Meet the Blue Heron Nature Preserve Team
Rainie B. Jueschke, CFRE
Rainie Jueschke brings more than three decades of nonprofit leadership experience with a strong record of strengthening organizations, generating substantial and diversified funding, and guiding teams through growth and change. A Certified Fundraising Executive, Jueschke is known for building sustainable financial systems fostering, effective board engagement and leading with an inclusive, strategic approach.
She has had a lifelong passion for conservation. Her nonprofit career began with The Nature Conservancy and she later held a leadership role in a volunteer coalition that helped secure the protection of 9,000 acres that became Government Canyon State Natural Area in Texas. An avid birder with 324 species on her life list, Jueschke brings both professional expertise and personal passion for wildlife and natural spaces to her role at Blue Heron. She looks forward to partnering with the community to further the Preserve’s mission and ensure this unique urban greenspace thrives for generations to come.
Contact: 404.946.6394 Ext 2
rainiej@bhnp.org
Jen Barich
Jen is a native Atlantan who fondly remembers visiting the ducks in the pond that is now the Blue Heron wetland when she was a child. Never did she think that this spot she loved would one day be protected and become Blue Heron Nature Preserve, and that she would be lucky enough to work here!
While at Virginia Commonwealth University studying City Planning, Jen discovered a passion for whitewater on the James River. This quickly spread to whitewater raft guiding and canoeing on the Chattooga and Ocoee Rivers. After college, she moved to Colorado and guided on the Arkansas River and continued to learn about and explore the outdoors.
After moving back to Atlanta with her sons, she began working as an assistant teacher at a local Montessori school. A love of working with and learning from children coupled with passion for rivers and the outdoors led her to Blue Heron. She began working as a summer camp counselor and environmental educator. These positions have now grown into her being the Education Program and Volunteer Coordinator.
Jen loves the philosophy behind the education program at Blue Heron and thinks a great day involves letting kids explore their interests and play in nature.
In her time off, Jen loves spending time with her husband, kids and dogs, working in the yard, exploring and reading.
Contact: 404.946.6394 Ext 3 & 5
jenb@bhnp.org
Sarah McKinnon
Sarah is a native Georgian with a lifelong love of exploring and protecting wild spaces. As a child she spent many hours outside building fairy houses, flipping rocks over to find bugs, or hiking with her fellow Girl Scouts. This passion only grew as she attended the Outdoor Academy in Pisgah Forest, NC as a teenager and learned the importance of coexisting with nature.
Sarah has been part of the Blue Heron team since the summer of 2023, where she began as a summer camp counselor and later an environmental educator. These positions have since grown into her being Education Coordinator and Administrator . She feels lucky every day to continue educating individuals on the importance of natural spaces, and introducing children to the wonders of treasure-hunting in Nancy Creek. Many students and campers enjoy referring to her as “Miss Mac-n-Cheese”.
In her free time you can find Sarah crafting, reading, exploring, or playing with her two cats, Goose and Nellie.
Contact: 404.946.6394 Ext 0
sarahm@bhnp.org
Dusk Grams
Dusk is a born and raised Georgian with a lifelong interest in raptors, reptiles, and everything else in between. While studying at Georgia Southern and interning at the university’s Wildlife Center, he found a passion for educating others about the local ecosystem. He went on to graduate in 2023 with a bachelors in Outdoor Recreation.
He’s been with Blue Heron since fall 2023, working primarily with children during afterschool programs, scout badges, break camps, and field trips. When not searching for treasures in Nancy Creek, or bird watching, he can be found writing or working on yet another craft.
Contact: 404.946.6394 Ext 4
duskg@bhnp.org