OUR STORY

CEO & PRINCIPAL DESIGNER

Nick grew up in St johns county and still calls this home, where he lives with his wife and two children. His exposure to landscaping and the horticultural industry started early, working in his Father’s landscaping business as a teenager and into his early twenties. During this time, he pivoted his career and began focusing on earning a college degree, later pursuing a career in the medical field, earning a Masters Degree in Physician Assistant Studies. Since 2018, he has worked in this profession, practicing in urgent care medicine.

Shortly after starting this new career, he felt a calling to return to landscaping, where it all began; but this time in a different capacity. Nick wanted to create a company that was focused on blending ecology and nature with his traditional landscaping background. In 2020, he founded Wacca Pilatka. What started as a humble solo enterprise has grown over the years into a thriving business. Nick takes great pride in owning a company that promotes and restores biodiversity, enhances the lives of others and brings people closer to nature.

Nick’s favorite native plant is Lopside Indian Grass, the larval host plant for the Delaware skipper, Dusted skipper and Swarthy skipper.

OWNER & FOREMAN

Tommy is a Jacksonville native, with over 15 years of landscape and irrigation experience. He started his landscaping career as a landscape lead at The University of North Florida under Horticulturalist Charles “Chuck” Hubbuch. He finish his career at UNF after 12 years as a Building Automation Control Technician. Tommy realized his passion was to be outdoors as much as he could, so he resigned from UNF to start his venture of becoming a asset in the landscaping industry. He’s a certified MaxicomTech, a certified Rain Bird Irrigation Technician and a FNGLA member.

Tommy owes his love of gardening to his great grandmother, a well-respected gardener featured in her local newspaper. “I always found myself helping out with harvesting, raking, watering. Her teaching stuck with me.” His hobbies includes ATV riding, jet skiing, hiking, landscaping and spending time with his family of five. In Tommy’s words, “When I walk nature trails and even through my own backyard,I enjoy watching nature close up, and want to contribute to it through our work.”

Tommy’s favorite quote: “Nature as a whole is immortal, respect it as so.”

DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS

Born and raised in Tallahassee, Kyra has always had a deep appreciation for Florida’s wildlife, natural landscapes, and the ecosystems that make the state unique. Her love for animals, hiking, and exploring state parks naturally led her to feel at home in work connected to the outdoors and to the people who care for their environments.

Kyra is currently pursuing her degree in Business Management through UNF and FSCJ, building on a strong background in customer service and business coordination. Her experience working closely with clients, managing schedules, and keeping complex projects running smoothly has shaped her into a thoughtful communicator and an organized, service-focused team member at Wacca Pilatka.

With a passion for travel, Kyra seeks out opportunities to experience new cultures and the natural world—especially marine life. She enjoys seeing how different communities live alongside their environments and brings that curiosity and appreciation into her work with clients.

Outside of work, you can usually find her in the ocean, exploring a park, or planning her next trip somewhere filled with nature and wildlife.

MARKETING & CREATIVE DIRECTOR

Crystal, a Northeast Florida native and our Marketing & Creative Director, is a visual artist and born naturalist whose work integrates nature and storytelling. Drawing inspiration from the environment, she transforms ethically collected natural specimens, artifacts and found objects into artwork. With a strong focus on sustainability and environmental awareness, Crystal's workshops on terrarium construction, gardening, and art assemblage encourage deeper engagement with nature. Her artistic vision aligns seamlessly with our mission and the values of Florida-friendly and native plant landscaping, promoting biodiversity and an intrinsic connection to the natural world. Crystal operates from her studio in the CoRK Arts District, where she also serves as Studio Director.

Outside of the studio, Crystal enjoys hiking, snorkeling and exploring Florida's natural springs, spending time with her pets, experimenting with plant propagation and working in her home garden.

Crystal’s favorite native plants are Rattlesnake Master, Yarrow and Buttonbush for their unique blooms and benefits to wildlife.

