Hello everyone, I hope this newsletter finds you enjoying your summer months to the fullest. My name is Emily Herring and this July I will be starting with Hardin County Conservation as a county naturalist at Calkins Nature Center.

I grew up on a small acreage outside of Pleasantville, Iowa. Being the second of two daughters, my father took me under his wing and quickly turned me into a true tomboy. My family spent our vacations camping, fishing, hiking, and just enjoying the great outdoors.

After high school I attended and graduated from Iowa State University in the Animal Ecology Department with an interpretive option. I worked for four yeats at Saylorville Lake as an interpretive Co-op and park ranger, and have spent the past three years in Boone County as naturalist.

In our free time, my husband Joe and I spend as much time as possible pursuing our outdoor hobbies, which include snowshoeing, hiking, backpacking, camping, kayaking, canoeing, mountain biking, fishing, and birding. We are very eager to move to beautiful Hardin County and explore the many parks and recreational areas that it has to offer.

So the next time you're near the nature center, stop by and introduce yourself, I look forward to meeting you.

See you soon.


Meet and Greet with Calkins Nature Area's Summer Interns
by Jessica Lyman & Jim Henning

Hello everyone! My name is Jessica Lyman, I am 20 years old, and I am the new naturalist intern this summer at Calkins Nature Area. I grew up and still currently live East of Iowa Falls. Summer activities that I enjoy are camping, canoeing, tubing fishing and riding horses. I recently graduated from Ellsworth Community College from the Conservation Technology program, and I hope to find a job as a naturlist somewhere within the county servation system. Working here as a naturalist intern will be a great experience and I am looking forward to the many programs that we will have here this summer.

Hello all. My name is Jim Henning; I am spending this summer at Calkins Nature Area as an intern. I just graduated from EDD with a degree in Conseration Technology. After spending so much time out here for shcool, I couldn't think of a better place to do an internship. I am a 30 year old father of two great kids that are not happy that I get to come to the nature center all summer without bringing them. We spend a lot of time outdoors fishing, camping, hiking, and did I say fishing already? Calkins Nature Area has proved to be a place of nonstop learning for both me and my children, and I am very grateful for the opportunity to spend this summer as an intern here.