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I have called Pine Knoll Shores my vacation home since the 1960s. My family would come down from Durham for several weeks every year. As soon as it opened, a trip to the aquarium became an annual treat. Then, in 2002, my in-laws retired to PKS and began volunteering – at the “shell cart” and the “snake house”. I am excited to have been given the opportunity to also retire here (in 2017) and I cherish memories of my parents and my in-laws and their love for, and support of, the Pine Knoll Shores Aquarium. While I also enjoy the aquarium’s shell collection, and how it is a hand’s on opportunity for guests to relate to the marine environment, I have to admit to loving most being a salt marsh volunteer. Teaching guests about the plants and animals of this unique ecosystem is where I feel most connected.

My greatest adventure at Pine Knolls Shores Aquarium was in 2018. I wasn’t a volunteer yet. My family vacationed here for many years in Carteret county.
The dinosaur exhibit was at the Aquarium that year (2018). We enjoyed seeing the exhibits

I remember being a young child (in the late 1980s) and attending summer camp at the Fort Fisher Aquarium. Andy Wood and team taught us how to cast a net in shallow waters and then how to properly release (and not harm!) what we caught! It is still one of my favorite child memories!

My girls loved the behind the scenes tour and could have watched the main tank for hours.

Right before the Pine Knoll Shores location closed for renovations, I remember running through the sea turtle maze where you took the point of view of a hatchling trying to make it out safely into the ocean and how much fun it was to see all the endings. That visit I had to make a stop at my favorite part of the aquarium: the shark tooth fossil pit. I never imagined I could work here, but now that I do, I can’t imagine myself anywhere else.

Our family’s favorite memories from the Aquariums have always been those moments of awe when we get up close and personal with its residents!

My favorite memories of the NC Aquariums were visiting the Fort Fisher location with my family when I was young. The sharks and other large predatory fish were always captivating to me. I was born and raised in NC, and I am currently a PhD candidate at UNC’s Institute of Marine Sciences. I credit my passion for marine conservation to visiting the coast, including the Fort Fisher aquarium, as a child.

In the very early days of the Marine Resources Centers, admission was free and we operated with a very small staff. At PKS, we had seven full-time employees, open 9–5 seven days a week. The curators rotated weekend duties, which meant that on my weekend I was the only staff member on site. Its amazing to think that for the most part things went smoothly.

A number of years ago, my wife and I sponsored the Bronze Loggerhead turtle at Pine Knoll Shores in honor of our grandchildren. When our youngest grandchild saw the turtle and his name on it, he assumed it was his turtle and reminds us every time he visits. As a result, we enthusiastically continue our sponsorship.