Jack Lee

Executive Director

Jack Lee is proud to be the Executive Director of Voyageur Outward Bound School. He has a varied background that includes leadership positions in both business and non profit organizations.  After graduating from the University of Notre Dame in 1987, he worked in commercial banking in Cincinnati, received an MBA from the University of Michigan, and spent nine years in finance with Intel Corporation, working with everything from an internet start up to a $2.5 billion factory construction project.  In 2002, he made a career shift, moved back to the Twin Cities and spent 9 years as the President of Youth Frontiers, a non profit organization who partners with schools to improve school climate, reaching more than 100,000 students annually.  

Outside of work, Jack is active in his church and community and enjoys travel and time with his wife, Laura, and their three children, Elisabeth (age 21), Catherine (19) and Timothy (5).

Poppy Potter

Director of Group Programs and Twin Cities Center

Poppy is an educator at heart and passionate about helping people discover things that help them move confidently through the world. In her 25 years of work in experiential education, she’s worked for many youth serving organizations to include: Girl Scouts of America, American Youth Foundation, Outward Bound and the YMCA. After 15 years of working in the outdoors, Poppy moved her experiential education focus into the classroom as a Leadership teacher and Service Learning Director at Skills For Tomorrow Charter High School in St. Paul, MN. Poppy holds a BS in Outdoor Recreation from the University of Wisconsin in La Crosse, a Master’s of Science in Experiential Education from the University of Minnesota in Mankato, and a Special Education Teaching License from Bethel University.

This is Poppy’s second employment with the Voyageur Outward Bound School. She was an Instructor and Course Director from 1993-1995. As an instructor, she instructed courses in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area wilderness in the summer, fall and, winter seasons. Now Poppy serves VOBS as the Director of Operations in our Twin Cities Center. She leads and manages all programs and operations to deliver these programs in the Twin Cities area. She works hard to find schools and organizations to establish program partnerships thereby creating a collective capacity to address real needs and strengthens this combined impact. The result? Real change. We are, changing lives through challenge and discovery!

Suellen "Sully" Sack

Director of Open Enrollment and Safety

Suellen currently serves as the Minnesota Program Director. She was first introduced to Outward Bound as a student on an 81-day Minnesota to Mexico winter semester course in 1994. She later begged her way in as the dog care person, and has since worn many instructor and administrative hats during her 18-year tenure at Voyageur Outward Bound. In 2009 Suellen was the winner of the Josh Miner Award (Outward Bound USA’s highest employee award).

Raised on a dairy farm in Bemus Point, NY, Suellen holds a B.S. from Fredonia State and an M.S. from Cornell University in chemistry. She is equally adept with a canoe paddle, chainsaw and dog team. Suellen served in the Peace Corps in Nepal, building a library and teaching kids in a remote village. Her Outward Bound Course was pivotal to her success in Peace Corps. When talking about the experience she says, “I would never have completed Peace Corps without my Outward Bound course.” She later returned to VOBS as a staff member. Before taking on the role of Program Director in 2007, Suellen worked as an Instructor, Course Director, and Instructor Trainer for many years. In 2004, Suellen and three other OB instructors took some time off to plan a three-month, 1000-mile women’s dog sledding expedition across the Canadian Arctic. They called their expedition Artic Quest. The expedition was successful in achieving their expedition goals as well as in raising awareness and scholarship money for future VOBS students.

Courtney Kupsch

Director of Development

Courtney came to VOBS with over ten years of experience in fundraising, marketing, and design. Throughout Courtney's career she has fostered a belief that everyone deserves a chance to feel successful, and organizations like (VOBS) provide that opportunity. We strive to help people of all ages and abilities to actualize their goals, build confidence, and grow through life-changing outdoor endeavors. 

Previously, Courtney worked for five years as the Development and Marketing Manager at Free Arts Minnesota, a Minneapolis nonprofit that provides arts-based mentorship to youth in crisis. Prior to Free Arts Minnesota, Courtney was the Creative Manager at BlueSpire Marketing in Minneapolis.

Marlais O. Brand

Group Outreach Manager

Marlais knows that challenge and adventure change lives. As Outreach Manager at Voyageur Outward Bound School, Marlais connects partners to the power of group learning and outdoor education. She teams with schools, colleges, nonprofits and businesses to put people on course for character and leadership. Marlais is an Outward Bound alum, teacher, trainer, writer, and mother. She loves to travel everywhere but considers Lake Superior her True North.

