DOINews: USFWS-NE Region: Dr. Mamie Parker Reminds Students: No Obstacles Too Great

	Dr. Mamie Parker speaks to students at Ben Franklin High School at Masonville Cove in Baltimore, Md. Photo by Devin Ray, USFWS.

Mamie Parker, former assistant director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, riveted a student audience at Ben Franklin High School at Mason Cove in Baltimore, Md., on Feb. 6, 2014. She recapped the many hardships she endured while growing up but emphasized she did not let them block her from working for what she loved most; wildlife and the environment.

Dr. Parker is currently on the Board of Directors of the Chesapeake Conservancy, an organization dedicated to strengthening the connection between people and the watershed.

Chesapeake Bay Field Office biologist Devin Ray then elaborated to the 9th, 11th, and 12th graders on the variety of career choices in the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service,including wildlife biologist, fishery biologist, refuge manager, wildlife inspector, fire fighter, pilots, IT specialist and more.

Ben Franklin High School at Masonville Cove is part of the Urban Refuge Initiative partnership at Masonville Cove Environmental Education Center. This was the first such partnership where the Service coordinates with state agencies and local groups to connect an urban populace with wildlife on existing recreational properties. Other partners in the Masonville Cove Urban Refuge Initiative include Living Classrooms Foundation, National Aquarium, and Maryland Port Administration.

By: Devin Ray, USFWS

Feb. 29, 2014

This story appears in U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Field Notes here.

Related Link:

Masonsonville Cove Urban Wildlife Refuge: http://www.masonvillecove.org/