Photo Contest

          Hey everyone! There is an AmeriCorps photo contest that I have a submission in and would love if you all could vote and help me win! There is a 2000 cash prize which, of course, would go straight to schooling. Here's the link the the submissions page, then type in 'Morning Light' in the search box and there's my pic! You will need to make an account with challenge.gov but they are a totally legitimate site and wont spam you. please vote! thank you all and love you all!

http://americorpsphoto.challenge.gov/submissions

Back to Arkansas

          And this time to Hobbs State Park - Conservation Area! Three years ago the northwestern region of Arkansas experienced a devastating ice storm, killing many trees in Hobbs State Parks forest. Now these dead trees are starting to fall, everywhere, including popular trails and roads throughout the park. SUN 5s mission: chainsaw over 2000 dead trees in 5 weeks. A daunting task you say? Not for an AmeriCorps NCCC team! Our team knew the project would be purely chainsawing and that's exactly what we did. Nine team members and three park staff hiked up to six miles each day toting chainsaws, gas and oil, tools, and lunch; felling an average of 100 trees each day. Now this was fabulous, for the first 5 days, then the work really started to take a toll on, no not the strong Sun 5 team!, but the chainsaws. Unfortunately chainsaws aren't meant to be used six hours a day everyday for five weeks. So some of use were taken off chainsaw duty while the saws were brought to the shop. One of the large projects that need to be done around the park was brand new signs for the entire park. Well, the moment park staff found out I was creative, the task of painting every sign in the entire park was given to me. Don't worry though, i would much rather be sitting in a workshop painting then chainsawing in the woods. And it proved to be a wonderful final couple of weeks of AmeriCorps. Working in the workshop all day allowed me to become close to the park staff, an absolutely amazing group of people.



Chainsawing bad-asses



berries! not blood...



completed sign number one... 1000 more!





Sun 5 plus Seth, Al, and Anita, the main park staff whom we worked with



          So what about life other than work? Well, our first weekend the whole team was invited to a catfish fry on the lake where we met several park staff and their families. A couple weekends later a teammate and I spent the weekend hiking and camping in Devils Den State Park with some non-AmeriCorps friends of ours. Oh ya, and our home, a three story log cabin in the middle of the woods, totally rocked!

spelunking

Devils Den hiking



scrapbook page from fish fry

BUGS

          My favorite part of Kansas was... the BUGS! I found so many fascinating creatures in the forests of Kansas that I decided to dedicate and entire blog post to it sooooo, hope your not squeamish!

The Countdown Begins.

          Twenty five days. That's how many days until I walk across the stage and become an AmeriCorps alum. Crazy huh? I'm excited, scared, and sad that this chapter of my life is so close to completion. I have a lot more to talk to you about on the subject, but I'm sure you all want to here what I've been doing for the past two months! Yup, its been that long since my last post!

KANSAS
          Well, let me just begin with something Ive learned, Kansas is a fabulous state. Really! From May 7th to June 14th I lived in Junction City, Kansas, on the banks of Milford Lake. Our project sponsor was the town of Junction City who asked us to help them build a brand new city park. Longtime residents of Junction City, the Hellands, donated 54 acres of their land to the the city so the city chose to build a new park to be known as Helland Park. It was up to us, AmeriCorps Team Sun 5, to build all the trails in the park, as well as clear and 'beautify' the land for use. While working in the city, the local Milford Lake State Park allowed us to use one of their campsites to live. Our campsite was beautifully perched lakeside with modern day amenities in short driving distance; a perfect place to disconnect from society and immerse oneself in the landscape. I'll let my photographs tell the rest of the story:

Our lakeside campsite; also known as home

Erica Smith helps clear brush for a new trail

Carissa Hanson chainsaws as the morning sun peers through the trees

The team stands proud as a new trail is named after them!

a completed section of trail that winds along rivers edge

The city thanks us with a great party and free steak dinner!

Puppies, and kittens, and kids, Oh My!