Greta Blessing

Director of Student Services

Greta grew up in a town of 500 people next to one of Minnesota’s many lakes. She spent her childhood summers trapping gophers, climbing trees, and catching crayfish. She still calls northern Minnesota home, but her sense of adventure has taken her all over the world.

In the last 2 decades Greta has taught English in Japan, co-founded and directed a non-profit in Cambodia, coordinated projects for Habitat for Humanity in Papa New Guinea, and led bicycle tours across Southeast Asia. She has paddled the entire length of the Columbia River from BC to the Ocean, trekked in the Nepali Himalaya to Everest Base Camp, and led semester-length trips to the South Pacific, India, and East Africa for college students. Greta has been paddling in the Boundary Waters since she was a teenager, and has been leading trips across the country and around the world for more than 15 years. Before coming to VOBS she also directed an outdoor program for teenagers with physical and developmental disabilities.

Greta came to VOBS as an instructor in 2010 and has since led everything from winter dogsledding and cross-country skiing expeditions to summer Intercept courses. Over time, however, Greta transitioned out of the field and into the Admissions office. She now serves as the Director of Student Services. Her diverse life experience and sincere desire to make personal growth opportunities available to everyone make her an incredible asset to families as they learn about Outward Bound, get enrolled and prepare for their expeditions. If you want to learn more about the Voyageur Outward Bound school and the courses we offer, or if you’ve got questions about how to pack for your upcoming course, give Greta a call; She’ll be happy to help!

Matt Kraska

Course Advisor

Matt grew up in Minnesota near the Twin Cities but it wasn’t until he was 16 years old that he visited Northern Minnesota, paddled a canoe and slept in a tent for the first time. After earning a degree in Outdoor Education and Recreation with a minor in Psychology and Youth Development from the University of Minnesota in Duluth, Matt went on to work for urban recreation centers in Minneapolis, at-risk youth programs in Duluth, and leadership development programs as far away as Seattle, WA.  

Matt has years of experience helping students and families plan and prepare for their first wilderness experiences.  He strongly believes that the outdoors should be accessible to everyone and works hard to make that happen.  His personal experiences and commitment to this belief make him a great asset for students and families as a Course Advisor in the Admissions Office while they plan and prepare for their upcoming Outward Bound experience.  If you want to learn more about our courses, need help enrolling, or are wondering what your wilderness experience will be like, give Matt a call; he’s here to help!  

Tessa Olson

Course Advisor & Instructor

Tessa grew up in southern Minnesota and found her way to the northeastern corner of the state when she attended college at the University of Minnesota Duluth. There she received a bachelor’s degree in International Studies and Relations.  Every summer while Tessa was in college she travelled even farther north to the Gunflint Trail where she had access to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness.  During these summers Tessa fell in love with canoe country expeditions! 

These experiences fostered in her a rich appreciation for the wilderness and a desire to share these experiences with others.  It was these summers that led her to peruse a post-graduate certificate in Environmental Education, which has turned into a career in the outdoor education field.  Tessa has taught people of all ages in Minnesota’s northern biome for the last 6 years as a naturalist, educator, and instructor.  Tessa also spent some time as a senior naturalist in Homer, Alaska. 

Tessa came to Outward Bound in 2015 as an instructor and now works on our Student Services team year-round as a course advisor.  When Tessa isn’t busy helping prepare students and families for their expedition, she gets out alongside our students as a field instructor in the winter and summer seasons!

It is evident that Tessa has sought out a life filled with adventure in her professional and personal life. In 2014, Tessa was a part of the 8 Rivers North Expedition, where she and her crew paddle over 900 miles in 60 days, connecting 9 different rivers in the Canadian Arctic ending on the Arctic Ocean.  When she is not working Tessa spends her time thinking of the next adventure. She also enjoys exploring the local flora and fauna, canoeing, baking bread, and spending time with her community here at her home in Ely, Minnesota!

Jory Bowen

Course Advisor

Jory actually grew up right here in Ely, Minnesota, the Voyageur Outward Bound School birthplace. With daily access to her family cabin on the edge of the Boundary Waters and outdoor-loving parents who took her camping prior to her first birthday, she can't remember a time when the outdoors wasn't a significant part of her life. After high school, Jory obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communication from the College of St. Scholastica followed several years later by a Master of Arts degree in Counseling and Psychological Services at Saint Mary's University. Since then, the majority of her professional positions have combined her mental health and outdoor education knowledge.

