3 July 2018 The Farewell Tour

Today is my last full day at Toolik. I'm planning on doing as much as I can fit in to one day with my team. I've been trying to figure out what to say about my month here on the north slope, but I'm still trying to take it all in. So, I don't have any profound revelations or grand statements. Just this, I truly love this region and am humbled to have been a part of its story. While I'm going to miss hanging out with Jeremy and Matt all day, doing all the science, I'm excited at the same time to get back and start telling people what I've learned here and bringing this story to my classroom and community.

Thank You!!

There are so many people who help make all this an amazing, life changing experience. Thank you to PolarTREC, ARCUS, and the National Science Foundation for finding the funding to make this program happen. I'm grateful for your investment of resources into my professional development and, therefore, my students' lives.

Thank you Janet, Judy, Zeb, Ronnie, and all of the PolarTREC staff who take care of us out here and make sure we have all the support we need.

Thanks to the Barrow ITEX crews from UTEP and GVSU that made me feel like I was a part of the team.

Thanks to all the researchers that let me hang out with them, both in Barrow and Toolik, to see what amazing things they are doing here in the arctic. It really helped to open my eyes to complexity of this ecosystem.

Thank you to the Toolik staff and CPS staff who work quietly behind the scenes, but make it possible for all these amazing people to focus on their work. The science can't happen without you.

And to my husband who was so supportive of this experience, I'm so grateful for your sacrifice in this too. I can't do this without you.

Finally, to my FIU family, Dr. Steve Oberbauer, Dr. Jeremy May, and Matthew Simon. Thank you for patiently teaching me the intricacies of remote sensing, phenology, and making me feel as though I've always been a part of the team. I'm going to miss you guys so much. There's my moment.