My name is Elias Stroock, and I’m an Oregon State University Extension Service Groundwater Protection intern in the Willamette Region. This summer, I’ve been actively involved in community events, educating residents about private wells and septic systems, and conducting nitrate water tests.

Elias Stroock at the Toledo Farmers Market
Elias Stroock at the Toledo Farmers Market. Photo: Elsa Buchholz

A focal point of my personal project was creating a map to visualize areas with high engagement and turnout for water testing. I enjoyed visiting new towns in Oregon and interacting with people from diverse backgrounds. Through these interactions, I gained a deeper understanding of the personal connections people have to their land. I felt confident in my ability to gather necessary information and assist residents with their water system concerns. Additionally, I utilized our publications as a tool to educate people about various aspects of their groundwater systems.

I was pleased to collaborate with other Extension programs, such as the Master Gardeners, at these events. These interactions allowed for more in-depth discussions about how different Extension programs benefit the community. My interactions with senior Extension employees also gave me a different perspective into the interpersonal skills necessary to communicate scientific information in a tangible manner. In addition, I was able to attend staff meetings for Linn, Benton and Marion County Extension offices. These meetings gave me an opportunity to share the work I have been doing with a wide array of people I otherwise wouldn’t have interacted with. I was also able to field questions about mapping technologies and think about how broadly applicable my skills are in relation to all the different parts of Extension.

One challenge I faced during this internship was time management. At an event in Cottage Grove, I was the sole representative and, due to poor planning, arrived unprepared. To my disbelief, many people had shown up early in hopes of getting their water tested, this caused me to start feeling a great deal of pressure. I had to quickly seek assistance from the market organizer and other vendors to get set up and start testing. This experience taught me the importance of staying organized and maintaining a confident demeanor when presenting crucial information to the public. I hope to continue practicing humility and seeking help when needed, especially in demanding professional situations.

Hi everyone! My name is Jackie Ruff, and I’m thrilled to share a bit about my journey and the work I’ve been doing. Currently, I’m in my third year of undergrad at Oregon State University, majoring in environmental science with a concentration in chemistry and the environment and minoring in education. It’s been a fantastic ride so far, blending my love for science with a passion for teaching.

Rocks painted by intern Jackie Ruff for the community garden in Marion County.
Rocks painted by intern Jackie Ruff for the community garden in Marion County. Photo: Jackie Ruff

I’m based out of the Oregon State University Extension Service office in Benton County, but my work takes me across various counties through the Groundwater Quality Education Program. This program is an amazing initiative that aims to protect and improve our groundwater quality. Since starting in October, I’ve had the incredible opportunity to engage with communities and make a tangible difference in people’s lives.

One of the key aspects of my role is organizing outreach events throughout different counties. These events provide free well water screening for nitrate and offer education on wells and septic systems. It’s a rewarding experience to see how these efforts help ensure the safety and health of our communities. Many people rely on well water for their daily needs and educating them about potential contaminants and how to maintain their systems is crucial. It’s not just about testing water; it’s about empowering people with the knowledge they need to protect their families and the environment.

Another project that we have been working on involves painting inspiration rocks. These aren’t just any rocks — they’re little pieces of art and hope. We donate them to the Marion County Juvenile Department to inspire visitors to maintain positive outlooks on life. It might seem like a small gesture, but sometimes a bit of color and a few encouraging words can make a world of difference to someone going through a tough time. The process of painting these rocks is therapeutic and fun, and knowing they bring a smile to someone’s face makes it all the more special.

Balancing my studies and this work can be challenging, but it’s incredibly fulfilling. My education in environmental science, particularly with a focus on chemistry and the environment, gives me a solid foundation to understand the complexities of groundwater issues. Meanwhile, my minor in education helps me effectively communicate and share this knowledge with the community. It’s a perfect blend that prepares me for a future where I can continue making a positive impact.

Hi everyone! My name is Elsa Buchholz, and I am currently going into my fourth year as an undergraduate student at Oregon State University. If everything goes according to plan, I will be graduating this coming fall. I am majoring in Public Health with an option in Health Promotion and Health Behavior, as well as a minor in Environmental and Occupational Health and a certificate in Medical Humanities. I am based in the Corvallis OSU Extension office as an intern for the Groundwater Protection Program. Although I do not have a set career path at the moment, my main passion is in environmental health. I am particularly interested in climate and reproductive health, and I want to research the intersection between the two if possible. I plan to continue my education in graduate school to explore these areas further. This internship over the summer is my first experience working with the OSU Extension Service.

