Nicodemus Wilderness Project -- Global Registry of Apprentice Ecologists

Ever since I was a little girl, The Nature Conservancy has always been a part of my life; my father is a member and his mother was as well, so protecting the environment was always a lifestyle for me. So it's no surprise when I was given the opportunity to join a class only for select seniors at our school called Independent Studies Mentorship in which we are given the chance to work in a field of interest, I jumped at the chance to try to work with The Nature Conservancy. I knew immediately I wanted to partner with them, and contacted them repeatedly until I came in touch with a man who worked with them in San Antonio. Initially, I wanted to raise money for their Plant-a-Billion trees fund, but after the Gulf of Mexico oil spill this past summer we both decided living in Texas near such a tragedy it would be best to raise awareness locally about helping the Gulf and fundraising to help The Nature Conservancy's efforts. I created a local fund called Run for the Gulf, in which I planned to throw a 5k Walk/Run in our local Landa Park. I went through the city and IRS for finances as well as insurance, threw numerous fundraising events such as garage sales and benefit nights and collected donations from local sponsors. The run was April 10, 2011 at 9am; about 70 people showed up along with volunteer police officers, professional timers, and classmates. There was also a silent auction and a live band (who was also in high school with me). In the end, I raised about $2,000 dollars, every cent of which went directly to The Nature Conservancy to help them rebuild oyster reefs and marshes in the Gulf of Mexico. While this project was a lot of work, it was definitely worthwhile, and I feel my community benefited from it as well.