It was aĀ graduate schoolĀ professor who inspired Alex Hernandez to join the National ParkĀ Service. Hearing her professorāsĀ stories about his time working as a part time park ranger at Yosemite National Park led to Alex applying for an internship as a museum technician at Grant-Kohrs National Historic Site in Montana.Ā It was there where she fell in love with the National Park Serviceās mission, the work that park service employees do, andĀ the public service aspect of the job:Ā āfrom that point on, I knew I wanted to work for the NPS.Ā Getting paid to work at some of the most historic and beautiful places in the country is a big perk of the job!āĀ

Alex Hernandez
Today, Alex is a regional program manager for the National Heritage Areas program based outside of Denver, CO. National Heritage Areas are places that recognize the national importance of a regionās history and sites.Ā Of the 55 total NHAs across the country, Alex is responsible for the seven in Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah.Ā As regional program manager, Alex works with NHA staff toĀ make sureĀ they haveĀ theĀ federal fundingĀ neededĀ to completeĀ community projects for heritage tourism, conservation, historic preservation, recreation or education initiatives.Ā

Alex Hernandez at Cache la Poudre River National Heritage Area
As part of this work, AlexĀ gets to work directly with NHAs to secureĀ an NPS preservationist who might be able to advise how best to preserve a historic building or an oral historian who canĀ train NHA staff on how to document stories from community elders.Ā Alex sums up this work simply by sayingĀ āit gives me great joy being able to partner with National Heritage Areas to further community projects like highlighting oralĀ histories of underrepresented stories, developing interpretive signs along recreational trails, orĀ developing preservation plans for historic buildingsā.
In her twelve years with the National Park Service, Alex has been able to participate in someĀ trulyĀ unique experiences.Ā She has participated in adobe ruin preservation at Casa Grande Ruins National Monument,Ā traveled to the outskirts of the Arizona desert to visitĀ aĀ National Historic Landmark that was formerly a Japanese American internment camp during World WarĀ II, andĀ hiked the backcountry trails of Rocky Mountain National Park while identifying archeological sites.Ā

Alex Hernandez at Cache la Poudre River National Historic Area
It wasĀ during her time at Rocky Mountain National Park where she also had aĀ run-in with an unexpected park visitor.Ā While walkingĀ towardĀ the visitor centerĀ early one morning, AlexĀ found herself face-to-face with an elk that had itself walked onto the same trail just moments earlier. Upon noticing one another, both elk and Alex leapt into the airĀ in a state of shockĀ before the elkĀ fortunatelyĀ darted off in the opposite direction.Ā Relieved to be alive,Ā Alex was able to have a good laugh about the wholeĀ situationĀ andĀ now looks back on it with a sense of wonder and amusement.Ā
ClickĀ hereĀ toĀ learn more aboutĀ National Heritage Areas and to find one near you.Ā
Behind every national park is a team of ordinary people dedicated to maintaining the extraordinary. They maintain habitats, educate visitors, and preserve history. Theyāre volunteers, rangers, museum curators, engineers, architects, and more. Theyāre our Park Ambassadors ā linking us to these treasured places and all the stories they hold.Ā Send thanks to an NPS employeeĀ or volunteer today.Ā Ā Ā
The āNational Park AmbassadorsāĀ video series is produced by the National Park Foundation and its Find Your Park premier partnerĀ L.L.Bean, with additional support fromĀ The Coca-Cola Company.