talk directly to your soul. Listen to me.
Lift the oars from the water, let your arms rest, and
your heart, and heart’s little intelligence, and listen to
me. There is life without love. It is not worth a bent
penny, or a scuffed shoe. It is not worth the body of a
dead dog nine days unburied. When you hear, a mile
away and still out of sight, the churn of the water
as it begins to swirl and roil, fretting around the
sharp rocks – when you hear that unmistakable
pounding – when you feel the mist on your mouth
and sense ahead the embattlement, the long falls
plunging and steaming – then row, row for your life
toward it.” – Mary Oliver (from the poem “West Wind #2”)
Hometown: Flagstaff, AZ
Year started at GCY: 2018
Born and raised in Flagstaff, Arizona, Marieke has been close to the Canyon for all of her life. She has a vibrant love for the southwest and water in the desert, especially the mighty Colorado through Grand Canyon. She started working in the Canyon in 1999 and can be found down there in an oar boat, paddle-boat or kayak. Marieke has a contagious passion for hiking and river games as well as human history and natural history in Grand Canyon that she loves to share, and can also be found pulling out her painting supplies or guitar during a trip. Grand Canyon is her passion, her solace and the greatest teacher she has ever had. When not in the Canyon, Marieke can be spotted in her kayak on various rivers around the States or on one of her greatest loves – her mountain bike. Marieke has spent most of her adult life as a guide and ski patroller for various organizations from the National Outdoor Leadership School to Arapaho Basin to Alaska Rendezvous Heli-Ski Guides. She holds a Master of Science degree in Environmental Education and Forestry from Northern Arizona University and currently works full time there as a senior lecturer in the Geography, Planning and Recreation department.
Hometown: Flagstaff, AZ
Year started at GCY: 2005
Nearly a lifelong Arizonan, having been moved from the midwest to Flagstaff as a kid. Fell in love with Grand Canyon at first sight. Happily married since 1988, rewarding career as a physician since 1989, three awesome children. Amateur historian and wannabe writer.
Hometown: Davenport, IA
Year started at GCY: 2019
Dania loves hiking and skiing with her family. Her oldest daughter is a GCY alumni and loved her trip. Dania’s favorite place to visit is anywhere with water. They love calling Flagstaff our home.
“You live your life at the time you live it, you don’t have much of an overview when what’s happening to you is still happening.” – John Irving, In One Person
Hometown: Arlington, VA
Year started at GCY: 2020
Jocelyn is a river guide for Canyon Explorations, and a water lawyer who owns a consulting business called Freshwater Policy Consulting. She spends her time working to protect the sustainability of water supplies, for communities and for rivers and ecosystems. She grew up in Virginia, but was lured by the Grand Canyon to the west 20 years ago and now lives in Flagstaff with her husband, Sam. Jocelyn wishes every child and every adult could experience the power and magic of a river trip.
“Tell me, what is it you plan to do
With your one wild and precious life?” – Mary Oliver
Hometown: Flagstaff, AZ
Year started at GCY: 2015
Oscar has been with GCY for 5 years, first starting as a youth, then a volunteer, and then a youth board member. He is currently attending Coconino High school, and is part of National Honor Society and robotics. Oscar aspires to become a civil engineer and river guide.
“Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new” – Albert Einstein
Hometown: La Mesa, CA
Year started at GCY: 2018
Jon feels blessed to have a wonderful wife and three adult children. He graduated from California State University, Northridge, with a degree in Commercial Recreation. Jon spent his professional career working in National Park hospitality, in Yosemite and Grand Canyon National Parks.
“I think the survival of humanity is completely dependent on our ability to reconnect with the earth. We are becoming the first species… that is intent on making itself alien to its own ecosystem, it’s own habitat” – Shelton Johnson, National Park Service Ranger
Hometown: Tucson, AZ
Year started at GCY: 2019
Maraka grew up in Tucson and developed a love for the Grand Canyon at a young age. Her husband grew up on the South Rim and they were married at Shoshone Point. They live in Flagstaff with their two terrier mixed furbabies.
“Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever.” – Mahatma Ghandi
Hometown: Portland, OR
Year started at GCY: 2004
Angela is a Licensed Psychologist practicing in Flagstaff, Arizona. She is actively involved in the community, volunteering for GCY, and Theatrikos, the local community Theatre, along with various other organizations as opportunity arises. She enjoys engaging in outdoor activities, adventuring, traveling, and playing soccer.
“I am not afraid of the storm for I have learned to sail my own ship” – Louisa May Alcott
Hometown: Planet Earth
Year started at GCY: 2005
Feral math nerd.