          Our first week in Fort Davis has been quite exciting! Grand Companions Humane Society is absolutely fabulous for us and the animals. This forward-thinking shelter is all about loving every single animal and getting them ready for home life. The animals are not kept in cages, but in the offices of the staff, with the ability to run free throughout the facility; how cool! The Grand Companions staff is also super welcoming of our team and really eager to teach us as much as they can about animal training, psychology, and interactions. This past Saturday me and two other team members went to the park for our weekly adoption outings. Here are some pictures of the puppies, kittens, and cute kids who came by to adopt them!

Goodbye Already?

           Our five weeks in Big Bend National Park have been some of the most beautiful and peaceful weeks of my life. I didn’t know I could, but I have fallen in love with the desert. I have found myself curiously awestruck by the thriving life in a place that appears so dead and empty. Every bug and plant seems to have a story of epic survival. Whether it a beetle who has built an armor of cactus thorns for protection or a flower blooming beautifully in a hole in a rock the size of my pinky, a day in the desert never went without a fascinating moment.

          I am incredibly sad to be leaving this place but now understand how important it is to make the effort to see those places in the world that are less traveled. That still untouched by human hands has greater beauty that anything mankind can ever create.

          My final thoughts on this project are the things I have learned to appreciate here in Big Bend:

1.       Water

2.       The night sky

3.       The will of survival

4.       Cell phone service (I have none in the state of Texas apparently)

5.       The therapeutic effects of family game nights

The whole team on our first day in the park

Working at a new border crossing, thats Mexico right behind us!

On the new Lone Mountain trail.

Where to next? We are on our way to Fort Davis, TX to work with the Grand Companions Humane Society.

Hard Workers

                So what exactly are we doing in Big Bend every day? Well, our biggest and most important project is beginning the construction of the new Lone Mountain Trail. Not only is this trail the first accessible trail straight out of the park’s main visitor center, it is also the first mountain biking trail in a national park, an issue that has been highly debated for several years. Being the first people to ever work on the trail, we get to experience the rawness and beauty of the untouched desert. Throughout our work we have observed a multitude of wildlife including thumb-sized beetles, scorpions, black tail rattle snakes, banded racer snakes, rabbits, javelinas, deer, and many more.

                A regular work day begins at 7:30am with a team ‘stretch circle’ which includes 15 minutes of exercises and 15 minutes of stretches. Leaving at 8am, the team takes the 20 minute drive to the trail head. There each of use grab a pick-mattox, McLeod, handsaw, and loppers, strap on our day packs and hike out to our ending point of the day before. As with my project first round, the farther you work on the trail, the farther you have to hike to begin work, meaning we were hiking out an hour by the end. At noon we get a half hour lunch break, then back to work until 4pm. Upon returning home, dinner is made immediately and as the sun sets (around 9pm) most retire to our tents for the night.

The whole crew!

cactus flowering on the Lone Mountain Trail

The Very Tippy Top

          One of the most amazing parts of living in Big Bend is that the only thing to do on the weekend is explore. This past weekend my friends and I decided to take the 12 mile (round trip) hike to the top of Emory Peak, the highest point in the park. Here is a video from the very tippy top of the mountain.

Welcome to Big Bend

my first venture into video blogging...

letter mailing address:
Lindsey Loeper - Trails
Big Bend National Park, Texas 79834


package mailing address:
Lindsey Loeper - Trails
1 Maintenance Yard
Big Bend National Park, Texas 79834

An In-tents New Experience!

          As I sit here in a hotel room in Fort Stockton, Texas, I smile at the thought of where I will be living for the next month. Where am I going, you ask? I am on my way to Big Bend National Park, one of the most beautiful and remote places in the United States. My AmeriCorps NCCC project this round is different than my last two in several ways. First of all, round three is a ‘shuffle round’; all new teams, team leaders, and places. We are each given a chance to rank our round three projects with our personal preference and then are accordingly put on teams with those who ranked similarly to you. My top ranked project was Big Bend.

