Hello! Ciao! Salute! Take your pick.

My name is Sara and I’m part of the Winter 2015 Intern Team. I’m currently a third year at the University of Washington studying restoration ecology and environmental horticulture. I hope to use this degree to repair damaged areas in all kinds of environments. I originally started off in school as a civil engineer, but found it wasn’t the best fit for me despite how interesting I found it.

Where are you from?
Born in Portland, OR, I grew up just 15 minutes across the Columbia River in Vancouver, WA. My house is actually only a month older than I am!

What brought you to the In My Backyard project?
My roommate actually found this internship through a History Fellowship she’s involved in, and suggested it to me. Seemed like the perfect fit, so I went for it. Talk about experience points (XP).

What would you choose to eat if you could only consume one thing for the rest of your life?
Now, I love food, so this is really hard. However, I think it’s safe to assume that as long as I can eat breakfast food I’ll be happy (just not French Toast).

If you were a tree, what kind of tree would you be?
I’d like to say something cool like an oak tree or a giant sequoia, but in all honesty I’m probably a cedar. It’s one of my favorite trees not only because of its smell and shape, but also because it’s one of the best kinds of woods to do wood working with! I made a bookshelf out of cedar wood just before entering high school.

What are your top three biggest adventures?

1. Rome, and all related travels in Italy. When I was still interested in civil engineering I went on a study abroad that was centered in Rome. I realized that I like to explore older cities like that in depth and got lost a few times exploring the underground of a few churches, and almost in the catacombs (don’t get lost, the catacombs all look the same, and it was a bit terrifying). I also ended up in a closed off section of the Vatican museum right after seeing the Pope. Whoops. We visited a few other cities in Italy, but the heart of it all happened in Rome.
2. Paris, with my mom and best friend. A smaller group than Rome, and a lot more walking. And these catacombs had actual skulls and bones in them! Surprisingly, rows of skulls stacked up to my height on either side of the tunnels got real boring, real quick.
3. Silverstar Mountain hike with my family + dogs. Not really an adventure, but at the top we could see the peaks of seven mountains! Fun family bonding time and a great way to tire out the dogs. When we got back I did nothing but eat and sleep for the next 12 hours.

If given the opportunity, where would you choose to live after college?
I would actually love to constantly move around all across the globe, maybe have an apartment in Seattle and Paris as home bases. However, I have yet to hear of a globe-trotting restorationist, so I might just have to blaze that trail myself.

What are you most passionate about, that you could talk about forever?
Movies (Marvel especially), Marvel comics (Deadpool is my fave), food, things concerning the interactions that occur in nature, and a handful of video games. I’m a bit shy but if I get out of my shell I can talk quite a bit about anything really. Or listen. I’m a great listener.

What is your favorite memory of your backyard?
Before the developers came and built houses right behind us, I used to be able to see Mt. St. Helens from any window in the back of my house. Once or twice a cow got out of the pasture that was there originally, and since we didn’t have a fence up they would come into our backyard to graze. Once or twice we’ve also had peacocks run through our backyard, although I don’t know where they came from or where they were going. Godspeed, colorful chickens.