by Mt. Adams Institute | Jun 9, 2020 | VetsWork
Hello! I’m here because I wanted a fun, educational way to give my career in anthropology a kick-start. I have always been an extremely curious and outgoing person, even as a child. My father was in the Army, and though we happily lived off base, his ongoing...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Jun 8, 2020 | VetsWork
I was raised on a small farm in Mount Vernon, KY where I was one of 18 siblings. We raised cows, horses, pigs, chickens, and had a big vegetable garden. I grew up pretty poor but very proud and was taught the value of hard work, dedication, commitment, honesty, and...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Jun 8, 2020 | VetsWork
I grew up in a very rural part of eastern Texas. Every day for me growing up was in the woods, sometimes hunting or fishing with my dad. Ever since I was a kid I’ve always wanted to work for an organization like the Forest Service, originally as a game warden. A year...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Jun 8, 2020 | VetsWork
My name is Shane Tullos. I live in the heart of the piney woods of east Texas in the Davy Crockett National Forest with my wife of ten years and our five-year-old son. I grew up and attended school in Rusk, Texas. I enlisted in the U.S. Army while still attending high...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Jun 8, 2020 | VetsWork
I grew up in the Blue Ridge Mountains in Amherst County, Virginia. I enjoy snowboarding, surfing hiking, kayaking, archery, shooting, and climbing. I served one tour in the Army, where I was wounded during combat in Afghanistan. During my recovery I explored the world...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Jun 8, 2020 | VetsWork
Growing up on a farm in Pennsylvania instilled in me a strong respect and understanding of the importance of taking care of the land. That respect and love for natural things grew when I moved to California at the age of 18 to become an adventure guide. I took groups...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Jun 8, 2020 | VetsWork
I’m Tue Gillen. Before I was assigned to the Cordova Ranger District, I worked as a restorer for eighteen months, and as a substitute schoolteacher on and off for three years. Originally from Kansas City, Missouri, I’m surprisingly acclimated to the cold weather here....
by Mt. Adams Institute | Jun 8, 2020 | VetsWork
I am from Montana. I was in the Marine Corps for five years. After the military, I worked in underwater construction, and then security in Kuwait. After that I was a lineman for a private jet company. The last thing I did before signing up with Mt. Adams Institute was...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Jun 8, 2020 | VetsWork
My name is Mark Martinez. I grew up in south Texas to a low-income, migrant farming family. I love hiking, fishing and hunting, however, I never hunt or fish just for the sport of it but to provide food for myself at times. I joined the Army at 17 years old, with two...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Jun 8, 2020 | VetsWork
I’m an Air Force Veteran and a Texan, who has been living overseas most of my adult life. I love the outdoors, and am interning with Mt. Adams Institute’s VetsWork program because it’s a perfect segue to a career in the forestry sector. I’m psyched...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Jun 8, 2020 | VetsWork
I served in the United States Air Force (Active Duty) for four years and the United States Air Force (Reserves) for two years. I’ve always had aspirations to “pay it forward” by giving back to the country that has given me so much. I came to the United States as a...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Jun 8, 2020 | VetsWork
My name is Christopher Steinle and I grew up outside of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. I am an eleven-year veteran of the U.S. Coast Guard where I developed several skills that I’m expecting to transfer to the environmental field. I have a bachelor’s and associate’s...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Jun 8, 2020 | VetsWork
I grew up in Texas. I have always loved being in nature and find a strong connection to animals and plants. I spent six years serving in the military as an Air Force officer. I graduated from Baylor University and the University of Texas at Arlington. Since being out...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Feb 21, 2020 | Field Notes
“I knew I wanted to work in natural resources when I was 15 and my mother took my little sister and me on a trip to a guest ranch in Moose, Wyoming. The landscape, it’s wildlife, and it’s people hit me as hard as anything ever has. My life from then...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Oct 23, 2019 | Land Stewards
I was laying in my hammock reading “Guns, Germs, and Steel” by Jared Diamond, when finally it clicked. The general thesis of the book is that environment and ecology are some of, if not the, biggest factors in determining how a culture, technology, and a...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Oct 23, 2019 | Land Stewards
Winter has come… It is now October; the grass is icy and the air crisp. Our last month has come and I still remember the first time I drove up the long winding roads across the Columbia River and the sketchy metal Hood River bridge (not actually that sketchy...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Oct 23, 2019 | Land Stewards
With AmeriCorps graduation approaching, I’ve been wrapping up my work with WREN and filling out end of term paperwork. One of the questions on my Member Exit Survey asked if I felt I had an impact on anyone in my community during my position. I answered yes,...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Oct 23, 2019 | Land Stewards
By this point in the summer, I think I have a good grasp of how the flow of each day goes. Wake up, get ready for camp, drink a lot of tea, set out materials, wait for the shuttle to show up with the kids. However, for my last week of camp I actually had an...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Oct 23, 2019 | Land Stewards
The following are potential hazards that a wilderness backcountry ranger on the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest might face on a daily basis. This is not an attempt to scare anyone away from spending a season in this position, but serves as a list of some of...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Oct 23, 2019 | Land Stewards
The purpose of this blog is to inspire anyone who is interested in a Public Lands Stewards AmeriCorps position with the Mt. Adams Institute (MAI), but has yet to fully commit. This specific blog is oriented towards the Wilderness Ranger position in the Methow Valley...
by Mt. Adams Institute | Oct 23, 2019 | Land Stewards
While writing this post I was able to reflect on the last four months and all the experiences therein. This season seems like it has flown by, but so many things have happened in this tiny amount of time. I spent many happy days at the south coast native plant...
