Leader Bios: Meet our Caribbean Service, Costa Rica Language & Community, and Costa Rica Mountains & Coast Leaders!

Check out our next batch of summer staff biographies. Please read on to learn about our outstanding Caribbean Service, Costa Rica Language & Community, and Costa Rica Mountains & Coast leaders!


Leader Name: Kendra Smither (she/her/hers)

2021 Trip: Caribbean Service 

Hometown: Glen Allen, Virginia

School: University of Richmond, Class of 2022

Major: Anthropology & Psychology 

Certifications: Wilderness First Aid, Lifeguard & CPR

Favorite Outdoor Activities: Running and rock lounging on the James River! 

Highlights of 2020: She conducted archaeological excavations in Historical African-American burial grounds. 

Where you can find Kendra when she isn’t running or curling up to watch something: Kendra enjoys discovering new restaurants with friends in downtown Richmond and loves watching Disney movies with her little brother! 

Why Kendra simply just rocks: She runs on the Richmond Cross Country and Track teams, she’s enjoyed learning Spanish and has been studying it for nine years now, and she has had the opportunity to study the language in Spain and volunteer in different communities in Cuba! 


Leader Name: Kramer Peterson (he/him/his)

2021 Trip: Caribbean Service 

Hometown: Glastonbury, Connecticut 

School: Amherst College, Class of 2017 

Major: Biology & Psychology

Certifications: Wilderness First Aid, Lifeguard & CPR

Favorite Outdoor Activities: Triathlons, running, skiing, & lacrosse

Highlights of 2020: Last year, Kramer competed in the Sea to Summit Triathlon where the race begins on the coast of Maine and ends at the summit of Mount Washington. 

Where you can find Kramer when he’s not training or outside: He is an avid follower of baseball statistics, of any player and any team! 

Just a few reasons why we think Kramer is amazing: He works and lives at a Connecticut boarding school where he teaches biology and psychology. He spent a summer interning at a medical clinic in Lima, Peru, where he explored the entire country from the coast to the Andes. Kramer is also the person you want for any geography-related trivia jeopardy.


Leader Name: Finnegan Keilty (he/him/his)

2021 Trips: Costa Rica Language & Community and Costa Rica Mountains & Coast

Hometown: Las Vegas, Nevada

School: Carleton College, Class of 2022 

Major: Political Science; Minor: Spanish

Certifications: Wilderness First Responder, Lifeguard & CPR

Favorite Outdoor Activities: Mountain biking, bikepacking, climbing, kayaking, canoeing, general adventuring! 

Highlights of 2020: Finnegan took a three day mountain biking trip in the Pisgah and DuPont National Forests with his father in North Carolina. 

Where you can find Finnegan when he’s not mountain biking: Finnegan has worked in a number of restaurants and bakeries in San Francisco and Minneapolis! 

Other neat things about Finnegan: He is a die-hard Lord of the Rings and Marvel Universe fan! He has worked in fine-dining restaurant in Minneapolis called the Bachelor Farmer, and also as a bike and kayak tour guide, as well as on a small-scale organic farm!


Leader Name: Maeve Dick (she/her/hers)

2021 Trips: Costa Rica Language & Community and Coast Rica Mountains & Coast

Hometown: Lexington, Virginia

School: Oberlin College, Class of 2021

Major: Hispanic Studies & Dance

Certifications: Wilderness First Aid, Lifeguard & CPR

Favorite Outdoor Activities: Sunrise hiking, swimming in rivers and biking with good views

Highlights of 2020: Maeve was excited to get to spend so much time in her garden and get to observe all of the changes in the season

Where you can find Maeve when she’s not dancing: Trick question! She’s always dancing around! 

Other super fun facts about Maeve: Maeve teaches Spanish at the local elementary school and is an expert in planets/moons/stars trivia. Lastly, and very importantly, she keeps a meticulously organized mental map of the four leaf clover patches on the east coast.