Alumni Spotlight: Alma McKenry

In April 1985, a group of seventh graders from Vallejo Junior High School embarked on an unforgettable educational trip to NatureBridge Yosemite, then known as the Yosemite Institute. As part of the school’s Gifted and Talented Education (GATE) program, these students experienced outdoor science education, thanks to several dedicated teachers who believed in the value of connecting students with nature. For Alma McKenry, a city kid from Vallejo, CA, the trip to Yosemite felt like stepping into the great unknown. “I was a city girl, and there I was, in the middle of the wilderness!” she remembers with a smile.

One of the highlights of Alma’s NatureBridge experience was the group’s challenge hike to Upper Yosemite Falls. While an arduous trek, one that tested Alma both physically and mentally, it was also an empowering experience for her. She remembers her water bottle leaking, not having the right shoes for the trail, and being the last one of her group to reach the top. However, her educator and teacher encouraged her throughout the hike, confident that she could make it to the summit: “They saw something in me—they knew I could do it.” Alma recalls journaling at the top of the falls, overwhelmed by a sense of accomplishment and pride in herself for completing one of the toughest challenges she’d ever faced.

Years later, when Alma revisited the Upper Yosemite Falls trail as an adult, the hike was just as challenging as she remembered. But her memories from that original trek with her classmates, teachers, and NatureBridge educator, along with the sense of achievement that emerged from it, have never faded. She fondly recalls her memories of cross-country skiing at Crane Flat, walking along the banks of the crystal-clear Merced River, and watching a fish in the river swimming alongside her, an image that has stayed with her for years. “Those were core memories for me,” Alma shares.

Alma’s time with NatureBridge planted the seeds for a lifelong love of Yosemite and nature. “I wouldn’t have known about the Valley” without NatureBridge, Alma reflects. She’s hiked Half Dome twice, and she’s also summited Clouds Rest, facing her fears to stand atop the narrow ridge and take in the breathtaking 360-degree views. Now living in Fresno, CA—just an hour’s drive from Yosemite’s south gate—Alma frequently asks herself, “Why aren’t you there more often?” She’s made it a priority not only to return to the park as often as she can but also to introduce others to Yosemite. When her daughter’s friends—many of whom have never visited the park—come to visit, Alma takes them to Yosemite, offering these young people a similar introduction to nature and national parks that she once received through NatureBridge.