Hi, I’m Gary Lougher, founder of 2nd Ascent Coaching—a transformational learning and coaching platform designed to help people reconnect with their purpose, resilience, and most authentic selves. My work brings together modern science, ancient wisdom, personal experience, and a deep reverence for nature to guide individuals, families, and leaders toward real and lasting transformation.

 

With over 30 years of leadership and coaching experience in the corporate world, I’ve helped turn around struggling business units, unlock the potential in people, and foster growth cultures from the inside out. I’m the creator of the Conversational Leadership model and the course Creating Growth Mindsets and Cultures Through Conversational Leadership, which continues to empower leaders across industries.

 

I’m also a:

• Certified Nature Informed Practitioner – Center for Nature Informed Therapy

• Certified Trauma Recovery Coach – International Association of Trauma Recovery Coaching

• Sleep, Stress Management, and Recovery Coach – Precision Nutrition

• Specialist in Nutrition for Metabolic Health – Precision Nutrition

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These qualifications reflect my belief in a holistic, evidence-based approach to coaching—one that honors the mind, body, and soul.

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Eighteen years ago, at the age of 38, I began a profound journey of personal reinvention. After a two-decade-long struggle with alcohol abuse, I found healing through the support of coaches who helped me remember who I really was. That journey became the foundation for 2nd Ascent—a second climb, not just toward success, but toward wholeness. It’s what drives me to help others navigate their own rewilding, recovery, and return to self.

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Today, my life’s work lives across four core offerings:

• Trauma Recovery – Courses and coaching to help people break free from shame, perfectionism, and emotional survival patterns

• Heroic Kids – A nature-based mentorship and storytelling program that strengthens emotional resilience in children and their families

• Rewilding Your Soul – A multi-course journey that helps adults heal from evolutionary and cultural mismatch by reconnecting with nature and themselves

• Leading Along the Edge – Leadership programs rooted in presence, purpose, and authentic, human-centered growth

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In everything I offer, the goal is the same: to help people remember who they are, reclaim their voice and vitality, and reimagine what’s possible for themselves, their families, and their communities.

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My girlfriend Tess and I are also building a farm—a living, breathing expression of everything we teach—where we’ll host rewilding retreats, offer animal-assisted therapy, and give people a space to reconnect with land, animals, and each other. It’s the home of future programs, where transformation won’t just be taught—it will be lived.

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Outside of my work, I live what I call “the greatest love story ever told.” Tess and I, first loves from 35 years ago, were reunited three years ago. We now live in Camp Hill, PA, where I spend time hiking, playing pickleball, and reading books that challenge and inspire. I also volunteer as a Big Brother and cherish the weekly wisdom I get from my 8-year-old “Little.”

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Whether I’m coaching a leader, supporting a child and mentor through the Heroic Kids journey, or helping someone navigate burnout and come home to themselves—my mission is simple:

To help people rise.
To create a school that heals.
To build a world where we all remember we belong.