Sandy Hernandez: No Us and Them in Nature

This article was developed from the oral history interview with Sandy Hernandez, conducted in July 2020 for the National Park Service Park History Program by Cameron Nesmith, an intern with the HBCU Internship Program, and Lu Ann Jones. The interview is part of “Telling Our Own Untold Stories: Civil Rights in the National Park Service Oral History Project," made possible in part by a grant from the National Park Foundation. The recording will be archived at Harpers Ferry Center.

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Sandy Hernandez

Photo by Jamie Gonzales

Oral history is commonly used to record the experiences of individuals at a later stage in life or career. When Sandy Hernandez spoke about her National Park Service career in 2020, she offered the perspective of someone who is in the midst of shaping her story. Age 27 at the time of the interview and an employee at Yosemite National Park since 2017, Hernandez is the future of the NPS.

Early Life and Family

Sandy Hernandez was born and raised in and around Los Angeles. The daughter of immigrants from Guatemala, Hernandez described the influences of family and of growing up in a Guatemalan-American household.

• Sandy Hernandez: On Family

  
  

  In an oral history interview, Sandy Hernandez describes her connection to family.

  Credit / Author:

  NPS Park History Program

  Date created:

  07/28/2021

  Audio Transcript

  HERNANDEZ: My family and I, we’re very, very close to each other. My parents actually came to the United States at a young age, seeking for the American dream. When I was in high school and I could better understand what that meant, I learned that my younger brother and I are their American dream. They really just wanted their children to have a better future than the one that they had. During that time, Guatemala did have years of civil war. As I grew older, I better understand that relationship and what drew them to the United States. That’s been my story ever since. I am my parents’ daughter. I am a daughter of immigrants. I have a privilege as a United States citizen that they didn’t have for many years. And that’s part of the reason why I have chosen a life of service.

Peace Corps to Park Service

After graduating from the University of California at Irvine with a degree in earth systems science, Hernandez embarked on a two-year journey to Africa as a Peace Corps volunteer in Ethiopia.

Hernandez built confidence as she came to know the people in the small town of Agarfa, where she partnered with local agriculture educators to help community members improve farming and animal husbandry. “I remember through my Peace Corps service how easy it was for me to not be scared anymore,” she said. “As I got to know the people, as I moved into my community and host families, how that fear that I had as I came into the country for the first time, how ridiculous it looked to me.”

Because of political unrest, Hernandez had to leave Ethiopia before her term of service ended. There was no time to plan her next move or to say good-bye to people who had become friends—including her fiancé. She and Addis parted without knowing when they would see each other again. But at the same time, she also was eager to return home and reunite with her family. Eventually Addis joined her and they married.

During a period of career uncertainty, Hernandez discovered that Peace Corps service gave her an advantage in the federal hiring process. Even so, she was confused about what this status meant, how to use it, or who to ask for help.

Finally, one of her Peace Corps colleagues who had gotten a job at Yosemite National Park encouraged Hernandez to apply for a position with the park’s volunteer program. She was hired for what she described as a “dream job,” working with volunteer groups in the field. “I knew I wanted to do something environmental-related. Hence my degree in earth system science," she explained. "But you know, things happen for a reason. I applied. I didn’t think that I would get the job, but I got the call and I got it. Something good came out of it, because here I am, three years later, and I’m still at Yosemite.”

Yosemite National Park Volunteer Program Rangers (Hernandez at left) thank volunteers with ice cream.

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Experiences in Nature

Hernandez’s family as well as formal education nurtured her respect for the environment. Family day trips and camping trips to lakes, rivers, zoos and parks introduced her to nature at an early age. She was particularly fascinated by how the ocean’s vastness placed life in perspective and inspired stewardship of the natural world.

• Sandy Hernandez: Positive Experiences in Nature

  
  

  In this excerpt from an oral history interview with Sandy Hernandez, she discusses her positive connections to the natural world.

  Credit / Author:

  NPS Park History Program

  Date created:

  08/06/2021

  Audio Transcript

  HERNANDEZ: Just something about, I want to say the ocean, something about being in water, something about being in front of big granite walls like here in Yosemite or in front of sequoias that make me feel very small. Because nature is so big. And it’s just this beautiful thing that Mother Nature has gifted us with. In that moment where I feel small, I feel very present. I feel like I belong, and I feel connected to my ancestors. Then when you add in the mixture of wildlife and animals and sea creatures, it’s just a reminder that we’re not alone, and nature doesn’t just belong to us humans, and that we have a responsibility to protect it for those who we do share those spaces with, but also for the future generations. And then we also owe it to our ancestors as well. So there’s positive experience in nature.

But being in nature—even in a national park—has not always felt welcoming to Hernandez and her family. “We’ve also had negative experiences in nature as a family where we’ve experienced being shamed by others in these outdoor spaces because of our lack of knowledge of some things.”

A case in point: when she reported for her job at Yosemite, her family helped her move. It was the first time any of them had ever been there. Simply finding their way around the huge park was confusing and disorienting. As they walked and explored, a young relative started carving a downed tree that already had initials whittled in it. A white visitor spotted him, and stern chastisement followed. The family was very upset. That person's behavior was an example of misguided assumptions that all park visitors, including this Latinx family, were comfortable in the big park and knew the stewardship rules. Rather than alarmist criticism, Hernandez observed, education and explanation were called for. Not a welcoming introduction to her new workplace.

“Now, because I am in a position as a National Park Service employee, I always try to message to my peers that we’re here to educate people,” said Hernandez. “It’s important because you never know if you’re approaching someone who maybe is experiencing a national park for the first time, and your interaction with them can impact them for the rest of their lives. It’s up to you to decide if that’s a positive interaction or a negative one.”

