Leadership

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Evan was born and raised in Evansville, Indiana. Thanks to the local climbing gym, he found his passion for rock climbing. Over the last ten years, he has fully embraced the rock climbing lifestyle. With ten years of climbing experience, he has chased rock climbing adventures in places such as Red Rock Canyon, Nevada and Lynnville Gorge, North Carolina. Evan has a driving force to support his local crags, such as Jackson Falls in Illinois and Red River Gorge in Eastern Kentucky. For six years, Evan was the director of Operations and Head Route Setter for Vertical EXcape Climbing Gym in Bowling Green. Through that position, he was inspired to reduce the barrier to entry for others to partake in outdoor and indoor rock climbing. Evan has developed several outdoor routes and areas, while working towards starting the Western Kentucky Climbers Coalition. Evan and his wife, Haley, live in Bowling Green, and continue to expand and develop their local climbing communities with the hope to see Western Kentucky on the climbing destination map. 

Jody was born in LA, grew up in Paducah and currently lives in Dixon, Ky. Jody serves as Chaplain for St. Anthony’s Hospice, is pastor of Lakeview Baptist Church, and is the West Kentucky Chapter Coordinator for Climbers for Christ. He is the Regional Administrator of Western Kentucky on www.mountainproject.com,  brand ambassador with PhysiVantage, and is an active member the American Alpine Club and the Access Fund. 

Jody enjoys hiking, camping, and rock climbing and has climbed extensively over the Southeast.  He has over 20 years of rock climbing experience and particularly enjoys bouldering and trad climbing. He is married to Catherine and has two children, all of which are part of the Webster County School system. Jody serves many other community organizations for Webster County and the Little Bethel Baptist Association of churches. 

Nathan is the Founding/Managing Partner at Vertical eXcape Climbing Center in Evansville IN. He began rock climbing in the early 1990’s and founded the Vertical eXcape Climbing Center in 1998. Nathan is very active in the indoor climbing industry and continues to manage Vertical eXcape. Nathan has served in several positions in the rock climbing industry, including the Boy Scouts of America Cope Director, Access Funds' Regional Coordinator for Illinois, and Committee Member for the High School Climbers' Federation, ICA (Illinois Climbers Association) Board Member, ICA Fixed Anchor Committee Member, & currently Western KY Climbers Coalition Board Member. Nathan enjoys all types of climbing, but favors moderate, multi-pitch, trad climbing. Some of his favorite climbing destinations include: Joshua Tree, CA; Red Rock, NV; Devil's Tower, WY; Black Hills, SD; City of Rocks, ID; and Seneca Rocks, WV. Nathan resides in Henderson, KY and has been married to his wife Sabrina since 1995. They have two grown children, Bailey and Keaton.

Dean is an avid runner, mountaineer, and adventure seeker. After serving in the US Marines, he attended Murray State University where he earned his bachelor degree. His passion for extreme adventure led him to Colorado to train with the Wilderness Medical Institute, inspiring him to pursue an emergency/disaster medicine career. Dean has completed degrees in Paramedicine and Nursing, and has earned his Fellowship in the Academy of Wilderness Medicine. Dean has honed his skills in hospitals and challenging environments around the world. He has used his expertise in planning and leading to serve as a medic/pacer/lead for athletes in various locations including Death Valley, runs across the US, Nepal, Africa, and numerous mountaineering expeditions. Additionally, Dean has deployed multiple times with International Medical Teams to provide care for disaster victims globally, including missions to Guyana, the Bahamas following hurricane Dorian, NYC during the COVID pandemic, Niger and Ukraine. Dean lives in Paducah KY, and enjoys running, rock climbing, practices Jiu-Jitsu, trains for Spartan races with his son Ethan. He is a full time flight paramedic and part time ER nurse. 

Ben is a western Kentucky native. He has worked the last 30+ years as a lawyer helping injured people in Kentucky and Tennessee. Ben lives and works in Bowling Green, Ky. with his wife, law partner, and climbing partner, Cyndi. They have three grown sons. Ben has a long background in whitewater paddling, backpacking, climbing, and biking. Ben climbs regularly in Kentucky and Tennessee, but also has climbed in Sardinia, Spain, California, Colorado, Wyoming, Massachusetts, North Carolina, and Virginia. Ben is primarily a sport climber, but is always up for a fun boulder, trad climb, or alpine climb.

 Nicole is a southern Illinois native who now calls Paducah, KY, home. She has been climbing since 1998, with her first ascent on top rope being Under the Influence 5.8 at Ferne Clyffe. Nicole has competed on American Ninja Warrior four times, her most notable season being season 10 in Indianapolis in 2019. Aside from being an athlete, she is a wife, a mom to two kids, and a business owner. In 2018, she opened Tenacity Training Western Kentucky’s first and only ninja, climbing, and fitness center. In Oct 2024, they completed their 1,000 sqft Rockwall project featuring top rope, auto belays, and bouldering with visions of doing more.  She has traveled all over the east climbing, and her favorite climbing area to date was visiting Acadia National Park and following trad. Nicole enjoys sport climbing but is open to almost any reason to get outside!  

Mike was born and raised in southern Indiana, but has called Murray, KY home for nearly 30 years. He has two adult children and a granddaughter. Currently, Mike is in his 23rd year of teaching at Murray State University. He has been an instructor in nonprofit management for the last six years, serving as outdoor recreation faculty and program director before that. Currently, he enjoys introducing his granddaughter to outdoor climbing, including a trip to Lime Creek Canyon, CO when she was 5 years old. Mike enjoys traveling to climb and experiencing new climbing areas. The most unique he's visited being Maple Canyon, UT. . With the growth of climbing all over the US, Mike hopes WKCC can create a legacy of responsible development and mentor the next generation of climbers.