Ambassadors bring hands-on science to historic site

Once a year, a bright fall September Sunday brings hundreds of visitors to the annual harvest festival at Los Luceros Historic Site in Alcalde. This year, the attendees enjoyed apple picking, traditional dance shows and craft demonstrations — as well as the chance to try out some cutting-edge science and learn about some of the career possibilities at the Laboratory.

The Lab’s Challenge Tomorrow STEM education trailers set up among the trees, staffed by employee volunteer ambassadors who guided visitors through hands-on activities like working in a glovebox, or measuring and separating liquids with pipettes and centrifuges.

The ambassadors — Laboratory researchers and professionals — also shared personal stories about their careers, giving members of the public of all ages some insight into the work done at the Lab, and the range of job opportunities there.

As a way to give back and model some good qualities after his children were born, Laboratory R&D Engineer Ryan Bratton began volunteering with Northern New Mexico organizations. He particularly enjoyed teaching others about STEM, so the Challenge Tomorrow trailers were an obvious fit.

“What stands out the most is the different people I met during the day, from a little girl that was very interested in PPE and seemed to hang on my every word, to an older couple that I spoke to at length about LANL’s history,” he says of his experience at Los Luceros.

“My favorite part of the day had to be when my family came by and I got to answer the questions that my own kids asked about STEM topics!”

The Challenge Tomorrow trailers are taking a break over the winter, but look out for more opportunities to pay them a visit next spring.