A Summer at Congaree National Park.

This summer has been nothing short of astounding. The opportunity I have been given to gain experience while working for a federal agency is something I will never forget. I was given a chance to meet some fantastic people and work on incredible projects. My job this summer was picking up where I left off last summer as a fishing assistant for Congaree National Park. My role entails me working to develop an amicable relationship with the local community. They hope to promote and encourage them to actively participate as visitors that use the park’s extensive fishing resources. To accomplish this, I joined Biological technician Claudia Santiago on numerous zoom calls and meetings to foster conversations with the community on topics related to the park and the Lower Richland community. In addition to community meetings, I also connected with the community by leading several programs and working with other local agencies to put on two fishing clinics in the local area. These clinics were in partnership with the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources. They taught new anglers the basics of fishing techniques and ethics while providing them the opportunity to catch fish as they learned. Also, I participated in a couple of summer camps running programs on wildlife and plants in Congaree National Park. The final aspect of my job was to develop a fishing management plan to help guide future employees and decision-makers on matters related to fishing within the park. This summer has allowed me to gain a plethora of knowledge and experiences doing things I had never done before. It was indeed a blast and something I will never forget.

Fishing Clinic at Lake Murray
Helping anglers at Lake Murray Fishing Clinic
1 Comment
  • Laurina Sebaklim
    Posted at 19:06h, 27 July

    Cool stuff Q! Great job.