Conservation Corner

Welcome to our online newsletter where we will keep you updated on everything the Pierce Conservation District is working on, from our work On the Farm to Water Quality Improvement. The Conservation Corner highlights our most interesting stories, but does not include everything. Find our other stories linked in the sidebar and below. 

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Dec 07

Welcome New AmeriCorps!

Posted on December 7, 2020 at 10:55 AM by Allan Warren

Each Fall, we get to welcome a new cohort of AmeriCorps members who join us on 9 - 12 month placements to support our efforts to deliver our mission to the community. With work from home the norm now, it's a strange time to be joining an organization and meet your new coworkers, so please join us in wishing all these great new team members an extra special welcome!

Leika headshotWelcome Leika Hansen!
Leika, pronounced “lake-uh”, is the new AmeriCorps member in Environmental Education. Originally from Michigan, she graduated from Brigham Young University in Utah with a bachelors degree in environmental science before moving to western Washington. She loves being outside and talking about the beautiful world we live in. In her down time, she enjoys swimming, biking, hiking, taking photos, and sewing. While we will be working differently through the pandemic, she is excited to help in any way possible!

Welcome Madelyn Houde!
My name is Madelyn Houde and I am serving as the Habitat Improvement Specialist for Pierce Conservation District. I graduated from the University of Florida in 2018 withMaddie Photo
 a bachelor’s degree in marine sciences. Since then, I have been working seasonally in natural resources throughout eastern Oregon and Washington. As a fan of too many outdoor activities, you can find me exploring some of the amazing Puget Sound scuba dive sites or trying to adapt to the west side mountain bike trails (roots?! mud?!). I hope to contribute in many ways and am greatly looking forward to my time with PCD!

Welcome Mike Malpasuto!
Harvest Pierce County is excited to welcome their new AmeriCorps place, Mike Malpasuto, who will be supporting the gleaning program. Mike received his BA in Classics from the University of Rochester. He then moved to Seattle to receive his Master’s in Teaching from SPU while teaching Latin at MikeRoosevelt High School. Mike developed a passion for food justice while in college learning about low accessibility to healthy produce as he was beginning gardening. Mike worked on a 1 acre no-till farm in Everett, WA where he learned how to farm, which in turn led him to want to use his teaching degree for sustainable agriculture and food justice. Mike is also an avid rock climber and spent some time working at Vertical World in Seattle. 

Welcome Amy Pearl!
Hello everyone, my name is Amy Pearl. Before finding my love within the environmental world, my first passion was being a competitive dancer. I transitioned that love of being a dancer over to being a dance instructor and I am currently still involved within that world and love every
Picture of Amy
 second of teaching the youth of today. I graduated from the University of Washington Bothell,Go Dawgs, with my bachelor’s in environmental studies with a focus in sustainability and water quality. After graduating, I was lucky to get to work two seasons as an Invasive Plant Technician for Snohomish County last year and within Pierce Conservation District this year. I am beyond excited to get to serve and collaborate within my new community!

Welcome Back Allie Campbell!
I am really excited to be returning this year for another term as the Water Quality Outreach Specialist with AmeriCorps. Prior Picture of Allieto starting at PCD, I had no idea how much I did not know about the environmental world. While serving my first term, I learned so much fascinating information about our ecosystem and gained a long list of crucial skills that I can take with me wherever I go. I also got to plan and coordinate events, lead restoration and volunteer crews, teach children about storm water, and interact with many diverse groups of people throughout Pierce County.

This year, I get to do all those things and more. Now that I have a year of service under my belt, I am able to self-manage much of my work. With that being said, I was able to take more of a lead role with the Urban Tree Sale and Rain Barrel workshop series— and for the first time for PCD ever, I launched these programs virtually. In addition to project management, I am learning new skills like web design and strategic planning, and I plan on becoming more involved with cross-program needs as well.

I look forward to another year of service and professional growth.



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