View photos from Alaska

A group of 12 students traveled to Anchorage, Alaska to volunteer for a week. Our first day in Anchorage we went to the Alaskan Cultural and Historical Museum to get an overview of this foreign world we had just entered. We also went to the very unique Bear Tooth Pub for dinner, which was a movie theater with excellent food. The next day we went skiing at the gorgeous Mount Alyeska Resort, which was the favorite activity of the week. In the evenings we went hiking in and around Anchorage, which was amazing because there was about 3 feet of snow on the ground. While hiking and driving around Anchorage we saw several moose! Later in the week we took a day trip down to Seward to see the Marine Life Center, which everyone, but especially the marine science majors, found fascinating. On Monday, we got down to the serious business of volunteering.

We served at The Bird Treatment and Learning Center where we fixed cages and painted a huge lobby and an office. Our group had the opportunity to see birds of prey such as eagles and hawks up close. The next day we volunteered at the Alaskan Native Heritage Center where we painted and did some landscaping work. The curator was extremely nice and gave us a tour of the museum, which was very interesting and unique. Finally, we spent three days helping the recreation center of the City Parks of Anchorage. They were hosting an Easter egg hunt for under-privileged children and we helped stuff eggs with treats, sort books, and decorate the center. The employees were amazing and loaned us sleds one day so we could go sledding on their hill. Overall, it was an amazing trip with an amazing group, and I am so glad that I got to go!

View photos from Alaska