Our Team

Jake King

Founding Partner, Lead Instructor, CEO, and Director of the Thrive Outdoors Community Leadership Center

Jake has spent thousands of hours in the wilderness, in group and solitary settings, learning and growing. He has led hundreds of youth and adult day and overnight trips, teaching wilderness survival and leadership skills, and is passionate about passing this knowledge on. A father of four, Jake has made it a point to be prepared and to know his family will have every opportunity to Thrive in any emergency situation.

Jake has spent the last 20 years in social services, working with at-risk youth, recovering addicts, the homeless, and inner-city adults & youth. He and his partners created Thrive Outdoors as a way to increase knowledge of the natural world, help instill confidence and positive self-worth in all its students, teach survival in extreme circumstances, and help guide people to a better understanding of stress reduction & real leadership.

Click here to learn more about Jake.

Melanie Haney

Partner, Marketing & Creative Director, and Co-Director of the Thrive Outdoors Community Leadership Center

Melanie has always loved travel and adventure, gleaning insight and inspiration from communities of people around the world. She specifically grew to love and respect nature as a child, camping across the country with her family. She believes in learning through every experience, the ordinary and the extraordinary, in classrooms and in the wilderness. As a creative lens within Thrive, Melanie is passionate about seeing small moments, as well as the big scenic vistas. She loves being alongside the groups as a guide and then sharing words and images that capture the inspirational transformations she witnesses.

To learn more about Melanie, click here.

The Rest of the Team:

It Takes a Village

Thrive Outdoors would not exist without the expertise and commitment to the involvement of many incredible individuals. Please click on the name of our team members to learn more about each one and the vital role that they play in our work.

Jenny Everett King: Therapeutic Consultant

Vincent Haney: Clinical Mental Health Consultant

Christie J.E. Chapman: Mental Health Consultant