By Kelsi Peace, Staff Writer
Students eager to spend their summer enjoying nature and ministry were given the opportunity Monday to interview for a position with “A Christian Ministry in National Parks.”
Applicants were able to select three preferences from among 30 national parks in the United States that participate. Placement is dependent on previous work experience and job availability.
According to the ministry’s Web site, students will serve as desk clerks, housekeepers, bellhops, store clerks, tour guides or waitstaff. Their other task is more subtle: they are to show Christ to everyone they encounter, and as part of this expectation, help lead a Sunday worship service for park visitors.
Many outdoor experiences are available: hiking, biking, swimming, fishing and climbing are among the experiences students can expect.
About 250 college students participate in the program each summer. Sarah Rollins, a national representative, said students who participate love the outdoors and are usually considering a career in ministry.
“Often, a summer leading services will either point a person toward full-time ministry or show them that they do not desire to pursue that form of ministry,” Rollins said.
A Christian Ministry in the National Parks is a unique opportunity for ministry because of the diversity national parks draw, Rollins said.
“You become the go-to person for faith questions from people who don’t know God, and you are given the gift to love those who have never been loved by Christians before,” Rollins said.
Jordan Isom, senior English major from Tuscola, spent last summer at Denali National Park through the Student Conservation Association. Located in Alaska, Denali National Park boasts relatively untouched wilderness, with a single highway and access only by bus, Isom said.
Participants in the Conservation Association work as volunteers and do not lead a worship service. They are often granted a stipend and can apply for a scholarship to support their volunteer work.
Students apply online and complete a phone interview for a position. Positions include interpretive ranger, trail clearing crew, and wilderness technology team.
All staff members spend the first two weeks training and learning park procedures.
Isom worked as an interpretive ranger, where she presented park history dressed as a pioneer from Texas. The job allowed her to use her researching and writing skills as well as interact with visitors.
The highlight of her tasks was her interaction with the sled dogs, Isom said.
The dogs, used in the winter to transport the rangers to and from the park, entertain visitors with the dogsled demonstration.
Isom “adopted” Lupin, one of the sled dogs, to walk daily.
Isom also worked in the visitor center, where she enjoyed the personal interaction.
“In the park system, people are coming from all over … no one was similar,” Isom said.
The community created among the students in the park was memorable to Isom as well. She shared a cabin with one other girl and attended a church 30 miles away. Members of the congregation drove her to church every Sunday.
Isom has applied for a part time position this summer in Denali.
“I love it,” Isom said. “It’s just like a second home.”
For more information on working in a national park, visit www.sca-inc.org or www.acmp.com.