“I have already had my reward, in the doing of the thing” – Buzz Holmstromen
Hometown: Flagstaff, AZ
Year started at GCY: 2010
Lisa grew up in Flagstaff, but did not experience the magic of the river until just after high school. While she missed the boat to be a GCY alum, she has taken every opportunity to get back out there year after year to help create those experiences for youth. When Lisa is not on the river, she is a restoration ecologist and a substitute teacher.
“Every individual matters. Every individual has a role to play. Every individual makes a difference.” – Jane Goodall
Hometown: Westhampton Beach, NY
Year started at GCY: 2004
Emily moved to Flagstaff many years ago to attend NAU as an undergraduate. After completing a degree in Latin American History, she spent several years traveling and exploring from Argentina to Alaska. Upon her return to the states, she realized how much she loved it here and decided to stay and make Flagstaff her home. Though Emily misses the ocean where she grew up on eastern Long Island, she loves the adventure that Flagstaff has to offer from hiking, biking and backpacking to river-running. Now she share this place with my husband and two (almost) grown children – all river runners too!
“Sé valiente. Toma riesgos. Nada puede sustituir la experiencia. (Be brave. Take risks. Nothing can substitute experience.)” – Paulo Coelho
Hometown: Flagstaff, AZ
Year started at GCY: 2005
Tyler Williams maintains a day job as a writer and photographer, with eight guidebooks and over 100 articles in his archive. He has paddled over 300 rivers worldwide, including 30 first descents and several source-to-sea journeys. Between adventures, Tyler lives in Flagstaff, Arizona, with his wife, Lisa.
“I was so relieved to not have my phone this week.”
Hometown: Flagstaff, AZ
Year started at GCY: 2016
Max grew up doing trips on the San Juan River with his family. Since then he received his Bachelors Degree in Parks and Recreation Management at Northern Arizona University and did his Internship with GCY. He started guiding the next year and now Trip Leads San Juan trips. Originally from Flagstaff, he enjoys getting to share the canyons of the southwest that he grew up experiencing in hopes that future generations have the opportunity for the same experiences.
“Wilderness is not a luxury, but a necessity of the human spirit.” – Edward Abbey
Hometown: Flagstaff, AZ
Year started at GCY: 2007
Justin did his first trip with GCY as a participant in 2007. They haven’t been able to get rid of him since. River guiding has become his passion, sharing the power of outdoor learning with youth on rivers throughout the desert west. There’s a fair chance you’ll catch him daydreaming about whitewater, reciting obscure movie quotes, or nerding-out over geology.
“I have always been unsatisfied with life as most people live it. Always I want to live more intensely and richly. Why muck and conceal one’s true longings and loves, when by speaking of them one might discover one’s self?” – Everett Ruess
Hometown: Flagstaff, AZ
Year started at GCY: 2019
Jess is a Grand Canyon Youth alumni who has returned to Flagstaff to finish their degree in Parks and Recreation Management and Spanish at NAU. Their energy is focused on how to be a resource for further inclusion within the outdoors, while also learning how to have these passionate experiences with respect for place. Jess is excited to be part of GCY; interning for the community that first awakened their curiosity and desire to be present for Southwest landscapes.
“Seize the moment, cuz tomorrow you might be dead.” – Buffy Summers
Hometown: Lewiston, ID
Year started at GCY: 2007
Chantal received a degree in Business Management from the University of Idaho and a Nonprofit Executive Leadership Certificate from Arizona State University. She has been facilitating river experiences for over 20 years. Earning her river trips as a young person, she understands firsthand the special connection youth can make with nature and the importance of earning the privilege to spend time on a river adventure. Chantal is passionate about educational and participatory river trips that leave a lasting impression on the lives of each participant.
“Be the person you needed when you were younger” – Ayesha Siddiqui
Hometown: Sierra Vista, AZ
Year started at GCY: 2017
Charlie came to Flagstaff to study Parks and Recreation at Northern Arizona University. While earning his degree he learned about environmental education, inclusion, and the importance of youth in the outdoors. All these things come together at Grand Canyon Youth. Charlie is very proud and excited to join a team that is passionate about making a difference in young people’s lives through scientific exploration in the outdoors.
“I have learned that I still have a lot to learn.” – Maya Angelou
Hometown: Salt Lake City, UT
Year started at GCY: 2003
After spending many years trying to combine her love of rivers with her enthusiasm for working with young people, Emma found Grand Canyon Youth, an organization that does just that. Emma has a master’s in Social Work from the University of Washington with an emphasis on community development. Her undergraduate studies focused on negotiation, service-learning, and environmental education from the University of Utah. As a parent and foster parent to three girls, Emma loves to be on the river with her family. She worked as a river guide for over ten years and believes in the transformational power of a river trip.
“I arise in the morning torn between a desire to improve the world and a desire to enjoy the world – This makes planning hard to plan the day.” – ee cummings