Mt. Adams Institute Mt. Adams Institute
  • About Us
    • Programs
      • Overview
      • VetsWork Environment
      • VetsWork GreenCorps
      • Education Programs
      • Public Lands Stewards
    • About
      • Our Mission
      • Our Impact
      • Our Staff
      • The Board
      • Lodging
      • Program Partners
    • Our Members
      • VetsWork Environment Members
      • VetsWork GreenCorps Members
      • Public Lands Stewards Members
    • Contact Us
      • Reach HQ
      • Live & Social
      • Staff Employment
  • Internships
    • VetsWork Environment
    • VetsWork Greencorps
    • Public Lands Stewards
  • Summer Camps
  • Sense of Place
    • Lecture Series
    • Hear in the Gorge Podcast
    • Dear Neighbor Project
    • Community Workshops
  • Blog
  • Support
    • Donate
    • Gift A Scholarship
    • Capital Campaign
    • Volunteer
Close
  • About Us
    • Programs
      • Overview
      • VetsWork Environment
      • VetsWork GreenCorps
      • Education Programs
      • Public Lands Stewards
    • About
      • Our Mission
      • Our Impact
      • Our Staff
      • The Board
      • Lodging
      • Program Partners
    • Our Members
      • VetsWork Environment Members
      • VetsWork GreenCorps Members
      • Public Lands Stewards Members
    • Contact Us
      • Reach HQ
      • Live & Social
      • Staff Employment
  • Internships
    • VetsWork Environment
    • VetsWork Greencorps
    • Public Lands Stewards
  • Summer Camps
  • Sense of Place
    • Lecture Series
    • Hear in the Gorge Podcast
    • Dear Neighbor Project
    • Community Workshops
  • Blog
  • Support
    • Donate
    • Gift A Scholarship
    • Capital Campaign
    • Volunteer

Jonathane-S.-Final-Blog--Header

With only weeks to go in this internship I feel it is important to reflect on my experiences and what I am grateful for. For the past ten months or so I have been all over the Mt. Baker Snoqualmie National Forest conducting invasive species treatments, inventories, and rock pit surveys from highway 542 to Mt. Rainer National park. In July the temperature reached 100 degrees and most of my time was spent hauling an herbicide backpack sprayer around in an attempt to slowly eradicate noxious weeds. In all, I treated over 100 different infestations. At times, weeks were blocked out on my calendar with somewhere to be and usually something to kill. For this I am thankful. I got to see many places here that I had never been. I stood at the top of Artist Point and basked in the absolute majesty of the Shuksan-Baker area, rafted the Sauk River looking for knotweed, and stood near the base of Mt. Rainier and watched the White River as it slowly deposited mass amounts of glacial till. You might recall from my last blog that I had hoped to get a picture of a black bear and a cougar. While I didn’t manage to get my camera out, I did come across both species.

IMG_0593

None of this could have happened if it wasn’t for a lot of people. First I would like to thank my girlfriend Tasha. Without her help and understanding I would not have even taken this internship. She moved 350 miles from where we lived, where she grew up, to allow me this opportunity. This year she took care of our daughter Kadence, had to make do yet another year with very little income, and lived at my mother’s house in Snohomish while I was away most of the time working. I also owe my mother thanks for letting them live with her for the year.

The staff at the Mt. Adams Institute are really the people who put these internships into motion. All of them, Aaron, Laura, Katie, and Brendan put forth a lot of effort to see that we as interns had all the support needed to accomplish our missions. In the army there are core values that are hammered into you at basic training. One of those values is selfless service. These people have this value in spades.

Staff-Feature

Finally, everyone I have met here in the Forest Service, particularly the Botany team, has been more than friendly and helpful. Shauna, my supervisor and north zone botanist, has been particularly helpful. While I suspect that she knows virtually everything about botany and the Forest Service in general, she won’t always answer my questions outright. Instead, she would sometimes give me just enough of a push in the right direction for me to figure out the problem myself. I find that knowledge gained in this fashion sticks with you longer than more conventional methods. And of course I can’t forget Carrie, the south zone botanist, and Kevin, the ecology and botany program manager, for all their help and guidance in both the office and field settings.

