SCA CREW MEMBERS

Recruited from all over the country, Crew Members range in experience from true mountaineers and outdoor enthusiasts to just your usual high school student looking to experience a challenging summer of service outdoors. Here's a peek at a few recent SCA Alumni. For more first-hand descriptions, please check out the SCA blog page. 

Ben Ewing

During the past two summers doing conservation work for SCA I have really had some great experiences that I wouldn't have been able to have otherwise. I've learned a lot, like how to build a trail, how to canoe, how to build a bridge, how to repel, and of course how to run away from an angry swarm of wasps when I accidentally hit their nest. From these SCA experiences and many more, I feel that I have grown as a person and I look forward to more conservation work next year.

Alvin Yang

My SCA summer crew to New Jersey was a great challenge for me. Knowing that I would be traveling by myself via airplane, to a place completely new to me, with 13 other strangers from all around the USA created a nervous feeling from the start. I was nervous too when I first stepped off the plane, but my worries soon disappeared after getting to know my crew. I learned interesting things that people living in the East experienced. We exchanged stories about living on the West or East side. My communication skills improved because of this. My self-esteem was also enhanced. I felt fortunate to have been in the Conservation Leadership Corps of SCA because the other crew members in New Jersey were either new to the outdoor nature activities or had never been camping. We learned to bond very easily from the daily routines and work that we did together. My perspective of my surroundings also changed. I realized that the smallest things we do to our environment can impact it greatly in the long term.  

SCA CREW LEADERS

Ryan Reynolds

When I look back upon my experiences - where I've been, what I've done - there lies a clear distinction between my life before, and after, my work with SCA. Nothing could have prepared me for the incredible adventures, the lasting friendships, and the satisfaction of hard work done for a good cause. To this day, I am continually surprised at how much I have drawn from my very first experience as an Intern in Southern California, through the seven crews that followed in all corners of the country. With SCA I have explored the wilds of an impossibly beautiful Alaska, seen bugs I never knew existed in Mississippi, stood on top of the tallest mountain in Texas (hey! it's close to 9,000 ft) and walked down the paths, like my father before me, of the rugged Idaho mountain country. And no matter where I go, I find the legacy of committed, enthusiastic volunteers that are truly making a difference. Please, come join us around the campfire. Let the lonesome howl of a distant wolf send shivers through your shoulders, awakening it's kindred spirit within you. Come sprint through sunny meadows. Bathe in an icy river. Let go of the "real world" and then find it again in the song of a wren in some far off forest. It's time to howl back.

Michael Johnson

Over the last few years of my life I have accumulated a diverse set of skills. Some of these skills really have no apparent use, like wiggling my ears or blowing tongue bubbles; some certainly have surfaced at times of extreme distress like eating two-day-old oatmeal smothered in hot sauce, peanut butter and jelly. Along the adventure of life I have found myself with a bachelor’s degree in Philosophy, worked as an EMT in the heart of Los Angeles, and learned a fair bit of carpentry. And while on this journey I have learned a few things; for instance do not, under any circumstance, swing a pick-mattock above your head. Yet, there is only one place that has truly welcomed all of my skills, experiences, and life lessons and created an opportunity to share a passion for hard work, inquisitive thought, and simple living, and that is with SCA. I often recall my time spent on my high school SCA work crew in Yosemite (2000); I believe that this experience is responsible for much of who I am now. I have been able to experience some of the greatest wilderness in this country both as a crew member and leader. All of the wonderful folks I have met along the way have inspired me to reach my highest potential, hope and work for a better tomorrow, and helped me see that there is even a place in life for bubbles released from the tip of your tongue or strange eating habits.

Andrea Penglase

For the past three summers I have led SCA high school crews in Dinosaur National Monument and North Cascades National Park. Summertime is the part of the year that I look forward to the most. Naturally the summer is great... with all the sunshine and warm weather, but the most fabulous part is doing something that I feel good about that is also loads of fun. Sleeping at night is easy after a hard day of work and play accompanied by the satisfaction of knowing that I am doing something positive for myself, the people around me and the earth. I have made lasting connections with students and co-leaders, ate a zillion pounds of trailmix, observed four bears, hiked uncountable miles, yielded a pulaski and much more. The promise of new adventures to be had this summer makes me smile and I have to tell myself that it is only a few short months away. I will lace up those boots soon enough!

Todd Loubsky

Since my first involvement with SCA in 2003, I have had experiences with people, places and projects that transcend most definitions of what conservation means in regard to real world applications. From the dryness of the desert & the wildness of Alaskan rivers, to the peaks of the Rockies & the depths of the Ozarks, I have been awestruck at what is possible with only the ingredients of some volunteers, natural settings, and a sense of adventure. Unfortunately, cliches and brief descriptions will never capture or be able to adequately describe the moments that SCA Alumni swap stories about, and remember fondly -you will have to trust us that these stories actually happened.

Deb Bass

I began my first summer with SCA after I graduated from college in 2002. Since then, I seem to plan my years around leading a trail crew - spending the summer energizing youth to explore the country, interact with peers, and take responsibility not only for themselves but for their land. I love hearing from past crew members and witnessing how their experiences have affected their lives and studies. Off-season, I have instructed outdoor and environmental education, finished graduate school, and currently teach Middle School Language Arts. During the course of my service with SCA, I have missed one summer, which made me realize how imperative this component is to my personal rejuvenation. Not only have I been able to motivate youth, but I  have also been able to see parts of our country that I may not have. SCA has taken me from the Appalachian Mountains of Tennessee to the Rincon Mountains of Arizona to the Kenai Peninsula of Alaska. I am counting down the days until school gets out and my SCA season begins.