Prior to joining ​the ​VOBS​ Admissions team​ this past year, Jory worked as a behavioral therapist, residential health program coordinator, camp director, mental health diagnostician, and college counselor. She is especially interested in the correlation between mental and physical health​,​ and ​helping people implement positive, protective factors, such as environmental exposure and exercise, into ​their lives. Because of this passion, Jory is also in the process of completing an Integrative Health Coach certification at Duke University to better understand the biopsychosocial, or whole-person, model of care.

Away from work, she is most likely baking, following her favorite sports team, reading voraciously, traveling (or dreaming of it!), or spending time out in nature, particularly canoeing, kayaking, hiking, or cross-country skiing. Despite her travels and time spent living away from Minnesota, she continues to call her cabin her favorite place on earth.

Samantha "Sammie" Kapaun

Course Advisor, Instructor, & Dog Trainer

Corn fed and Iowa bred, Samantha’s heart was born a wandering one—always looking for the next big adventure. Graduating from Iowa State University with a degree in Spanish and a degree in Mechanical Engineering, Samantha spent a year designing electrical, plumbing, and heating and cooling systems for a regional hospital in Iowa before deciding to explore the world to discover her true passion in life.  The path of discovery took Samantha from living and working in Iowa to living and working in Colorado, Peru, Guatemala, and Costa Rica.  Along the way she taught Spanish and English as a Second Language, advised students on studying and working abroad, developed study abroad curriculum, and more.   

After taking a turn at what felt like hundreds of different jobs and roles, it became clear that Samantha’s real passion was people—listening to them, helping them experience the world, sharing experiences with them, and seeing their minds open to new perspectives.  The stars quickly aligned and after the right conversation while working at a gap year fair, Samantha found the opportunity she needed to dive into her passion of people, Outward Bound.

Since joining the Outward Bound family in the Northwoods of Minnesota, Samantha has fallen in love with the challenge of the outdoors, working with students of all ages and backgrounds, learning about herself through others and the outdoors, and just enjoying her backyard—the Boundary Waters.  At Voyageur Outward Bound School (VOBS), Samantha splits her year between course advising in the spring and summer, instructing in the summer and winter, and training sled dogs in the fall. If you ask her, the best place at VOBS is the dog yard, the best season to visit is winter, and the best thing she gets to say at work is "Ready dogs... Let's go!"

Bud Ahrens

Ely Winter Program Director

Bud, originally from Cincinnati, now has family all over the country including parents in Kentucky, a sister in Boston, and a beautiful daughter in Northern California. Bud’s first taste of Outward Bound was as a teenager when he graduated from a 22-day course out of Baltimore. His experience as an OB student helped steer him toward Ohio University and a degree in Adventure Recreation. After completing his degree Bud worked a variety of jobs including management of an outdoor gear store, a wild land firefighter in California, an EMT-B on an ambulance in Cincinnati, and operator of a bridge climb between Kentucky and Ohio. In these roles he has rescued men from a wrecked helicopter in a burning forest, cleared a baby’s airway, and worked hard to change students’ lives for the better.

Bud came to VOBS, first as a student on an 8-day dogsled course. From that expedition, Bud recalls, “as we rounded the first corner on the frozen river a bald eagle flew overhead, our dog team trudged through the snow, and I instantly fell in love with the beauty of the Boundary Waters.” That was 2010 and Bud has been here ever since doing everything from instructing to training the dogs. Bud claims his colleagues as the most positive community of people to work with and his backyard/office as the most beautiful in the world. He has only taken a few hiatuses since he settled down in Minnesota. One was a four-month assignment working for Outward Bound in Hong Kong. The others have been to undertake expeditions on Manitoba’s Bloodvein River, Wabakimi Provincial Park in Ontario, and two dogsledding expeditions in Hudson Bay. In his little downtime Bud enjoys spending time with his daughter, disc golf, photography, mountain biking, ski-jouring, kite boarding, snowmobiling, canoeing, and anything else that keeps him outside and moving.