IMG_3551

For those that are reading this blog from somewhere other than the Mt. Adams Institute website you should know that this internship is made possible in part by AmeriCorps.  I mentioned in a previous blog that even after nearly 8 years of military service and two bachelor’s degrees, I searched for any environmental government position, from the municipal to federal level, for a year and a half and wasn’t even offered an interview for a single job. Then I came across the Mt. Adams Institutes’ Vetswork program and everything fell into place.This program is designed to give veterans experience working in conservation, natural resources, and ecological fields. I now feel that I have the experience and connections to officially start the career that I have been slowly making progress on since I graduated high school. It seems that the hardest part is just getting your foot in the door.

MAI Half Page Cover

If you are a veteran and are reading this with interest thinking, “I want to do that!” I say to you, “You can!” The Mt. Adams institute recently posted next year’s internships on their website, www.mtadamsinstitute.com. They are now taking applications for positions across Washington and Oregon in Forests such as, the Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie, Wallowa-Whitman, Umatilla, Deschutes, and Mt. Hood as well as Mt. St. Helens National Volcanic Monument, Leavenworth National Fish Hatchery, and King County Conservation. There will also be opportunities for internships in Missouri, Virginia, and North Carolina coming soon.

Partner Logo Banner

 

 

Share

FacebookTwitterGoogle +Pinterest

1 Comment

  1. Austin
    December 9, 2015 at 7:34 am / Reply

    Well said brother!

Leave a Reply / Cancel Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Join Our Mailing List

Be sure to add your name to the roster, so we can send you latest news, jobs, events and resources.

Make a Donation

Make a Donation

Recent Posts

  • VetsWork: Reflecting on the Year
  • VetsWork: Full Circle
  • VetsWork: A Transformative Experience
  • VetsWork: Opportunity During a Pandemic
  • Public Lands Stewards: Learning, Growth, and Good Times

Categories

  • Bulletin
  • Cascade Mountain School
  • Fun & Miscellaneous
  • Mountain Talk
  • Public Lands Stewards
  • VetsWork Environment
  • VetsWork Greencorps

Check Out Instagram

View

Jan 14

Open
Blue Hour at Mount Adams, The #bluehour is the period of #twilight when the Sun is at a significant depth below the horizon and residual, indirect sunlight takes on a predominantly blue shade.
______________________________

#mtadamsinstitute  #mountainreflections  #explorewashstate #pnwonderland #cascadiaexplored #cascadia #wonderfulwashington #wonderfulwashingtonstate #pnwescapes #pnwadventures #pnwadventurers #pnwcrew #pnw_shooters #mtadams #giffordpinchotnationalforest #giffordpinchot #pnwphotographer #pnwphotography #leavenotrace #washingtonphotography #bluehourphotography #klickitatcounty #photography #blue #light #landscapephotography #landscapephotographer #mountains
51 11

View

Apr 19

Open
She’s off for her school overnight trip! She handled all of her own packing and I am fully confident that means she’ll have at least 95% of the things she really needs. Girlfriend is on top of it! #urchinadventures #montessorikids #overnightfieldtrip #cascademountainschool
33 1

View

Jun 13

Open
It's nice when the sun comes out #finallysunny #afewnicedays #vetswork #mtadamsinstitute #americorps #oregon #mttheilsen #pnw
54 1

View

Aug 7

Open
Last week marked the end of our Mountain to Valley summer camp! For two weeks, students conducted meaningful ecological research while farming, backpacking, mountaineering, and camping. We hope that they left connected to themselves, with new skills and friends, and inspiration to become positive leaders and change makers in our world! #mtadamsinstitute #cascademountainschool #mountaintovalley #mtadams #troutlakevalley  #highschoolcamp #science #stewardship
17 0

View

Aug 4

Open
Toad-ally in love with my job 🐸

#mtadamsinstitute
103 4
Load More
  • Back to Blog
  • Prev
  • Next

Mt. Adams Institute collaborates with the following partners:

© Copyright 2017 Mt. Adams Institute. All rights reserved.
Mt. Adams Institute is an equal opportunity employer.
contact us | partnership inquiries | site credit