NEDERLAND — The role of a director for a nonprofit organization requires the ability to wear many hats, and to know when to switch from one hat to another. The director must be able to flow through administrative and executive duties, to be at all times the public face, the inner-office leader, and the empathic conduit required to carry forth that organization’s mission. 

Wild Bear Nature Center (WBNC) is no different in this regard, and the position of Director for the Nederland-based institution is one that carries with it much responsibility.

WBNC Founder and previous Executive Director Jill Dreves spent 30 years creating a legacy that is deeply revered by the local community, turning $500 and a childhood dream into an environmentally friendly and sustainable 8,500-square-foot nature center. 

Now, the baton is getting passed to a new director to lead the organization in a time when it might be needed the most. 

“Ever since law school, I was focused on K-12 education law and policy, and was always really interested in alternative ways to educate youth because the traditional system is broken,” Trish Krajniak told The Mountain-Ear. “It doesn’t meet the needs of all kids.” 

Krajniak grew up in the Midwest, where she didn’t have access to a nature center. She exercised her love and curiosity for nature whenever she’d visit her grandmother, who used to live off of Ridge Road here in Nederland. 

This reverence for nature grew from Krajniak’s own empathetic spirit, a quality she would bring with her into her career as a lawyer—a vocation not always suited for empathy. 

“I told my dad when I was going to law school that I would never be a practicing lawyer; I just thought it would give me the background to do what I wanted to do,” Krajniak said. “I’m really excited to be at a place where that framework is there.”

Krajniak operates through the world of nonprofit organizations with a fresh perspective on law and logistics, but also with a passion for the mission at hand. 

“The nature-based education aspect really clicked for me when I had my first child and I saw what it did to him the second I put him outside,” Krajniak said. “From that moment, I started researching forest schools and nature-based schools and those types of alternative education models.”

That research brought her back to Nederland. Her kids, now 3 and 4 years old, connected her to Wild Bear. 

“We moved up here because I wanted to open a forest school myself, but when I saw that Wild Bear was building one I just thought, 'Well, I’m going to partner with them and I’m going to figure out how to get involved in some way.'”

After the devastating Lakeview Fire that took the Caribou Village Shopping Center—Wild Bear’s home and base of operations for many years—Krajniak quickly joined WBNC’s Board of Directors. 

“I knew my skillset could lend itself to this,” Krajniak said. “Insurance claims, rebuilding operations, regulatory needs: It’s all in my wheelhouse, so I was thrilled to volunteer.”   

Krajniak’s passion and eagerness to apply her skills made her a strong candidate for the executive director position, especially in a time when the organization, much like the Town of Nederland itself, stands on the precipice of change. 

“[In m]y last position I was an executive at a startup company that was education-based, and this makes me feel like I’m back in that startup environment again,” Krajniak explains. “There’s a ton of work that's already been done, but in so many ways it's a complete reset of operations.”

“Of course the big things remain, the summer camps and story times and everything that Wild Bear is known for is remaining, but then there’s so much more on top of that.”

The key to growing responsibly as an organization is to "meet the community where it's at," Krajniak said, "and make sure we’re designing programs that support their needs, and not just doing it in a vacuum."

“We have so much opportunity here that we can leverage, whether it is nature-based art classes or Spanish language nature immersion. What can we do that’s designed to help these kids and make sure that they don’t have to go down the hill?"

The new building is designed to be entirely environmentally friendly, solar-powered and net-positive, as well as ADA accessible. 

“It’s a place for everyone, because if you’re 85 you need access to nature too. It’s never too late to develop that connection and get that curiosity and feel awestruck again,” Krajniak said. “The facility in of itself is supposed to inspire people to get back outside.

As she takes the helm of this beloved and evolving institution, Krajniak said that her main feeling is one of excitement.

“I’m just stoked to be able to have a creative outlet to bring to this. Let’s have some fun programs; let’s have a great, lively place.”