          The other major difference about this round is that we will be doing a split project. Our first month will be in Big Bend National Park, while our second month will be in Fort Davis at the Grand Companions Humane Society. So what will we be doing? Well since we have not begun work, all I know is what is in our project description, so here is an exact copy of the project description we received:

SUN UNIT ROUND 3 PROJECT DESCRIPTION

SPLIT PROJECT:  Big Bend National Park (APD: Stephanie San German)
Location: Big Bend

Dates: March 12 – April 12 (Dates subject to change)

Sponsor: Erik Walker

Housing:  Camping

Team: SUN 6

Team Leader: Joel

     This project is perfect for the outdoor oriented team who is open to working and living in primitive camping conditions while engaged in rigorous outdoor work. The Trail Program and AmeriCorps NCCC members will work together to comprehensively maintain priority trails park-wide which would include general repairs, proper pruning of vegetation and cleaning of drainage systems along trail corridors.  The project outcome will provide well maintained, sustainable trails for visitors to safely hike, learn about Big Bend’s natural and cultural resources and also preserve the environmental integrity for future generations.  The team will use pack mules to conduct backcountry spikes for three to four weeks of the project. The team may be helping with vegetation management and the preparation and execution of the park’s international border opening event.  Contingent on funding approval, the team may also be helping out with the construction of a new trail.  This will be an epic, fun and rewarding experience for all involved as well as provide improved access to the 350,000 visitors to Big Bend National Park annually.

     The team will be camping at a base-camp and may participate in a multi-day wilderness camping trips.  The team should be prepared to execute physically strenuous work, and camp and hike in remote backcountry areas under uncomfortable climactic conditions (heat and rain).

     Inclement Weather Plan:  Team will refurbish and sharpen tools, attend an Interpretive Ranger Program, assist with the park recycling program or change work location to be in a safer environment.

SPLIT PROJECT: Grand Companion Humane Society (APD: Stephanie San German)
Location: Fort Davis, TX

Dates: April 13 – May 4 (Dates subject to change)

Sponsor: Laura Langham

Housing:  House

Team:  SUN 6

Team Leader: Joel

     Great for a team that is interested in learning about animal care and training. Patience and willingness to learn will be key.  Every day at Grand Companions is a numbers game, with every number being the life of a pet saved.  The AmeriCorps team would provide invaluable resources that could significantly increase those numbers. Our services keep unwanted pets off the streets and increases the quality of our residents' communities and lives. The team's adoption outreach within the tri-county area, marketing efforts through flyers, handouts and radio ads and showing pets at our thrift store will dramatically increase visibility, socialization and adoptions for our programs.  In addition a group of team members will be working at the Adoption Center to prepare newer pets for adoption through cutting edge socialization, bathing, grooming and positive reinforcement behavior training that significantly reduce the adoption return rate.  There may also be the opportunity for team members may to participate in story time with a pet at the local library or at a women's shelter. 

     A rotation group of team members will also be completing critical projects our organization would be unable to complete or would take our valuable program staffing hours without the help of AmeriCorps team.  These projects include site clean up, thrift store improvements, recycling projects, fence building, landscape improvements and more.  Every project will benefit the community by supporting recycling, providing comunity beautification, and assisting us in increasing the number of pets we place, which will allow us to keep animals off the street and save pet lives.

          I wish I could easily express my excitement about this project right now, but unfortunately it is almost 1am here and my enthusiasm toward writing is not high. I hope to be able to write weekly in Big Bend; the visitor center down the road from our campsite should have wifi. Wow, sorry, this post really should sound a lot happier, I promise I am ecstatic about the next two months, but right now I am just ecstatic about going to sleep. Good night.

Gone, but Never Forgotten

          Today I write to you from my dorm room in Denver, Colorado. It’s wonderful to be back with all my friends, but I can’t deny that I am still greatly missing Arkansas Children’s Hospital. We had a wonderful last week there and the people we worked with made it known how much they truly appreciated our presence. On Monday, the culmination of all my hard work with Kelley, the hospital photographer, manifested into the greatest opportunity I have had in AmeriCorps so far, and invite to photograph on the Arkansas state senate floor! Awards were to be presented by the governor to several hospital staff and, of course, a photographer would be needed to photograph this event. So I put on my AmeriCorps best and entered the capitol building. After the award ceremony I got the opportunity to tour the capitol building; this completely white marble structure built in 1915 definitely impressed. As we entered the governor’s office, the governor walked up right behind us and began to chat like any other person would! Cool! All-in-all it was a fabulous day and I will forever be thankful for the privilege I received that day.



The man in the red tie, yup, thats the governor!



