The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), in partnership with the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ), announced that the 34th Caring for the Kenai Competition winners had been selected to receive the prestigious President’s Environmental Youth Award (PEYA).
Regions recognized students across the country for their leadership and commitment to environmental education and each of EPA’s 1 stewardship.
Since the establishment of the original Environmental Education Act of 1970, The President’s Environmental Youth Award (PEYA) Program has recognized outstanding community-level environmental projects by K-12 youth for more than 50 years.
“Being selected to receive the President’s Environmental Youth Award is one of the highest honors of recognition that a young person can receive because it not only recognizes a youth’s environmental awareness but their moral commitment to follow through with a project that improves the quality of life for all living things. This is the 8th time youth from our community have been chosen for this honor. It speaks highly to our teachers and community leaders who support the CFK program. The signature
sponsor for many years has been the Marathon Petroleum Nikiski refinery,” said Merrill
Sikorski, student sponsor and creator of the Caring for the Kenai community partnership.
A team from Girl Scout Troop 210 made up of Caitlyn Eskelin (KCHS), Emma Hindman
(River City Academy), Kadie Newkirk (Connections) and Lyberty Stockman (SoHi) claimed 1 st
Place honors in this year’s CFK and were nominated for the PEYA award by Sikorski and Girl
Scout Troop 210 leader Leah Eskelin. Their invention was bucket trees.
In an interview with Sikorski for his show, Life on the Kenai, Caitlyn Eskelin explained that a bucket tree is a bucket station that is surrounded by the peninsula and campsites.
“[It’s] a way to put out your fires every time you go camping, because sometimes you may not have a bucket or a way to actually carry the water onto your fire. And so, we decided like, let’s get an idea to reduce human-caused fires, you know? We’ve been getting a lot of forest fires,” said Caitlyn Eskelin.
The group created this idea after watching their parents fight the fires in Funny River. They hope it can help prevent man-made fires.
“We’re looking forward to bringing Bucket Trees to campgrounds all around Alaska and hopefully even the lower 48,” said Kadie Newkirk, a Connections student, “Building the bucket trees as a team was a great learning experience.”
While being able to have the ability to attend an awards presentation in Washington, D.C. is a huge honor, the team needs help to cover their transportation and housing costs. Eskelin has set up a GoFundMe account, or a tax-deductible receipt is available with a donation to the Girl Scouts of Alaska Fund Troop 210 PEYA Award Trip. She says that any donation from the community is a big help.
“Right now, we’re trying to get our flights, hotels, and hopefully our meals covered. We are a Girl Scout troop. Girl Scouts of Alaska is a nonprofit 501 C 3 organization, so donations can be tax deductible, and there are tax letters available as long as those donations go through our Girl Scout Council in Anchorage. So, Girl Scouts of Alaska, a phone call to them would be easiest. We are number 2102210,” said Leah Eskelin.
If you would like to donate, contact Leah Eskelin at 907-398-2963.
