Day 1 — STEAM in the PARK #50 | North Cascades National Park

​Fifty camps ago, Steve and I had a dream. Tonight, sitting beside a campfire in the North Cascades with thirty-two new friends, we realized that dreams don't simply come true—they keep growing.

Today marked the beginning of our 50th STEAM in the PARK adventure. Somehow, celebrating fifty camps here at the North Cascades Institute feels exactly right. Surrounded by towering mountains, the incredible turquoise waters of Diablo Lake, and a community eager to learn together, we couldn't have asked for a more beautiful place to continue a dream.

The first day of camp always carries a little magic. New faces. New conversations. New friendships waiting to happen. We laughed our way through team-building activities, made leather bracelets that will hopefully become little reminders of this week together, and stood in awe of the stunning glacial waters surrounding us. That brilliant turquoise color almost doesn't seem real until you're standing beside it. It is one of God's masterpieces.

One of the meaningful moments of the day was learning about the people who have called this place home for thousands of years. The North Cascades are the ancestral homelands of the Upper Skagit, Sauk-Suiattle, Swinomish, Nooksack, Stillaguamish, and other Coast Salish peoples. Long before these mountains became a national park, they were places of life, culture, and deep connection. We are grateful to learn on these lands and to honor those stories as part of our own.

It's hard to believe this is our 50th camp. When Steve and I started STEAM in the PARK, we never imagined where this journey would lead. We certainly never imagined hundreds of educators, dozens of national parks, thousands of friendships, and communities that continue long after camp ends. Yet here we are, still believing that bringing good people together in beautiful places can make a difference.

Our goal has never simply been to teach science. Our goal has always been to build community. We hope people leave knowing a little more about nature, but even more than that, we hope they leave believing in one another. We hope they find people who encourage them, challenge them, laugh with them, pray with them, and remind them that there are still good humans in the world.

After a wonderful dinner together, we shared one of my favorite STEAM in the PARK traditions—our book exchange. Every book tells a story, but it also says something about the person who chose to bring it. It's a small gift that often becomes a meaningful connection.

Then the evening unfolded in the best possible way. Some gathered around our first campfire. Some wandered the trails as the sun settled behind the mountains. Some brave souls jumped into 50-degree glacial water (you are officially much tougher than I am!). Some stayed inside playing games and laughing together. Others quietly headed off to rest, preparing for a full day tomorrow. And somehow, every one of those choices was exactly right because community isn't everyone doing the same thing. Community is making space for everyone to belong.

As Steve and I walked back to our room tonight, we prayed the same prayer we've prayed since the very beginning. Lord, we hope we're doing the right thing. We pray that these communities of good humans continue to grow. We pray that kindness spreads farther than criticism, that curiosity wins over certainty, that laughter echoes through these halls, that friendships formed this week last for years, and that every educator who leaves here carries a little more hope back to the students who are waiting for them.

Camp number fifty has begun. Our hearts are full. And somehow, it still feels like we're just getting started.