- Erin Welke

Richie and Alaska

                Richie Hugget cannot get enough of Alaska!  This will be his fifth journey to Alaska with Alaska Great Lakes Project!  There are several reasons why Richie returns to Alaska, but fun is definitely a big part of it!  When Richie first came, he thought it would be a great way to get to know people before high school.  He also liked the fact that it was three weeks and almost like a vacation.  Throughout this interview, Richie tells me about his past and his present trip to Alaska and what the state really means to him.
       Richie says, “My parents really talked me into going to Alaska.”  He says that at first he really wasn’t sure that he wanted to go, but his parents told him that he would probably never get another chance to go to the Last Frontier.  Now he is very thankful to his parents for talking him into it, which is obvious since he has came back again and again!  Richie has enjoyed this trip so far too!  This year he is a van driver and he is loving it!
       I asked Richie his feelings about the evolution of the trip since he came in eighth grade.  He thinks that the junior leaders have much more responsibility and that they do a lot more work because they run the committees.  When Richie first came, you had the choice to run the race or climb the mountains.  He told me, “I didn’t take advantage of doing those things in my younger years.”  When Richie came as a senior in high school and in later years, however, he took advantage of those activities, which made Alaska even better!
       “Alaska really fostered this intense need I had to be around mountains and the outdoors.”  Because of Alaska, Richie now lives in Denver and he also spent four months living in Yosemite.  Richie, of course, is glad to be back again.  He is definately also enjoying being a driver! He really likes the responsibility of that job.  The trip is still as fun as ever and he is extremely glad to be back!