This appeared to be the perfect opportunity for me because of my background, passion for wildlife, and experiences as an Afro-Latino American woman. However, upon coming to the refuge and learning more about it and meeting the USFWS staff who take care of it, it didn’t take long for me to realize how truly perfect this position really is for me. For the first time in my life, I can say that I love what I do and the work environment that I’m in!
Upon arriving at my refuge site, I felt welcomed and right at home. I met the staff, toured the site, and shadowed the education program leaders. I learned so much about the refuge itself and what makes it unique. The Billy Frank Jr. Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge is in Olympia, WA, where the freshwater of the Nisqually Delta flows directly into the saltwater of Puget Sound, one of the largest estuaries in the United States!
The refuge complex includes the Grays Harbor National Wildlife Refuge in Grays Harbor, WA. Both sites are managed together and protect over 250 species of birds along with reptiles, fish, insects, amphibians, and mammals. I started as a UCEF during the week of the Annual Grays Harbor Shorebird Festival held in Hoquiam and at the refuge. I’m so happy that I had the privilege to experience such a fun community event! I quickly grew closer with the team during the 3-day stay and felt honored to be a part of it all. At the event, I walked the trails, learning about the thousands of amazing shorebirds who were safely feasting at the refuge. I had a lot of fun relieving the staff at various activity tables and meeting community members and organizations that were participating.
The following week, I had an even better understanding of how great my team was after such a successful festival! I was fueled with motivation and passion to fulfill my mission: to connect with more of the BIPOC community and to better serve them. I immediately began developing an outreach strategy that included a contact system for call tracking, community contact storing, outreach templates, and survey questions to understand more about the community’s needs. I developed a workflow where I add all my tasks to a list and check them off as completed throughout the week. I send an updated list to my refuge supervisor each week to easily track my progress. I’m also finding BIPOC community events for networking. I’ve attended some incredible events so far where I’ve connected with leaders, and I’m looking forward to many more over the summer.
At the refuge, I’m very excited about the amazing projects that are coming up this summer that I get to participate in as well, like the Latino Conservation Week events that we are proposing, the Nisqually Watershed Festival, and the 50th Anniversary Celebration! It’s so fulfilling to further develop my graphic design skills to make professional brochures, flyers, schedules, exhibits, and more for these events. Not only am I developing my skills, but I’m also adding to my portfolio and resume which will assist me in furthering my career after my internship! It’s only been a couple of months so far, but this has already been a life-changing experience for me. I’m honored to be here and more excited than ever about my future because of this incredible opportunity at such a special place.