Elsa Buchholz at the Tri-county business expo in Lane County
Elsa Buchholz at the Tri-county business expo with OSU Extension in Lane County. Photo: Kelci Free

This summer I hope to learn more about community outreach and the efforts that are required to make a positive impact on the health of the community and the environment. I am particularly looking forward to the opportunity to schedule, plan, and participate in my own events. While I have had the chance to help create and send out postcards for events, advertise them online, and participate in them during my internship so far, I am excited to take on the responsibility of organizing multiple events from start to finish. I have been brainstorming several project ideas that I believe will both contribute to the goals of the OSU Extension Service, as well as relate to my personal interests in the field of public health. One of these ideas is to design and implement a survey or questionnaire that gathers important information from community members. This survey would aim to better understand how people discovered the Groundwater Protection Program, and the OSU Extension Service in general, how they heard about our events, whether they had their water tested for nitrate at our events, if they received any publications on well water or septic systems, and what changes, if any, they made after attending our events. Collecting and analyzing this data would help us to better understand the impact of our efforts and identify any areas for improvement. This project would help us refine our outreach strategies, as well as ensure that we are effectively addressing the needs of the community.

A woman sit at an outdoor table covered with a black Extension Service tablecloth and gives the thumbs up sign.
Ava Cordle at the OSU Extension booth.
Photo credit: Olivia Jacobs

Hello everyone! I am already in my last week of my summer internship with OSU Extension’s groundwater protection program. I have really enjoyed getting to learn more about well water and getting to go out in the community to test water for nitrate. I have had the opportunity to grow by planning and attending events throughout the summer. It has been exciting to attend events, since I had been working on planning some of them back in May and June!

A rack of test tubes filled with water.
Testing well water for nitrate.
Photo credit: Ava Cordle

Some of the different events I went to this summer were Harrisburg Sounds of Summer, Silverton Farmers Market, the Corvallis farmers market and more! At these events we set up a booth where we offer free nitrate testing for people in the community to bring in their well water. To run a test, we take a bit of their well water and we use reagents that change the color of the water depending on how much nitrate is present. At a clinic I did at the Lacomb Grange I did 59 tests in just three hours! We also offer publications and information on well water and septic systems, and a lot of people stop by just to ask questions. Attending these events was my favorite part of the internship. I found it rewarding after spending a lot of time planning them.

Overall, some of my favorite parts about this internship was meeting and working with the other groundwater interns, talking with community members and getting to attend events all over Benton, Linn, Lane, Marion and Lincoln counties. I have learned so much about well water over the past few months. Coming into this internship I had never had well water and did not know much about the care of well water. I also gained skills in community outreach, creating flyers and postcards, and got to learn about the 4-H program by volunteering to help at Extension booths at fairs.

– Ava Cordle

A young woman holds a test tube filled with water and smiles.
Olivia Jacobs at the Sweet Home Farmers Market
Photo credit: Kelci Free

Hi, my name is Olivia Jacobs and I work under Chrissy Lucas-Woodruff in the Groundwater Protection Education program. I just finished my third year at Oregon State studying Ecological Engineering, which is directly connected with my work. Last term, in my ecohydrology class, we learned about the two types of aquifers and how wells interact with local hydrology. In my internship, I have learned much more about how human interactions with the environment improve or diminish well water quality. Next week I get to learn more about septic systems — yay!

Looking over the shoulder of a woman holding a colorful well water testing kit.
Testing well water for nitrate.
Photo credit: Kelci Free

After two weeks with OSU Extension, I have done four events, three of which included testing the community’s well water samples for nitrate. I love being a part of people’s journey to learn more about their groundwater and care for their home water systems. And, of course, seeing the excitement around Extension and meeting folks from all over Oregon is always a treat!

Through this internship, I want to learn about what is important to the members of all the counties we serve. I want to educate as best I can while learning about the intricacies of human-environment interactions.

Alongside this internship, I also work year-round as an Academic Coach at the Academic Success Center at OSU. My work mainly involves helping my student peers with their academic goals and insights. I get to work with folks with different backgrounds, learning styles and perspectives on the world around them, which is my favorite part of the job. I hope my communication skills as a coach translate to my interactions with the community this summer.

A man in an orange shirt sits under a canopy at an outdoor table, surrounded by signs and papers about well water testing.
Ahad Aziz stresses the importance of well water testing at the Independence Farmers Market in September. Photo by Morgan Neil of the Polk Soil and Water Conservation District.

This summer, I was given the opportunity to integrate public health initiatives into the OSU Extension Well Water Program with Chrissy Lucas in Benton, Linn, Lane, Marion and Polk counties. I was fortunate enough to interview several healthcare professionals, public health and environmental science professors and groundwater experts to learn more about the intersectionality of health promotion and disease prevention. I was able to interact with individuals from several different county health departments, the Oregon Water Resources Department, and professors at the Oregon Health & Science University and Portland State University who specialize in science implementation, public health policy promotion and control interventions.  

