Video
Celebrating Women in Parks and History with Girl Scouts
Transcript
Ranger Lucien Sonder speaking from home with a virtual backdrop of Lands End:
Hey Girl Scouts! My name is Lucien Sonder and I'm the supervisory ranger for outreach and volunteer programs at Golden Gate National Recreation Area in San Francisco. When I was a young girl growing up in Pennsylvania, I was a Brownie. My favorite memories from that time were working as part of a team, contributing to service projects for my community, and wearing a uniform. I suppose that experience probably led me to work as a park ranger when i got older. This video introduces you to several of my female colleagues who work at different sites around our park, including Muir Woods and the Presidio. Each of them shares a story about an inspiring woman from the past. We invite you to explore this video and other resources on our website. You can learn about women who fought for voting rights in the 19th and 20th centuries in California, and across the country, or about women from different time periods who also stood up for what they believed in to achieve progress for women, and you can learn about women who work in many different jobs for the National Park Service today. After exploring these resources, you can design a project with the help of your troop leader, and then contact us for your 19th amendment centennial patch when your project is complete. We're excited that the National Park Service can support girls like you to learn more about inspiring women from history. We hope that you discover the power in yourselves to make positive changes for girls in your community, across the country, and around the world.
Ranger Stephanie Weinstein speaking at Muir Woods in front of redwood trees:
Hi I'm Stephanie and I'm a Ranger here at Muir Woods National Monument, home of the old growth redwood forest. I used to be an elementary school teacher and now I get to teach people about the wonderful redwood forest ecosystem. I'm proud to be a woman in the National Park Service because I get to inspire other girls to feel confident and knowledgeable in the outdoors. My friend and coworker, Ranger Elizabeth is going to talk about the women who played an important role in the story of Muir Woods. I can't wait for you to hear it and I can't wait for you to think about your part in this story.
Ranger Elizabeth Villano speaking at Muir Woods in front of a redwood tree:
Hi my name is Ranger Elizabeth, I am originally from Illinois but I have lived in California for about three years and I cannot imagine living anywhere else now. I am a ranger at Muir Woods National Monument and I am incredibly passionate about sharing women's history at Muir Woods. And one of the biggest reasons is because when I first started working here, women weren't really in the story. The way that we told the story was, three or four, depending on how you told it, rich powerful white men worked together and saved this place from the threat of being logged.. and that is a true story but it's not the complete story. So if you were a visitor, if you were me looking at this story, you thought the only way that you could save places that you loved, was being rich, white, and a man. And I am White but I am not rich, and I am not a man, and so to me, how could I go out in the world and save the places that i really loved and was passionate about? So when we started looking at the impact that women had on this forest, the way that they helped save this beautiful canyon. Even though they didn't have voting power, even though they were women, you know, that to me shows that everybody can find their place in this world and everybody has a voice and can use it. So whether you're a woman, whether you're a person of color, that representation in our stories is really important. So I am so grateful to be able to share these stories of women in Muir Woods with you all now.
Ranger Fatima Colindres speaking from home in front of a green, cartoon forest, backdrop and a live plant:
Hi my name is Fatima Colindres and I am a Park Ranger with the Golden Gate National Recreation Area. I work at the Presidio of San Francisco. One of my favorite things to do here as a park ranger with the outreach team, is to bring groups out to their national parks, and tell the stories, the natural cultural stories of this special place. My main focus is ethnobotany. I love to share the stories of how plants and people have interacted with each other. The ecology of this special place. One of my favorite stories to tell is the story of Juana Briones. Juana Briones lived in the Presidio during the Spanish, Mexican, and early American periods. I love Juana's story because Juana was a great leader, a great woman in history who helped her community as a medicine woman. She inspires me to tell this story because I have a strong connection to plants, and I got this connection because of another very special woman in my life, my mother, who also is named Juana. My mother always shared with me the special uses of plants and how important they are, to all of us, as medicine, as food, and to make our world more beautiful. So for that reason I love to share Juana's story, not just because she was a 'curandera' but because she was a great woman who had to protect her family and help her community. I hope that the story of Juana Briones inspires you to do the same.
Ranger Xotchitl Marisol Garibay speaking under the arched halls at Fort Point:
Hi my name is Xotchitl Marisol Garibay and I am a ranger here at Golden Gate NRA, a part of the southern areas interpretation team. Growing up in Los Angeles, I didn't have much exposure to the great outdoors, until I made the decision to attend a college that was the complete opposite of what I knew. Making that decision allowed me to discover myself, expand and foster my love of the environment and to have a desire to pursue and be of service once I graduated. I'm proud to be part of something bigger than myself and stories like that of Captain Dora E Thompson, are so inspiring. Dora's devotion to a cause greater than herself led her to be a phenomenal leader and a chief nurse where she served at the Army General Hospital at the Presidio of San Francisco. While there, she successfully navigated the nurses, and the hospital through the disaster of the 1906 San Francisco earthquake. Her connection to her community reminds me to give a hundred percent every day because my service and actions are more than just myself. Just like Dora inspires me, I hope that you're able to find strong women that inspire you.
Ranger Mariajose Alcantara speaking in front of a sunset at Fort Barry in the Marin Headlands:
Hello friends I'm Ranger Mariajose, another Park Ranger at Golden Gate National Recreation Area. National parks have been a part of my life since the very beginning. My parents took me on my very first camping trip when I was just a toddler. I went on my first backpacking trip in fifth grade. And in high school I became an intern and volunteer in this very national park. Along the way I met park rangers who inspired me to become a park ranger too, and through them I was able to see myself wearing the famous hat, and the gray and green. I hope that you too can find inspiration, through the strong stories our park has to offer. The legacy of the natural and cultural history, those untold stories, the women of our parks, and our strong female staff. I hope that you can visualize yourself too in a future career in your national parks. Discover how you can earn your very own 19th Amendment Centennial commemorative patch. You can also find my ranger friends' programs, or you can find more history about the park's stories, by visiting your park safely, or visit us virtually online with our virtual program offerings. Have a great one everybody!
Description
It's the centennial celebration of the Nineteenth Amendment and we're celebrating our women in the parks and history. We invite you to watch our video featuring female park rangers of Golden Gate National Recreation Area talking about their own personal connections to women from history, and why their stories inspire them.
Duration
8 minutes, 48 seconds
Credit
Mariajose Alcantara
Date Created
08/22/2020
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