Tim Corcoran – Helping Boys Build A Personal Relationship With Nature

Tim Corcoran will forever remember the summer before he turned 13 as a mountaintop experience – both literally and figuratively. On the homeward stretch of a 38-state road trip, Tim’s mentor “put [him] out on a rite of passage” – a solo overnight hike up Mount Shasta. At the top of the mountain, the boy created the code of honor he lives by. “Be respectful of all beings and things,” he began his list; “Be a good example to others.”

Over 50 years later, as the founder of Headwaters Outdoor School in Mount Shasta, CA, it’s clear the code the boy created truly shaped the man he became.

Influenced by spending summers with his grandfather at the Flathead Indian Reservation in Montana, Tim finds deep spirituality in nature. His autobiography, Growing Up with a Soul Full of Nature, describes the formative experiences that molded him into “an earth caretaker,” protecting and preserving nature wherever he lives.

In 1999, Tim returned to the Mount Shasta area from Santa Cruz. He purchased a parcel of land and founded Headwaters Outdoor School, where he mentors children, teens, adults, and even entire families through his wilderness survival classes and rites of passage.

Joining an earth caretaker movement

Tim’s goal for his students is for them to join an earth caretaker movement, respecting the animals, plants and environment that make our world beautiful. From the moment his students arrive, greeted by his pack of dogs, Tim focuses on one central lesson: “It’s all about building a close personal relationship with nature.”

Julie Boettler, Tim’s coworker of the past 20 years, describes her friend’s unique ability to connect with people of all ages. “He asks adults to be okay with kid energy, and kids to respect adults,” she says, “And it works!”

When Tim turned 60, Julie reached out to all of the school’s previous students. The ensuing flood of 600 handwritten cards evidenced the impact Tim and his programs have made. “I can’t believe how many people wrote to say they framed their code of honor,” Tim says, “It really affected them.”

Careers chosen and lives changed

Many also told of their nature- or service-focused careers, chosen because of the principles they learned at Headwaters. “Even when we’re not sure it’s going to stick, we’ll hear from people 8 or 10 years later telling us how the school changed their lives,” Julie says.

John Brennan, whom Tim describes as a mentor, first visited the Headwaters property in 2003. Mere months later, John and his wife purchased a nearby parcel and moved up from Monterey, CA to join in Tim’s work. “Tim has a high respect for nature. When he gets people here, they fall in love with nature too,” John says. He recalls a boy who, in the beginning of June, struggled to manage an 800-foot elevation gain on a hike. A month later, the same young man summited Mount Shasta – an 8,000-foot elevation gain. “Tim is facilitating people getting to know themselves,” John says. “They’re figuring out who they are, not who others told them to be.”

Training children to become adults with honor and respect

The rite of passage program offers a unique opportunity to young boys in the North State. “Most cultures throughout human history until the modern time have had a rite of passage,” Tim says. “It was a survival technique to train children to become adults with honor and respect.”

Tim’s program equips boys for an experience like he had: a 24-hour solo journey into nature to develop a code of honor. Youths commit to living by principles like being kind, helping when help is needed, and keeping their word. John, who helps teach the rite of passage course from the perspective of his Esselen Tribe heritage, describes the course as “a life-changing experience.”

Whether or not your family is ready to embark on a wilderness survival adventure, Tim says everyone can make a difference by committing to caring for the planet. From spending time in nature, to leading or volunteering with clean-up efforts, to voting for people who care for the earth, Tim urges kids and families to “get involved. If you don’t like something, don’t give up on it; do something about it. Live your life in a way that matters.”

Learn more about Tim, his code of honor, and Headwaters Outdoor School at hwos.com.