Camp Alumni Index
Gina
Katie
Jen
Nicole
Conservation
Adventure Camps
HOME
ADVENTURE CAMP ALUMNI
CAREER PROFILE

 

Katie
Animal Care Specialist, Busch Gardens Tampa Bay
Adventure Camp Counselor Alumni:Busch Gardens Tampa Bay

When Katie was attending school at Michigan State University, working daily with a nearly 2-ton animal wasn't quite part of her plan. In fact, it wasn't until she became a Camp Counselor at Busch Gardens Tampa in 2003 that her eyes were opened to these amazing animals. After graduating school with a degree in Zoology, Animal Behavior and Evolutionary Biology in 2005, Katie packed her bags and headed to Florida. For the last three years she has worked directly with rhinoceros at Busch Gardens Tampa as an Animal Care Specialist.

With the support of a partnership between Earthwatch and the SeaWorld and Busch Gardens Conservation Fund, Katie traveled to Kenya to participate in the Saving Sweetwater's Rhinos Expedition, a project aimed at protecting black rhinos residing in and around Kenya's Ol Pejeta Conservancy. If you ask her what favorite thing about her job is, she'll simply say, "It's fun! I get to come to work and have fun, while at the same time doing something more to help an animal that is critically endangered and needs our help to save them."
 
 
Katie (left) describes her time as an Adventure Camp counselor as being “part grownup camper and part teacher. We would go into Busch Gardens and ride the roller coasters. We went to SeaWorld on a field trip, and we also went to Discovery Cove. I got to do it all with the campers”.  

My Earthwatch Expedition site was on Ol Pejeta Conservancy, in Kenya. As part of the Earthwatch experience, my volunteer team spent a day learning about Ol Pejeta's Community Programs. One of the first places we visited was a construction site. Workers from Ol Pejeta & the surrounding community were building a new Primary School. A few of the local children were so excited to have a school near their homes they visited the construction site every day. We were able to meet the students and talk to them about living near Ol Pejeta, the native wildlife, and their new school. I had brought a few SeaWorld & Busch Gardens shirts from Tampa to share on an occasion such as this. They were all really excited, especially about the cheetah on the logo. However, they loved the big logo on the back SO much, they put the shirts on backwards! They said "Asante sana!" (thank you very much!), I laughed and replied "Karibu!" (you're welcome).
 

Hometown:

   Ypsilanti, Michigan
College/degree:  

Michigan State University, Bachelor's degree in Zoology, Animal Behavior, & Evolutionary Biology
Favorite animal:  

The one that makes me laugh
"I have an awesome job" moment:   Watching a rhino calf discover rain for the first time. Only to realize he hadn't yet discovered how to run without falling down.
Messiest day on the job:   Getting peed on by a sneaky male rhino. He loves to catch us off guard and claim us as his territory!
Adventure Camp memory:   Standing on the back of a zoo truck, watching my campers feed a group of curious giraffes. The rising sun just broke through the clouds and it was like a postcard. I remember thinking "where else could moments like this happen?" You couldn't help but smile.
What I wish I knew then:   I didn't know everything. Sometimes it takes a truly remarkable experience to make you see the possibilities that are out there.
RETURN TO TOP
RETURN TO PREVIOUS PAGE