Alaska BHA Spring 2025 Internship Recap
by Lillian Thorington
As my internship with Backcountry Hunters & Anglers comes to an end, I feel I have so much to reflect on. At the end of an expedition, my Outdoor Studies Classes have a system that helps us debrief and reflect. It goes like this: Say 1 thing you liked, 1 thing you learned, and 1 thing that surprised you.
Like
My favorite part of my internship was being mentored by Mary Glaves. She is such an inspiration and a role model. Not only is Mary a badass hunter, but she is also an amazing teacher and leader. Mary has been very generous with her time, and very willing to teach me. She taught me so much about hunting and how regulations are created. And of course, she taught me all about what goes into working with an amazing organization like Backcountry Hunters & Anglers.
Learned
I want to be an Alaska Wildlife Trooper, and during my internship I learned a lot about the process the Alaska Board of Game has in place to create and regulations. I feel that this will be so important for me when I become a wildlife trooper because I will more thoroughly understand how and why the regulations are in place.
Surprised
I think the thing that surprised me most was how generous and willing to help the Backcountry Hunters & Anglers community is! Throughout this internship I have met so many amazing and very cool people! Everyone was willing to help teach me, and there are so many outdoor experts with various focuses, who are involved in Backcountry Hunters & Anglers, from the Alaska Chapter Board, to speakers, sponsors, and volunteers.
I really look forward to continuing my involvement with Backcountry Hunters & Anglers as volunteer. The organization is an important voice for wild public lands and I highly recommend getting involved if you care at all about public lands. Thank you so much to everyone who made this internship so fantastic - and a special thank you to my mentor, Mary Glaves!
About Lillian Thorington