Growing up UEC: Establishing deep roots in the community

In 2009 eight year old Jamarquan was just a boy riding his bike through Washington Park when a staff member at the newly opened Urban Ecology Center, invited him to learn about decomposers. That simple invitation transformed his life.

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“It provided me my first opportunity to have a safe space outside of the volatile environments I often came up in,” Jamarquan reflects. Living with his mother and four siblings as a single-parent household just blocks from the Center, he found more than activities—he found mentors, including Scott, who became an important guide and role model in his life.

Almost daily, Jamarquan explored the park, participating in community cleanups, canoeing, sledding, maple sugaring, invasive species removal, camping, fishing, and bird watching.

Years later, now a college graduate, author, educator, and youth mentor, Jamarquan experienced a powerful full-circle moment when he reconnected with Joey Zocher, a staff member who remembered him as “just a little boy.”

Today, Jamarquan volunteers with various community organizations, carrying forward lessons about nature and community. “Nature is not something to be fixed or a puzzle to be solved, but something we need to actively take care of”.

Bonus words from Jamarquan: 

"I am grateful beyond words. 🌿

To be featured in the Urban Ecology Center’s Naturehood newsletter? Issa highlight from my week of what representation and visibility looks like.

What began as a childhood sanctuary has evolved into a site of return, reflection, and reclamation. Over 15 years later, I’ve come back not only to serve, but to sow deeper purpose into the soil that first held me. I return not only as a volunteer, but as a living testament to what happens when community meets care. 💚

The same place that once gave me sanctuary as a kid just trying to breathe… now holding space for my story as a grown man rooted in purpose.

Thank you to the entire UEC team for this full-circle moment—for recognizing not just where I’ve been, but who I’ve become.

This isn’t just a highlight—it’s a harvest.

Proof that when you plant in love, legacy blooms. 🌾