A photo I took inside, facing the House


          On our last day, Thursday, the team was presented with a gorgeous southern style ‘thank you’ lunch. All of our supervisors were invited to eat with us and asked to talk about how we made a difference at the hospital and in their lives. We then said our thank yous and goodbyes and returned to our apartments to pack. We left Little Rock at 8am Friday morning and as I watched the hospital fade into the distance I shed a tear and thought of all the wonderful things it has taught and showed me. Here is some of the knowledge I have gathered from my time there:

1. It is better to see an ambulance then a hearse.
2. It is better to hear crying then hear nothing at all.
3. A loving embrace can cure more than it is given credit for.
4. Death, sadly, is a part of life. It does not need to be understood, only accepted.
5. Give thanks for your health everyday because tomorrow it could be gone.

I love my family and friends very much and wish all of you happiness, healthiness, and peace of mind.

Our Final Weekend

          Oh, but we still have so much more to do and see! This is what Sun 5 had been saying all week as we realized this (now past) weekend was our last in Little Rock. The city has continued to blow me away with the activities it provides and proximity to beautiful nature. On Saturday (2/25) the team was finally able to take the trip to Petit Jean State Park. With its interesting Native American past and amazing natural wonders, this was a must-see while in Arkansas. We took the difficult but beautiful hike down to the bottom of the parks biggest attraction, Cedar Falls. Here are some pictures!





see that little white dot? yup! thats me behind the waterfall!

          On Sunday (2/26) our team decided to have a final team dinner at a popular local diner called the Purple Cow. This adorable family diner had plenty of purple food, their specialty of course; however none of the team took the venture to try it! Still good food and a wonderful AmeriFamily night!

We Love The Weekend!

          I have absolutely no ability to concentrate right now, but I promised I would write so I'll make this short and sweet. Here are the past 3 weekends, condensed!

We worked at the Ronald McDonald Foundation House one weekend. I may not be in support of McDonald's the restaurant, but seeing what they do for the parents of the kids at the hospital, I am so thankful for the help this foundation provides.



 Little Rock's Central High School is one of the most famous high school in the country and certainly the most important when it comes to the civil rights movement. Across from the high school is a museum dedicated to the Little Rock Nine and their stories. It was wonderful to see and stand in a place with such a rich history concerning the development of our nation.





Every Sunday we work at a downtown Little Rock museum called The Museum of Discover. This hands-on science museum is packed full of all kinds of amazing things to do. Our job is to 'go have fun' because 'if your playing with the exhibit, others will want to too and then you can teach them about it!', Sweet job, huh.

Arkansas is home to Bill Clinton, the father of the AmeriCorps program so, naturally, we had to go see the museum and library dedicated to him! The museum was surprisingly intriguing containing a mock Oval Office, a Lego Display, the actual presidential limo that was driven during his era, and, of course, a whole section dedicated to AmeriCorps!



Experience and Exploration

          Who knew Arkansas could be so exciting?! The last few weeks have proved just as amazing as the first few and now we only have two more to go! My morning job with the hospital photographer has continued to provide me with an invaluable and varying experience. I have been given access to conferences gathering some of the most elite doctors in our country, saw firsthand how photos of a baby in Arkansas can help doctors in Chicago diagnose a new genetic disease, and, of course, photographed some of the cutest kids on the planet. I wish I could show you all the pictures I have been taking, but unfortunately they are all property of the hospital or a violation of patient rights so you will have to use your imagination... so imagine something really good!
          My afternoon jobs in the ITU and NICU have also continued just as wonderfully as they began. It has surprised me how quickly I adapt to seeing 'that which make most cringe' and can now stand bedside with a child and watch as treatments are performed. This self realization has led me to dabble with the idea of becoming a pediatric nurse or physical therapist. I had never once even pondered such a thought as having a career in the medical field, but working here in the hospital has uncovered my curiosity about the human body and psyche and shown me that I have the strength, intelligence, and personality to succeed in the medical field. Of course, nothing is certain at the moment, but now I know there is a wealth of new careers out there for my consideration.
          It’s getting late so I am splitting this post up into several different posts. Tomorrow I will write about what we have been doing when not at work!



team photo in front of the hospital!