To help bring more awareness to the Well Water Program I collaborated with the different Extension Service offices and with campus resources to design and display posters and encourage the public to get their well water tested. I also helped with the Be Well Project study in Jackson County and sent out many letters and postcards to the five counties about upcoming nitrate screening clinics. 

With my internship coming to an end, I’m writing a final report for Chrissy and the Southern Willamette Valley Groundwater Management Area Committee on how information relating to nitrate and other contaminants in domestic wells can be shared with other healthcare professionals. What I have learned is that well owners who perceive themselves as having more control over the problems within their wells are more likely to test and perform well maintenance.  

A big shout out to Chrissy, my fellow interns Briauna Herrick and Kelci Free, Nicole Mason, the office specialist in the Extension office in Benton County; and many others for their enthusiasm and for helping me grow. Before this summer, I think I had gone to only one farmers market, but with this internship, I was able to visit many farmers markets, meet a huge variety of people that I probably would never have interacted with and I gained valuable knowledge from their experiences. 

 

Ahad Aziz (from left) with fellow interns Briauna Herrick and Kelci Free at a nitrate testing table at the Corvallis Farmers Market.

Hey everyone! My name is Ahad Aziz, and I am from Tigard, Oregon. I just recently graduated from Oregon State with a Bachelor of Arts in psychology and have a few more classes until I also finish my Bachelor of Science in public health with a focus in health management and policy. I’m on track to graduate in December, and I will still be at Oregon State, working on a Master of Business Administration degree. My background is definitely different than most of the other OSU Extension interns. Still, I’m glad to be able to provide that unique and “outsider” perspective to the Extension service and groundwater protection program in the mid-Willamette Valley.

So far, I have worked at four well-water testing clinics and have many more to be a part of for the rest of the summer. My specific intern project is working with the medical community in the area, mainly from Salem to Eugene, and providing health care professionals with the knowledge to best support their patients who rely on well water. I’ve found that there’s a disconnect between health care providers and their rural patients as not many of them realize that some symptoms that their patients come in with might have something to do with nitrate or other unhealthy things in the water.

With that being said, I’m going to shamelessly plug the fact that if you live in the mid-Willamette Valley, you can get your well water tested at an OSU Extension office near you! Just bring half-a-cup of water in a clean cup to Extension offices in Benton, Lane, Linn, Marion and Polk counties, Monday through Friday, during normal business hours, and we’ll get your water tested for nitrate. I’ll be at the office in Benton County if you want to meet me personally, or to give me life advice because I have no idea what I want to do with my future.

I’ll talk to you guys again in September!

Briauna Herrick

Hey there! My name is Briauna Herrick, and I grew up in Springfield, Oregon. I just finished my third year at Oregon State University, where I am majoring in agricultural sciences. I decided on this major because agriculture was something I had grown up involved in, and it just seemed familiar and natural. I grew up on my family’s farm in Springfield, where we have a produce stand and grow a wide variety of crops throughout the year. I’m on track to graduate after the winter term of 2023.

As I have pursued my degree, my passion for agricultural industry has grown. I have had many opportunities to get involved through classes, clubs and jobs. Outside of classes I am involved with two clubs on campus. I served as the treasurer for the Collegiate Farm Bureau club and was just elected president for the upcoming school year. I am also a part of a ministry group called Cru and am currently serving on the leadership team this year. Through my involvement with Cru, I had the opportunity to go on a mission trip to El Salvador in March where we installed water filters for many families and got to know individuals in different communities. I have been involved with both organizations for the past three years and they have showed me the importance of sharing my direct experience with agriculture and surrounding myself with community.

This summer I am interning with Chrissy Lucas, Extension groundwater protection specialist and outreach coordinator in Extension’s groundwater protection and education program. Since starting my internship a few weeks ago, I have been to two nitrate screenings, learned a lot about wells and septic tanks, cut and stamped many postcards, and learned how to use the copier. More recently, I have been busy with collecting information about wells and septic systems in other counties and preparing for upcoming nitrate screenings. I have scheduled a few nitrate screenings and am looking forward to holding one at my family’s farm later this summer. The past few weeks have consisted of many emails, scheduling events and staying organized.

Before this internship I thought of Extension as a resource for the agricultural industry, but I didn’t know that so much goes into the job. It’s been fun learning more about Extension as a whole and meeting new people. There is a lot of networking, planning, and communicating. I’ve got a busy summer ahead of me and am looking forward to what is to come!