The Other Half of the Story!

​When people ask about STEAM in the PARK, I almost always answer by talking about educators and families. That's who comes to camp. I think about teachers returning home with new ideas for their classrooms. I think about children discovering they love being outside. I think about families spending a week together without the rush of everyday life. Those are the stories I've always told because they're the ones I see unfolding right in front of me.

But somewhere along the way, I started wondering if I was only telling half the story.

This week in Rocky Mountain National Park gave me one of those moments.

Rangers Danielle and Ashley spent the day with our campers talking about elk management. They explained why the park makes some difficult decisions, how those decisions are based on years of research, and what it takes to care for an ecosystem that millions of people visit every year. When the program officially ended, the learning didn't. Campers stayed. Questions kept coming. Conversations continued while we walked, and even while we were back at camp eating popsicles together. 

Watching those conversations unfold made me realize something I hadn't really considered before.

I think STEAM in the PARK is helping the National Park Service too.

Every ranger, scientist, volunteer, intern, maintenance employee, and park staff member we meet has chosen this work because they care deeply about these places. They spend their days protecting wildlife, preserving history, maintaining trails, restoring habitats, welcoming visitors, and helping people understand why our national parks matter. Most visitors only have a brief interaction before moving on to the next stop. Our campers spend an entire week learning beside them, asking questions, sharing meals, hiking together, and building relationships.

That changes everything.

Our campers remember names. They come back the next day with another question because they've been thinking about something they learned. They stop seeing a ranger as someone standing behind a visitor center desk and begin seeing a person with an incredible career, a remarkable depth of knowledge, and a genuine love for a place that is becoming important to them too.

I've watched rangers answer questions that were never going to fit into a scheduled presentation because our campers were so engaged. I've seen scientists stay long after they could have walked away because someone wanted to know one more thing. Those moments are gifts for our campers, but I hope they're gifts for the people wearing the uniform too.

Every one of us wants to know our work matters. Every one of us hopes someone else sees value in what we do. I hope our ranger partners leave those conversations knowing they didn't simply present information. They inspired someone. Maybe they inspired a future ranger. Maybe they inspired a future scientist. Maybe they simply helped a family understand why protecting these places matters. Whatever the outcome, I hope they know their time made a difference.

The impact doesn't stay in the park. Educators carry those stories back to their classrooms. Families plan another national park trip because now they feel connected to both the place and the people. Children begin talking about careers they had never considered because someone took the time to answer one more question.

One of the greatest gifts this work has given us is that those relationships don't end when camp is over. We stay in touch throughout the year. We text. We email. We send Facebook messages. We celebrate promotions, retirements, and exciting milestones. We check on one another after hurricanes, floods, wildfires, and other challenges because we care about the people just as much as we care about the parks. Somewhere along the way, professional partnerships become genuine friendships, and I don't think any of us expected that when STEAM in the PARK first began.

As I look back over the years, I realize we haven't just been creating camps. We've been building relationships between educators, families, park staff, scientists, volunteers, and communities that all believe these places are worth protecting. Those relationships continue whether we're staying in tents, cabins, environmental learning centers, or park lodges because they were never built around where we slept. They were built around shared experiences, shared purpose, and a shared love for our national parks.

STEAM in the PARK has always been about helping people fall in love with our national parks. What I hadn't fully appreciated is that maybe we're also helping tell the stories of the people who care for them every single day. If our campers leave with a deeper appreciation for both the parks and the people behind them, then I think we've created something that lasts far longer than one week together.