Dan Blessing

Ely Summer Program Director

Dan grew up in Minnesota, spending as much of his summers as possible on Lake Superior or any number of the state’s other 10,000 lakes. Dan has been with VOBS since 2006 and can no longer imagine living or working anywhere else. In the summers Dan serves the school as our Intercept Associate Program Director. He oversees the Intercept program and coordinates the Family Seminars. In the winter he still instructs and does what he calls “the best job on planet earth,” bringing dogs and humans out into the wilderness. When he’s not instructing or in the office, Dan spends much of his time dreaming of expedition, past and future, including paddling a birch bark canoe from Lake Superior to the Pacific Ocean in 2010 and a dogsled expedition with other VOBS staff to Hudson Bay.

In addition to his service at VOBS, Dan has also worked for a variety of other organizations including a stint with the MN Fish and Wildlife; two years as a naturalist and teacher at the country’s first accredited Environmental Learning Center; director and co-founder of an expedition-based drug and alcohol prevention program for Native American teenagers in the inner-city; manager of an education program in rural Nepal for youth at-risk for human trafficking; and program leader for study abroad programs in India, the South Pacific, and East Africa. Whether it’s in the wilderness or overseas, when Dan is not at home in northern Minnesota with his wife and yellow lab, he still loves to travel and explore the world in whatever way he can.

Abby Dare

Staffing Manager

Abby is a mid-western kid. She and her three sisters grew up near the Twin Cities engaged in athletics, band, and heading west whenever summer vacation came around. She attended the University of Wisconsin – Madison, graduating with a degree in Physical and Health Education, and Adaptive Physical Education. During her time in Madison, Abby was committed to a student organization that focused on student leadership and group development through paddling the Wisconsin River and high ropes course initiatives.

During the past five years, Abby has been working with students at the Voyageur Outward Bound School paddling in the summers and mushing dogs in the winters. Working as an Outward Bound instructor and course director has been a wonderful outlet for Abby’s passions and values – living in the woods, getting others to laugh and smile, and leading through compassion and service to others.

Ed Joice

Course Advisor

Ed Joice is the Intercept Course Advisor for the Voyageur Outward Bound School. Having instructed many Intercept courses in the past, Ed is a great fit for the job. It offers a curriculum that Ed is both familiar with and excited to share. Beyond his experience with Intercept, Ed has worked over a dozen courses from youth canoeing to Veteran dogsledding and cross-country skiing courses, and just about everything in between. He has five years of experience with Outward Bound and over 600 days in the field. Ed enjoys assisting with the admissions process because it allows him the opportunity to help others get out in the wilderness and discover what it has to offer themselves.

Ed has humble beginnings, raised in Lexington, KY in a traditional family who continues to support him in his endeavors as an outdoorsman and Outward Bound employee. After living in Kentucky for 18 years, Ed wanted to see new places, so he enrolled in a small Quaker school called Earlham College in Indiana. He chose the school largely because of their renowned Wilderness Program. As a freshman he participated in an optional 22 day pre-orientation wilderness canoeing trip in Canada and got involved with the Wilderness Program immediately afterwards. At Earlham he taught rock climbing, backpacking, canoeing, and took course work in environmental studies and environmental history. After graduating in 2009 with a Bachelor’s of History, Ed came straight to Outward Bound to not only pursue his passion in the art of outdoor living, but also to help others discover the awe for challenge, growth, and fun gleaned from human involvement in the natural world.

Anne “Ledoux” Grignon

Logistics Manager

Ledoux got her start leading wilderness canoe trips in Canada in 1980. As her mom likes to say: “When I sent you to summer camp I didn’t know you’d be there forever!”. Ledoux has spent hundreds and hundreds of days on trail with students and counts those days among the best in her life so far. The first thing on her mind during a big rain or snowstorm these days is wondering who is in the field and how they are doing.

Ledoux has been at Voyageur Outward Bound 20 years. You name a job at the school and Ledoux has done it. Currently, she is the Logistics Manager at our Ely basecamp. Of her current post, Ledoux says, “It’s a perfect job for me; I get to create systems that make gear and food an easy part of packing for a course. I truly enjoy working with all of the instructors – they are loud, entertaining, and inspire me every day with their love for their students.” When she’s not fixing something, cleaning something, or organizing something in the Trips building, you can find Ledoux running a small carpentry business, learning to skate ski in the winter and spending her springs coaching The Bears, a local Little League baseball team. Go Bears!