Sandy Hernandez pulling invasive weeds.

NPS/Oscar Elias

A Seat at the Table

After working with the Yosemite volunteer program for more than two years, Hernandez transitioned to a permanent role as lead visitor use assistant at Wawona Campground. Meanwhile, she also has initiated several projects that bring together and advocate for employees and allies who are Black, Indigenous, and People of Color to promote a more diverse and inclusive workforce. “I just wanted to be a doer, rather than just being a person of words.”

WE.R.MORE, which stands for Workshop for Ethnic and Racial Minorities in Outdoor Recreation and Education, is an example of one of these efforts. Along with partners at Yosemite Conservancy and with participation of Jose Gonzalez, founder of Latino Outdoors, and Teresa Baker, founder of the African American Nature and Parks Experience, the program aimed to bring together Californians who were interested in improving relevancy, diversity, and inclusion in outdoor spaces. Hernandez was the lead ranger for the workshop, which took place over three days in November of 2018. At the end, the cohort presented ideas and action items to park leadership to address the question of how Yosemite National Park can become a more inclusive space for underrepresented communities.

Hernandez notes, “The future of Yosemite doesn’t just rely on biological diversity, but cultural diversity as well. And that it’s just as important. And that yes, it’s true that the conversations that are hosted around racial and ethnic diversity are not comfortable, but it’s very important that we do have them. Because if we don’t have them, then we have spaces like Yosemite and our national parks to lose because we do need more stewards of these lands to protect the outdoors, regardless of what your ethnic and racial background is. It’s a team effort.”

Hernandez, middle in uniform, alongside WE.R.MORE participants at Yosemite National Park.

NPS

• Sandy Hernandez: Many Voices, Many Stewards

  
  

  In an oral history interview, Sandy Hernandez describes why the work that she does to engage and connect with People of Color in outdoor spaces is an essential part of taking care of public lands.

  Credit / Author:

  NPS Park History Program

  Date created:

  08/06/2021

  Audio Transcript

  HERNANDEZ: All of this work is very important because California is actually one of five states in the United States where this quote unquote “minority” population is now actually numerically the majority. So these conversations are critical and to keep these public lands important and relevant and to be able to sustain them, we need to be able to connect people from all walks of life to our national park. So welcoming ethnically and racially diverse groups and accommodating different cultural backgrounds, it opens up the opportunity for more people of color to gain experiences in these outdoor spaces that they can learn to cherish. That’s how you make more stewards of our public lands. And that’s why in nature there’s not a them and an us. It’s just us. And that’s why Mother Nature binds us all as humans.
  
  I try to put myself at whatever table I can put myself on here at Yosemite so that I can feel that my voice is heard and that I can continue to advocate for underrepresented groups, whether that is people here in our workforce or you know, people in our gateway communities or just around the world that visit us.

Hernandez read a quote that she keeps nearby in her office. The words from Cecilia Gutierrez, the manager of My Brother's Keeper Network and Partnerships, remind her, “You have to find spaces that fully embrace who you are, that allow you to bring your collective life experiences to the work. Those lessons shape who you are and help to define your calling. You bring your uniqueness, unapologetically, everywhere you go. And remember that you have a responsibility to those who have been left behind to sit at the table. Standing on the sidelines, when so few of us make it, is not an option. So sit at the table. You’ve earned it and you belong there.”

In her own words, “It’s okay to pursue careers that maybe you don’t see yourself represented, where you’re underrepresented. So I didn't grow up seeing park rangers that look like me. But I’m here now and I try to make myself as visible as possible as I can, so that I can show others that they can fill this position, this role, and that they can dream a big as they can dream. In a career in the National Park Service or any of the outdoor agencies or organizations just in this outdoor space, that it is a career option for them. And once they get here, to sit at the table.”

What's next for Sandy Hernandez? She has been quoted as saying that she wants to be a park superintendent one day. "I don't know if I'm going to get there. But I think I'm heading in the right direction."

• Sandy Hernandez: Aiming High

  
  

  In an oral history interview, Sandy Hernandez describes her career aspirations with the National Park Service and her hope to encourage more Black, Indigenous, and People of Color to see themselves in leadership positions of outdoor organizations.

  Credit / Author:

  NPS Park History Program

  Date created:

  09/03/2021

  Audio Transcript

  HERNANDEZ: I like to say that I want to have these big roles because I want other people that look to me to know that that is something that they can aim for and dream about and accomplish. Because we are getting more Black, Indigenous and People of Color in these leadership positions. And slowly but surely, it’s coming along. So I do say that maybe one day I’m a superintendent of a park. Or maybe I get some kind of community engagement specialist position, because those are starting to become a thing in the National Park Service. There’s also positions at the regional level that are youth programs and volunteer program, regional positions that they have. So anything that allows me to help in the engagement of underrepresented groups to these outdoor spaces, that’s what I’m all about. That’s my passion. And I’m flexible with the title. (laughter)

Indeed, in the fall of 2021 she has a new title. She is joining Cabrillo National Monument in San Diego as an interpretive ranger. Among her duties--help manage the Visitor Center and coordinate the work of park volunteers.

As Sandy Hernandez reflected on her experiences and career, her words offer a vision towards the future of the National Park Service. Her work on behalf of diversity in the outdoors and in leadership advances a view where all are welcome and everyone has a role in the stewardship of the environment.

Representatives for Latino Outdoors are presented with the 2019 Volunteer Group Award from Yosemite National Park. Sandy Hernandez, working with Yosemite's volunteer program at the time, stands on the left. Park superintendent Mike Reynolds is to the right.

NPS

Lu Ann Jones is the oral history program coordinator for the National Park Service Park History Program in Washington, DC. Learn more at the NPS Oral History Website.