Staff Profile: Caitlin Ronda Elopement Coordinator
While Wickaninnish team member, Caitlin Ronda, identifies as a homebody, she also loves to explore new places. Three years ago, Caitlin’s travels brought her and her partner, Tristan, to Tofino, from Ontario—she’s been with us at the Wickaninnish Inn ever since! When she first arrived, Caitlin worked as our Gift Gallery Coordinator, and for the last year and a half has also moved in as our Elopement Coordinator and go-to for couples looking to celebrate their love at the Inn.
Caitlin spends a lot of time exploring the trails of the Pacific Rim and beachcombing the shoreline but, she says, she's still discovering new places. “Someone once told me ‘This place is like a country unto itself, you could spend a lifetime exploring it’,” she says, and she loves finding what secrets she continues to find off the beaten path.
Working at an Inn on the edge of the Pacific is definitely quite different from Caitlin’s workplace before! Prior to working with us, she worked as a photographer and studio manager in downtown Toronto. Fulfilling her creativity is an important pursuit in Caitlin’s life, and, now that she’s out of the studios, the portraits and photos of “pretzelable” newborns are replaced with the wild inspiration of our stunning environment. Caitlin says nature is constantly inspiring her and she packs her camera along on all of her nature walks. Her love for photography and design give Caitlin an exceptional eye for detail, something that becomes integrated into every task she takes on with us. While coordinating the Gift Gallery and our Elopement offerings are her primary focus, at times you’ll find Caitlin stepping in to help our Guest Services Team, perfectly highlighting her can-do attitude.
Caitlin lives by sage advice—to always “Stop and smell the roses, literally”. She makes sure she takes a few moments everyday to slow down and soak in the views, and when she’s working on the cusp of Chesterman Beach, “the sound of the surf is like white noise for the soul, it clears your mind after a long day and is so relaxing.”
This adventuring Inn team member admits Ontario has a few things she misses: cottage country, lightning storms and brilliant fall colours—but, this time of year, when the “fresh bright green leaves first appear and the blossoms are out in full force” is Caitlin’s favourite to be here. The west coast’s storm season and endlessly, long summer days are truly “something special,” and Caitlin has no plans on leaving anytime soon. In five years she hopes she'll still be adventuring around and inspired by beautiful Vancouver Island!