Stories from the Field

David “Jay” Flood passed away peacefully on July 4 after a brief illness, surrounded by his loving family. Jay was a legend at NatureBridge (then Yosemite National Institutes) and contributed more in his two terms as Chairman of the Board than one can measure. He is remembered as an incredible human being, stellar leader, and inspirational guiding light.

NatureBridge’s Golden Gate campus is at the forefront of providing transformative marine science education through our innovative Intertidal Lab. This unique facility allows students to observe tide pool life, understand coastal ecosystems, and develop a love for environmental stewardship. For many, it’s a transformative experience that sparks a passion for science and conservation.

Eva Foster has held several roles at NatureBridge over the past 18 years, including Natural Connections Manager, Sales Manager, and Outreach and Enrollment Manager. Now, on the eve of her retirement, we asked her to reflect on her time at NatureBridge and share a bit about her upcoming adventures.

Sixth grade teacher Stephen Sugay knows student success requires going beyond typical coursework to include personal development and interpersonal connections. “We try to foster community building and couple that with actual learning in other subject areas,” he says. “NatureBridge helps us achieve those things.”

On a warm afternoon in June, a group of students and chaperones from Monache High School arrived at Yosemite National Park for their first ever WildLink expedition. As they drove through the Wawona Tunnel and saw the historic Tunnel View, students remarked on the vastness of nature, as none of them had ever seen Yosemite Valley before. The group drove into the valley to meet one of their NatureBridge leaders and went for a short walk to Lower Yosemite Falls. As they enjoyed the cooling spray of the rushing falls, excitement built for their time in Yosemite.

The day after a spring thunderstorm, New Village Girls Academy students and chaperones arrived to a beautifully saturated Yosemite Valley. Their trip from Los Angeles on highways and winding mountain roads left them tired, excited, and a little nervous for the week to come. Students were greeted by NatureBridge staff upon arrival and moved into their cabins, where they enjoyed their first night in the park—complete with burgers and a meadow sunset. The group also spent some time that first night chatting about their hopes, intentions, and fears for the week ahead.

Editor’s note: This year, we received an unprecedented number of applicants for our annual Student of the Year award, and we were honored to hear the stories they had to share about their experiences at NatureBridge. We would like to recognize one of our 2024 runners-up, eighth grader Nina Mao from San Jose, CA, who attended NatureBridge Golden Gate with her class from Stratford School Palo Alto in 2023. Nina is one of the thousands of young people who has been impacted by their time at NatureBridge and who continue to inspire those around them with their commitment to our planet. Please help us congratulate all of our 2024 Student of the Year runners-up!

NatureBridge’s Partnerships and Wilderness Programs Manager, Andrés Escalante, was recently featured in the Yosemite Conservancy’s newsletter where he was able to share the inspiring stories from WildLink, a collaboration between the Yosemite Conservancy and NatureBridge that focuses on bring local students into the Yosemite wilderness.

On May 16, we hosted our annual fundraising event, An Evening Outside with NatureBridge, at our Golden Gate campus. In classic Bay Area fashion, the fog and mist arrived as unexpected guests, but the weather did not deter us from celebrating a momentous occasion for NatureBridge: for the first time at this event, we raised over $1.1 million, which will go to directly supporting our students, our campuses, and our staff. We were awe-inspired by our Student of the Year, Kai Diaz, who shared how they felt as though they could touch the stars during their trip to NatureBridge in Yosemite, and our featured speaker Dr. Britt Wray shared incredible insights on how young people can influence the hearts and minds of their families when they bring the lessons of NatureBridge home. We want to thank everyone who was able to join and support us at Golden Gate, and we hope to see you at our next event!