Mariana Tomas

Mariana Tomas, BA in IT Management. MA in Organizational Psychology, and Director of Organizational Change Capacity at a large medical firm, began caving as a child in Croatia. SheI would discover caves and lead classmates on expeditions after school. Although she admits that she really didn't have any equipment or experience, she enjoyed a sense of wonder and exploration. "I wanted to join the local caving club as soon as I found out about it (I was about 14), but my father didn't allow it, he thought it was too dangerous. War, marriage, children, moving a couple of countries put my caving ambition on the back burner for a long time. It wasn't until October this year that I started caving with the Cascade Grotto, and since then I've done 9 caves." Although Tomas is new to NSS sanctioned caving, she clearly shows a strong ability to explore and enjoy caves even in spite of social norms. Mariana you are clearly an extraordinary woman caver and represent the 25% of NSS cavers who push beyond social barriers that limit women in the world. Thank you for sharing your story and we hope to see you underground!

Image created by Lisa A M Bauman, founder of the All-Girls-Cave-Trip