While making the decision to come out here for this program, one of the things I was looking forward to most, was getting out of my old routines and beginning a new job in a new location. Continue Reading…
We are several weeks into the program so far; we have all been through most of the trainings and certifications now. Continue Reading…
Before I arrived to participate with the Mt. Adams Institute’s VetsWork GreenCorps program I expected to be challenged physically and to learn about wildland firefighting. Continue Reading…
“I need you to break off and handle that spot fire!” my squad leader yelled back at me from beyond the trees ahead. Continue Reading…
The time has flown by incredibly fast. What has seemed like only a few weeks has turned into a few months, and the end of the program and the beginning of our time as official Forest Service employees is rapidly approaching. Continue Reading…
My day working with the Umatilla Vet crew starts the same everyday with some form of physical training (PT). Continue Reading…
I’ll be honest; I didn’t have many expectations before arriving to start this program. Continue Reading…
I decided to apply for the VetsWork GreenCorps AmeriCorps program through the Mt. Adams Institute and the Umatilla National Forest, because I was in great need of a change in my life. Continue Reading…
The last two months of the VetsWork GreenCorps program, have been very enjoyable. I’ve gained a lot of new skills, and experience in a new career field. Coming into the VetsWork program, I thought I was going to be volunteering working alongside the Forest Service, and that’s exactly the opportunity I was given. Continue Reading…
My name is Eric Leight. I’m a fella from New Jersey who decided to try his luck in the Pacific Northwest as a firefighter. Through ten weeks of intense training, both physically and mentally, we now stand here waiting for our chance at action. Over the past two months, a lot has happened, and I do mean a lot. Continue Reading…
These past few weeks during my time in the VetsWork GreenCorps program have been wonderful, painful and enlightening to say the least. My expectations here have changed from my initial thought process and continue to change every day. My experiences here with our crew have been single handedly one of the most memorable times of my life. We started as strangers and now have come together as teammates and good friends. Let me go ahead and tell you my tale of the ‘Wild Boys” and our adventures. Continue Reading…
What does your normal routine look like?
0500 – I wake up to my roommates alarm going off
0515 – My own alarm goes off and I continue to lie in bed and regret all decisions that have gotten me here
0530 – Finally corralled enough energy to get up and make breakfast and lunch for the day
“Who are the nobles of the earth, the true aristocrats, who need not bow their heads to kings nor doff to lords their hats? Who are they but men of toil who cleave the forest down and plant amid the wilderness the forest and the towns?”
-Stewart Continue Reading…
Its has been over seven weeks and we are in a solid routine of early wake up calls, long runs and full days of cutting on our thinning unit. Continue Reading…
I have served in the VetsWork GreenCorps AmeriCorps program for approximately one month now. Coming into the program I feel that I had an open mind and was ready for a new experience. Continue Reading…