UPFRONT PLACES | PERSPECTIVES | HAPPENINGS
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It ’ s Only Natural
KARIN WYMAN-VARDAMAN , THE NEW EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF LAGUNA CANYON FOUNDATION , HAS COME FULL CIRCLE , HELPING TO PROTECT THE OPEN SPACES SHE GREW UP ENJOYING AS A CHILD .
By SHARON STELLO
A
A photo of Barbara ’ s Lake hangs on the wall of Karin Wyman-Vardaman ’ s office . Next to it is a watercolor painting of the same scene by her mother , recalling special memories of their time together in this peaceful place .
Now , as executive director of Laguna Canyon Foundation since December , Wyman- Vardaman is helping to conserve the same wilderness she enjoyed while growing up in town .
“ For me , taking this position … is kind of a way to give back to what gave me so much as a child ,” she shares . “ I grew up here , graduated from high school here and the canyon was my playground . … We used to ride our horses into town and tie them up at the parking meters to get ice cream and rode our horses to Top of the World and over to the lakes , because there was nothing here . You [ could ] just cross the road and ride wherever you want [ ed ].”
Wyman-Vardaman steps into the position after longtime leader Hallie Jones left for a job at Crystal Cove Conservancy in September . Before coming to lead the foundation , Wyman- Vardaman served in the 1980s as director for animal care and operations at Pacific Marine Mammal Center ( then known as Friends of the
Sea Lions ) and senior director of the Ocean Institute in Dana Point for nearly two decades as well as founder and executive director of Working Circle , a nationally recognized nonprofit committed to wolf conservation . She was even named by Forbes magazine as one of 50 women over age 50 making an impact in 2021 .
She returned to Orange County in the fall after living in Colorado for about eight years . She resides in San Clemente with her husband , George Vardaman ; two dogs , Cainey and Snuggles ; and horse , Mikey .
“ I love being in the ocean ,” she says . “ It ’ s almost a spiritual thing for me to be in the water . It ’ s one of the reasons I moved back . I love Colorado . It ’ s so beautiful and it was really convenient for my work , but I just missed the ocean . It ’ s a soul thing . I had to get back .”
Among her hobbies , Vardaman has enjoyed distance swimming in the ocean and competing in equestrian sports . And she has plenty of plans to increase outreach and education by Laguna Canyon Foundation , which is dedicated to protecting the 22,000-acre South Coast Wilderness , including Laguna Canyon , advocating for open space as well as conducting trailwork and habitat restoration .
LEFT : CHRISTIE SWEENEY
Karin Wyman-Vardaman , executive director of Laguna Canyon Foundation , with her horse , Mikey
32 LAGUNABEACHMAGAZINE . COM