Brian Liggett

Texas Program Director

Brian is from Chicago, IL. His first taste of adventure came when he was introduced to rock climbing at the age of six. From that experience, his interest in outdoor adventure has expanded to the realms of mountaineering, kayaking, canoeing, surfing, snowboarding, and anything else that gives him an excuse to be outside. Through the National Outdoor Leadership School, Brian graduated an Outdoor Educators in 2006. He has been working in this field ever since and has been with the Voyageur Outward Bound School since 2010.

In addition to his service at VOBS, Brian has also worked for a variety of other organizations including a wilderness therapy program, the Burgess and Hayward Outdoor Education in Cape Cod, Outward Bound Australia, and an emergency relief group in Haiti where he served as the Logistics Coordinator following the 2010 earthquake. When not at work Brian will most likely be found traveling the world, climbing mountains, exploring wild places and pushing himself to find adventure wherever he goes.

Jesse Brown

Logistics & Program Support Manager

Jesse is originally from Prior Lake, Minnesota where he grew up playing hockey in the winters and waterskiing in the summers. His love for the outdoors started with Boy Scouts and in the early years of college, Jesse pursued adventure more and more with backpacking and paddling trips with friends. 

Jesse holds a B.S. in Sport Management and a M.Ed. in Youth Development Leadership. He spent the first part of his career working in sport-based youth development at the Twin Cities nonprofit organization, Homegrown Lacrosse. His passion for outdoor adventure and the strong experiential education focus in his graduate career drew him to Voyageur Outward Bound School.

Jesse loves rock climbing, mountaineering and long, tough days on the water. He has been on a handful of high-altitude mountaineering expeditions and also spends some of his time teaching in the Leadership Minor at the U of M. The transformative powers of time spent outdoors, working within a team is what excites him most about Outward Bound!

Brad Little

Staffing & Training Director

Everett Moore

Operations Program Manager

Originally from rural Connecticut, Everett grew up hunting, hiking and playing outside. As a teenager he developed a passion for backpacking on the Appalachian Trail. He also spent his summers hiking throughout the White Mountains of New Hampshire. During high school, he volunteered with Appalachian Mountain Club’s trail crews during the summer months. After high school he attended a backcountry snowboarding course with the National Outdoor Leadership School. Inspired by these trips Everett began his career in outdoor education. At just 17, he started leading teenagers on trail crews for the AMC. Since then Everett has worked as a caretaker in a remote wilderness lodge, a professional trail worker, and a ski patroller in California and Vermont. In his free time he enjoys canoeing, backpacking, snowboarding, climbing and just about anything that gets him outside.

Everett Came to VOBS at 19 and immediately fell in love with Voyageur Outward Bound School and the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. Now in his eighth season with VOBS Everett continues to be inspired by watching his students grow and the beautiful area in which he works. Everett now splits his year between instructing and course directing for VOBS and working as a supervisor for the Okemo Ski Patrol in Vermont. He is grateful to have these wonderful opportunities where he can fulfill his passion for being outdoors while helping others get outside.

Ollie Williams

Technical and Support Program Manager

Nina Wray

Intercept Program Manager

Nina grew up in Minnesota, spending her summers in the outdoors. The first experience Nina had on a long wilderness trip was a 10-day Boundary Waters canoeing trip at the age of 15. The thrill of exploring new territory, pushing her physical and mental limits, and traveling on a self-sufficient team united to leave her feeling accomplished, excited, and ready for more. She was hooked.

Nina’s love of exploration has taken her deep into her own back yard and across the world. Between summers paddling in the Boundary Waters with Outward Bound Nina has continued to explore and seek out new challenges. She braved the cold of northern Minnesota working for three winters leading dog sledding and cross-country skiing courses with VOBS. Along with working for Outward Bound, Nina has led three gap-year semesters through New Zealand, Fiji, and Australia with Carpe Diem Education. Carpe Diem’s mission and values strongly overlap those of Outward Bound, focusing on community, service learning, and personal growth through adventure. This past year Nina focused on personal growth through adventure by summiting Glacier Peak, rock climbing along the West Coast of the US, and trekking the Everest Basecamp trail in Nepal.

Nina has spent the last six years working for the Voyageur Outward Bound School. As an instructor, trainer, and Course Director with Outward Bound, Nina strives to instill the same curiosity, excitement, and drive for personal growth in her students that she experiences on every expedition.