Hi! I’m Alexandra! Here’s a little bit about me! I was born and raised in Las Vegas, NV. So, how did I get to be where I am today? Well, let me explain. I was born into a family that loves the outdoors. My parents took me on my first hike, down the Emerald Pools Trail in Zion National Park, when I was just an itty bitty baby. Growing up, we would travel to Utah where we would hike and fish. My siblings and I also camped quite a few times with my grandparents.

As I grew, so did my love of the outdoors. In high school, I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do as an adult. During my junior year, my family and I went on a trip to visit Great Basin National Park. While we were in the Lehmen Caves Visitor Center, an interpretive park ranger came up to us and started a conversation that I will never forget. I told him I wasn’t sure where I wanted to go to school or what I wanted to major in. This is when he informed me about a few possible future jobs I could obtain in the outdoor field. This got my wheels turning. On that day in 2015, I decided I wanted to work outside. Doing what exactly? I wasn’t sure.

Skip ahead to college. Ultimately, I decided to attend Southern Utah University. Why? Simply because of the Intergovernmental Internship Cooperative (IIC). SUU has a phenomenal outdoor recreation program. It’s called “The University of the Parks” for a reason. The IIC allowed me to obtain different paid outdoor internships throughout college. I have increased my skill set astronomically because I was able to participate in this program. I have worked for Utah Division of Natural Resources, the Bureau of Land Management, and the National Park Service.

Fast forward to today. I now obtain a Bachelor’s Degree in Outdoor Recreation in Parks and Tourism with an emphasis in Outdoor Education, along with a Certificate in Interdisciplinary Park Studies. I currently work as a Biological Science Technician for the National Park Service.

John Muir once said, “Going to the woods is going home.” I agree with him. I firmly believe that getting out into nature brings you closer to God. I feel completely at peace in nature. The Bible teaches us that Jesus often went into the wilderness to pray. Nature is His creation. Nature in and of itself is the fingerprint of God. I believe that I am called to help people find God by experiencing his wonders first-hand in nature.