Often the career path that we take in life is not straight, and there are usually a few curves or bumps along the way, which is what I am currently experiencing. My name is Grace Vachon, a recent graduate of the University of New Hampshire (UNH) and current member of AmeriCorps Cape Cod (ACC), a service organization based in Barnstable County. I will be serving with Waquoit Bay Research Reserve and Friends of Mashpee National Wildlife Refuge this year as part of ACC’s individual placement program, where each member is placed with different partner organizations. Many of my earliest memories involve exploring the outdoors and engaging with wildlife of all kinds. For instance, I remember venturing into a deep pond to catch dragonflies with a tiny plastic net, filling my rain boots almost to the top with water. I also recall snatching green, slippery frogs from the depths of a vernal pool, and searching for slugs under wet forest logs. Because of these early childhood experiences, I developed a life-long interest and passion for nature, wildlife, and conserving our wild lands. I often felt like an outsider as a child because my interests deviated from those of my peers, but when I was in nature, I felt like I had a place where I belonged and could be myself. I was also inspired by the scientists, conservationists, and park rangers who I saw working outside and with their hands, doing the things that I loved to do.
All the time I spent outside growing up made me want to pursue a career in ecology or wildlife science. I always tried to get the most out of my life science classes in school and declared my major as wildlife and conservation biology upon applying to UNH. During my first few years there, I took up summer volunteer positions at the Saco River Wildlife Center in Limington, Maine, and On the Wing in Epping, New Hampshire. Saco River specialized in rabies vector species like racoons and foxes, while On the Wing specialized in raptors like owls, hawks, vultures, and falcons. I not only learned practical skills like how to handle and care for a variety of different wildlife species, but also how to make connections with people with similar passions and interests. My first real wildlife job was as a field technician up in New Hampshire’s White Mountains, where I assisted a graduate student with capturing and taking samples from small mammals like mice, voles, chipmunks, and shrews in order to measure their population trends. This position gave me experience with setting small mammal traps, collecting tissue, fecal, and hair samples; handling animals safely, teamwork, and communication.
However, my career interest shifted during the very end of my senior year when I did my capstone project on how income impacted participation in outdoor recreation within the UNH community. My results hinted that there was a slight correlation between income and participation in outdoor recreation, where lower-income people were less likely to participate. Seeing these results compelled me to want to get into public outreach and environmental education, where I could improve access to nature and bring down barriers by teaching people. That interest was further solidified this past summer when I worked at the recreation department in Rochester, New Hampshire, planning nature programming for the summer camp and senior center. Seeing the summer camp enjoying the nature art activity I planned brought on a great amount of satisfaction. It was great to see kids that might otherwise not have had the opportunity to get outside exploring, being creative, and having a great time.
With the desire to explore different career paths in the natural resources field and to gain more experience with outreach and education, I applied to serve with AmeriCorps Cape Cod as soon as I finished college. I was drawn to the program by its four focus areas: natural resource management, disaster preparedness and response, environmental education, and community outreach and volunteer engagement. Since I was excited to create and deliver educational materials, I knew that Waquoit Bay Reserve and Friends of Mashpee National Wildlife Refuge would be a good fit for me. As an introvert, I was not expecting to want to work with people, but sometimes shifts in your career path are unexpected. I know I will enjoy serving with AmeriCorps Cape Cod, Waquoit Bay, and Friends of Mashpee this year, and that I will learn tons of valuable skills that I can carry with me into my future career. Delivering programs will strengthen my public speaking and communication skills. I am also excited to learn how to design fun and engaging programs that are geared toward a specific audience or age group. My major project for the year is to design and deliver a program about plastics for school kids. I am looking forward to this project as I will get to apply the skills I have learned while working on a topic that I am passionate about, so stay tuned for that. I know it is going to be a great year!
Grace, the Friends look forward to working with you this year!