Matt Bristol

The SCA first became a part of my life shortly after I graduated from Maclay high school in Tallahassee, Florida. I spent 35 days on a high school crew in Denali National Park and Preserve where we rerouted an old trail. Growing up, I spent many hours enjoying the outdoors, but serving on this crew allowed me to experience nature in an unforgettable way. A tent was my home, and a vast Alaskan wilderness was my backyard. After that summer, I knew that I would be returning to serve through the SCA. During my first spring semester at the University of Florida in Gainesville, I studied abroad in Namibia where we spent two months assisting the Cheetah Conservation Fund and a final month touring the other parts of the country. The following summer I served as an SCA Trails Intern in Whiskeytown National Recreation Area where our crew worked on building the Shasta Trinity Trail. After another year studying Wildlife Ecology and Conservation at UF, I returned to the SCA to serve as a Trail Corps crew member in the Mt. Rogers National Recreation Area in Virginia. The SCA has allowed me to travel, serve the land, and spend time in nature. This only skims the surface of what the SCA has given me though. I am part of a community. A community of future leaders in conservation.