The Blue Hills community is made up of so many people from all over the area, including the towns touching the park, Greater Boston, and beyond. And with 1 million or so visitors enjoying the park every year, we want to make everyone feel welcome. That’s where our new part-time Community Engagement Specialist comes in.

Let’s learn a little more about Yasser Aponte right now.

What inspired you to join Friends of the Blue Hills?

Yasser: What inspired me was, to be honest, my own personal experience in the outdoors. It also mixes my personal interests with a work-related interest, which is to work in community engagement.

Like so many others, I actually started hiking again, and kind of being outdoors more during the pandemic. We were all stuck inside, and I was like, what can I do to kind of go outside alone and still be safe? And one of the easiest options was to go camping or hiking. One of my first hikes during the pandemic in 2020 was with friends on the Skyline Trail. It felt really good at the top of Great Blue, seeing that view, but also felt good internally that we were able to finish the whole thing.

What are you most excited to work on? 

Yasser: I can’t wait to meet outdoors, nature-oriented people, you know, the folks that volunteer or sign up for FBH programs, always putting their foot forward for stewardship. It’s a great community to be a part of, and it excites me to now be a part of that community and get to know those faces. I’m also really excited to build a stakeholder network that we can collaborate with organizationally to add to our programs and activities: youth programming, senior programming, whatever it may be. I want to help catch the interest of different organizations and see how they can be a part of what we’re doing.

What is a fun fact you can share about yourself?

Yasser: I read academic journals for fun. I love learning about anything and everything, whether it’s the environment, astronomy, geology, topography, automobiles, DEI work, anything. At least once a week, I try to go through the newest publications to learn the landscape of what’s going on, new innovations, and new research that’s being done.

We always love to ask this question. If you could have a superpower, what would it be?

Yasser: Telepathy. I think telepathy would help in my new role so I could communicate with everyone who drives by, or through, the Blue Hills. I’d tell them “Hey, we have programming. Hey, we have activities. Hey, come check out our community events.”

How should people get in touch with you?

Yasser: I would love to connect with people who love the Blue Hills! I’ll be in the park tabling at events and running free public programs. So say “hi” when you see me in person. And, when we’re not face to face, feel free to send me an email at yasser@friendsofthebluehills.org.