By Lindsay Peyton

Looking back, West Seattle resident Merica Whitehall admits that her career path has been circuitous – but still connected.

“My trajectory seems so diverse, but it’s also so intersectional – because I feel fortunate enough in my life to lead from my heart,” she said. “No matter what, you can never let go of your passion.”

Whitehall serves as executive director of area nonprofit Nature Consortium, a grassroots organization dedicated to building community through a connection with nature and art.

Prior to assuming the post, Whitehall wore a number of hats.

She grew up in Omaha and was the first person in her family to graduate from college, earning her degree in political science.

Whitehall applied to law school – but ended up joining a performing arts group instead, Seattle-based Bakra Batá.

“I wasn’t anticipating it – it just happened,” she said.

Whitehall danced and performed music with the group – and served as a managing director -- as it traveled to theaters, universities, festivals, art fairs and children's events throughout the country.

“I loved it but it was also really hard work,” she said. “It was a demanding life. We were our own drivers, our own mechanics and our own road crew. We would perform, then we’d clean up and drive to the next place.”

The group toured for five to eight months each year. “We drove around the entire country,” Whitehall said. “We lived in nature a lot while touring – and I developed an incredible appreciation and love of the outdoors.”

After 9/11, however, performing arts groups were struggling to survive, Whitehall said.

“It had a devastating impact in general – and particularly on the performing arts sector,” she said. “Touring artists were having contracts canceled. What had been lucrative for a while was no longer.”

She took a job at Seattle University as an administrative assistant – and earned a master’s degree in non-profit leadership while she was there.

Whitehall started serving as a consultant and trainer for a number of area nonprofits, including SEEDArts, Seattle Center Festal, Seattle Community Law Center, Intiman Theatre, YMCA of Snohomish and Seattle Theatre Group.

She also became an adjunct professor at Seattle University, creating a course to help nonprofit leaders more effectively empower the people they serve.

After 10 years with the university, she made another career change – starting with the Nature Consortium in December 2014.

Whitehall said serving the West Seattle community was a great fit – since she has lived in the area since 2011. She also believed she had a unique opportunity to affect change.

“There are not very many people of color in environmental work,” she said. “And there are not very many people of color in leadership in environmental groups.”

Whitehall wanted to bring her dedication to social justice to the forefront – and focus on how to reach communities of color and low-income neighborhoods with the art and outdoor programs offered by the Nature Consortium.

“I’m working with great people and doing great work,” she said. “The Nature Consortium was founded, grown and rooted in the community.”

Another personal mission for Whitehall has been creating more opportunities for children and their families to spend time in area green spaces.

“The most wonderful part of being an executive director is being empowered to put action into a cause you care so much about,” Whitehall said.

Willard Brown, director of housing and properties for the Delridge Neighborhoods Development Association, has worked alongside Whitehall on a number of projects. His office is also next store – and he sees Whitehall in action on a daily basis.

“She’s a visionary for her organization,” Brown said. “She’s a hard worker, and she has tremendous ambition. She wants the Nature Consortium to grow and prosper in a way they can manage. She’s very thoughtful.”

He added that Whitehall’s work has been instrumental in bringing art and nature to the community.

“She’s definitely committed to improving access and encouraging young people and people in the neighborhood to be in nature,” Brown said.

He believes that Whitehall’s passion is contagious.

She has a few words of advice for those who might follow in her footsteps.

“Whether you think you can’t or think you can, you’re absolutely right,” she said. “If you believe in yourself, you’re likely to succeed. But if you think you can’t, you’re absolutely guaranteed to fail.”

Whitehall also cautions others to not get paralyzed by their fears. “We hold ourselves back simply by being afraid to do something we’ve never done before or to do something bigger or to do something everyone around us is telling us we don’t have the capacity to do,” she said.

Whitehall encourages others to start by imaging the future they want to achieve.

“The steps you take may not be in any logical order,” she said. “It can be uneasy and unsteady. But if you just take one step at a time. Anybody doing that will be in awe and humbled and grateful for what they’re able to accomplish.”

For more information about the Nature Consortium, visit www.naturec.org.