Diversity and adventure are at the heart of our seasonal team. It's not only visitors from around the world who have life-changing experiences here amidst the majesty of Glacier National Park. Each summer, hundreds of young people from across the country and around the world come here to live and work at our lodges.
They work in our kitchens, serve our guests, maintain our gardens and form essential parts of our team. In their free time, they hike, paddle, play and explore. They form life-long friendships that stretch around the globe. And they learn - about themselves and about this place.
This video by Atenea Rios, who was a retail associate in the gift shop at Glacier Park Lodge in 2015, sums up the power of this experience. She recently won the CIEE's 70th Anniversary Alumni Storytelling Contest (video link).
The Summer Work Travel (SWT) program is run by the US Department of State (J-1 visa) as a cultural exchange program. The Council on International Eductional Exchange (CIEE) is one of many agents acting as visa sponsors for students. Glacier Park Collection's (GPC) Manager of Recruitment and Employee Development Nicholas Berry says the program helps GPC fill its team with enthusiastic and committed team members.
"They come to earn some money, sure. But mainly they come to live their dream and to share the American way of life," he says.
"The program allows GPC to meet staffing needs we'd otherwise struggle to meet," says Berry. "But as importantly, it brings diversity to our team."
Berry says it also helps bring cultural awareness to to the small, remote communities in which GPC operates, and serves as an invaluable international relations tool by "encouraging cultural understanding and learning."
Like the ones shown in Atenea Rios' short film, friendships are born here in Apgar Village, in East Glacier and in St. Mary (to name just a few places) that last a lifetime. It's our pleasure to help make these memories come to life.
For more information, visit our employment site.
