- Delaney

Two of a Kind

       In a somber, small town called Palmer, the size and population cannot equate to that of Marshall. The sidewalks are bare, the roads quiet, and the shops less than bustling. It is a lazy Wednesday evening on an early summer day, though, the weather is not as convincing. A gloomy breeze blew around my shoulders and I hurried into a door with an illuminated sign that said ‘Espresso’ attached to a corner shop called Vagabond Blues Coffee House and Café. I was shocked to see rows of people sitting and waiting for what looked like a band. People flooded the coffee bar and waited in a snaking line outside the opposite door.

 Walking into the coffee shop, I thought I had a good idea of what my story would entail; after all, why would there be such a flock of locals in this particular café in a small town like this? I approached the entrance and the fellow collecting tickets asked if I had one. After I explained AGLP and our environmental awareness aspects, he directed me to a woman named Kimbrough who happened to volunteer at a local camp for environmental awareness. Before I could order a coffee, my story was changed.

The Trail Side Discovery Camp is part of a non-profit organization called The Alaska Center for the Environment. Much like our own program, Kimbrough teaches younger generations about our responsibilities to the environment.

“It’s not so much advocacy, it’s just awareness of what’s going on, teaching kids the geography of the world and where things come from,” says Mauney.

She used to volunteer during the summers when she would come up to visit from Virginia and recently moved to Alaska to work for the camp full-time. Some of the places the participants get to visit are Denali and Seward, same as us. Kimbrough says that, living in Alaska, part of being environmentally aware is learning about the Exxon-Valdes Oil Spill back in 1989, which, as most of you know, is why AGLP was created 21 years ago.

 “We don’t go into the political side with the kids except to maybe send our polar bear artwork to the legislature,” says Mauney.

Kimbrough’s favorite part of being a volunteer and working with children and teenagers is the connection she makes with them.

“ I guess it’s the ‘Whoa! I never knew Alaska had sea stars’ or a connection like, ‘oh wait, I just hurt my friend’s feelings and all I have to do is give them a put-up and they will be smiling again’. So, little things like that, especially the younger ones around eight a lot of them don’t really know how to interact with friends or with new people. Little interactions like that kids actually start helping each other and making sure that each other are happy instead of themselves.”