During a recent assembly meeting, the Kenai Peninsula Borough recognized the outstanding achievements of a local Girl Scout troop, which claimed first place in the 34th Caring for the Kenai Competition. The assembly commended the team, consisting of Caitlin Eskelen from Kenai Central High School, Emma Hinman from River City Academy, Katie Newkirk from Connections, and Liberty Stockman from Soldotna High School, for their innovative fire prevention project.

The project, which involved the construction and deployment of a bucket lending tree at campgrounds in the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge, aims to help prevent man-made wildfires by providing campers with a means to extinguish fires safely. This initiative has earned the team the prestigious President's Environmental Youth Award (PEYA), a recognition given by the Environmental Protection Agency in partnership with the White House Council on Environmental Quality. The PEYA program has celebrated exceptional environmental projects led by K-12 students for over 50 years.

The assembly's resolution highlighted that this marks the eighth time youth from the Kenai Peninsula have been honored as PEYA recipients. The award presentation is scheduled to take place in Washington, D.C., on August 1, 2024. The assembly expressed its appreciation for the hard work and commitment demonstrated by the young environmentalists and plans to send a copy of the resolution to the awardees and program creator Meryl Sikorsky.

Following the resolution, the young winners were invited to share insights about their project, further emphasizing the importance of community involvement in environmental stewardship.