GARDEN MAINTENANCE LEAD

Hailing originally from Puerto Rico, Ely has called St. Augustine, FL home for the last few decades. After some serious soul searching, she left her 15-year engineering career to work with plants and natural systems. Having first been introduced to ecosystem restoration in the early 2000s while working on the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP), Ely developed a passion for invasive plant management. A believer that every garden can be an opportunity to restore and create a sanctuary for both people and wildlife, she turned her interests and volunteerism into her next career at Wacca Pilatka.

Ely received a Graduate Certificate in Weed Science focusing on invasive plant management in natural areas from the University of Florida (UF), a Florida Master Naturalist Certification in invasive plants, along with her Bachelor’s in Mechanical Engineering also from UF. She enjoys talking with customers on their unique gardens and looks forward to enhancing her outreach and education skills, particularly with youth age groups, to educate them on the value of plants in thriving communities.

Her favorite native plant is the purple passionflower vine (Passiflora incarnata) because of its insanely intriguing blooms as the host plant for the zebra longwing and gulf fritillary. When not working in gardens, you can find Ely running, reading, or doing anything out on the ocean with her husband and daughter.

Bonus fact about Ely: Her favorite quote is from Albert Einstein: “Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better.”

GARDEN CENTER MANAGER & GARDEN MAINTENANCE CREW MEMBER

Tara was born in Montgomery, AL. Raised in a military family, she moved around frequently before her family settled in North Carolina. Tara has always had an appreciation of nature and a passion for wildlife. She followed this passion in her studies at North Carolina State University where she earned a Bachelor's degree in Zoology.

Following graduation, Tara held a variety of positions. She worked with African Penguins at an AZA aquarium in Connecticut, studied Dolphin behavior aboard a sailboat in Greece, tracked the movements and breeding habits of the endangered Red Wolf through the outer banks of North Carolina and finally settled in FL working as a naturalist assistant for various parks and military installations. It was as a naturalist that she found a new passion in preserving the natural habitats that wildlife depends upon.

This newfound love of native flora and fauna led Tara down a new path of Permaculture and Ecological Landscape design. Tara earned a professional certificate in Permaculture Design from Washington State University and hopes to inspire others to transform their yards into sustainable thriving ecosystems. While not at work, Tara enjoys hiking with her dog, Juniper, fossil hunting, birding and taking long naps with her cat Oliver.

GARDEN MAINTENANCE CREW MEMBER

Jake grew up in Miami, where his first job was animal caretaker at Miami-Dade College’s Environmental Center, a 10-acre preserve. He ended working there for 16 years as a lead naturalist and grounds-supervisor. He worked on Everglades restoration projects and as a wetland restoration technician, specializing in exotic invasive plant removal. Designing and installing butterfly gardens in Dade-County added to his experience working with native plants.

Jake has now been in Jacksonville for over six years with his wife and two teenage boys and has come to love and appreciate North Florida’s habitat and ecosystems. He earned a bachelor’s degree from UNF in Environmental Studies and Biology to bolster his naturalist skills. Jake’s knowledge of our native ecosystems provides education to our clients and reinforces our mission of bringing people closer to nature.

GARDEN MAINTENANCE CREW MEMBER

Joseph is a Northeast Florida native with a background in the arts, who is a passionate advocate for the environment.

He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Music and French from Jacksonville University as well as a Master of Music in Harpsichord Performance from the University of Cincinnati’s College-Conservatory of Music. After working briefly as a musician, he realized he needed to dedicate his life toward helping Florida’s ecosystems in any way possible. For him, nothing is more rewarding than seeing an area overtaken with invasive plants teem once again with biodiversity. His ultimate goal is to learn and teach others about the benefits of native plants in their own yards. He believes that even small changes in daily life can have a massive impact on our local ecosystems.

On his off time, he enjoys exploring new natural areas, studying languages, playing music, and learning about foraging, which makes sense because whenever he encounters a new plant, his first thought is usually “I wonder if I can eat this!” His favorite native wildflowers are goldenrods because of their idyllic golden blooms.

LANDSCAPE INSTALLATION CREW LEAD

LANDSCAPE INSTALLATION CREW MEMBER

LANDSCAPE INSTALLATION CREW MEMBER