Co-Founders
The co-founders of Main Line Nature Guides, Renae Buono and Charlie Szoradi, met in 2021. Their initial nature experience together was within the first month of meeting, and it was a midday hike at the McKaig Nature and Education Center in Wayne, Pennsylvania. Wayne is a small town in the western suburbs of Philadelphia in an area referred to as the “Main Line”, which inspired the company name Main Line Nature Guides LLC, a majority women-owned registered Pennsylvania Limited Liability Company.
Renae Buono
Renae is a leader in a new generation of environmental entrepreneurs whose innovative programs are helping people experience the restorative benefits of immersing themselves in the natural world. She is a Certified Nature and Forest Therapy Guide and leads Forest Therapy walks and hikes throughout the Main Line and beyond. Renae is also certified in wilderness first aid and CPR. Her love of the outdoors, hiking and understanding of the mental and physical benefits of connecting with nature on a deeper level, give her the skills to empower people to see both outer and inner worlds with new eyes. Renae has worked in the financial services and pharmaceutical industries and most recently in nonprofit adult education. As the co-founder of Main Line Nature Guides, she looks forward to sharing her passion and knowledge with others to inspire those of all ages to find rejuvenation in the natural world.
Charlie Szoradi
Charlie has a diverse range of nature experiences, dating back to his upbringing in the Washington, DC area and expanding around the world. At a young age, Charlie and his brother were encouraged to explore Rock Creek Park, the C&O Canal, surrounding areas in Maryland, and more aggressive hikes like their annual climb up Old Rag Mountain in Virginia. He walked to elementary and middle school a mile each way for almost a decade, observing the growth of plants, trees, and seasonality first-hand. Many years later in architecture graduate school, at the University of Pennsylvania, he was fortunate to have an environmental mentor professor, who hired him to work in Japan. In Asia, Charlie developed a deep awareness of nature and honed his skills sketching natural and sustainable design elements. As the co-founder of Main Line Nature Guides, Charlie has had exceptional nature experiences ranging from time in the Aberdare mountains of East Africa with silverback gorillas to time with the marine iguanas of the Galapagos Islands. Charlie is certified in wilderness first aid and CPR.