A half-hour into our annual Lookout Mountain Conservancy’s Shrimp Boil party, and four interns - Jimmie, Aasean, Arbey and John - are giving a tour to nearly a dozen guests through the 50-acre bouldering park in St. Elmo.
They’d told some history - about the train that spilled molten glass, the old floods that led to the naming of the Far Enough Trail - when they reached the ever-popular Guild-Hardy Trail.
The Trail runs from up the side of Lookout Mountain, connecting to a larger network of trails; one study from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga estimated some 70,000 people enjoy the trail each year.
“Who keeps all this clean?’ one woman asked.
Four pairs of hands go up. Simultaneously, as if all tethered together.
“We do.”
We.
Do.
It was one of those moments I wish we could big-screen project across the whole city.
Why?
Because all these beautiful components of LMC’s work were present in that one moment: the land, our supporters and friends, and the ongoing and majestic work of these young men and women from The Howard School. They are our interns. Our future leaders. Our future conservationists.
This was real-time, present-tense, in-person realization. Ten supporters were standing alongside the four interns responsible on the very ground that tens of thousands of folks enjoy annually. It was a convergence, a moment of importance that may have felt small, but is giant when seen in context.
It was a full-circle moment. And that was just the beginning.
The 2025 Shrimp Boil had layers upon layers of meaning and fun. Teachers and administrators from The Howard School laughed with business owners and creatives and parents and foundation leaders. Interns served food, greeted guests, offered tours, hugged old teachers while also taking the stage to perform - and lead - dances.
It was big-hearted community at its finest: different parts of the city coming together in support and celebration of the Howard Leadership Program. Since 2012, the program has combined conservation with mentorship and employment and transformation, as students from The Howard School work alongside LMC leaders to maintain and steward LMC lands.
The Shrimp Boil is the fundraiser and celebration of that.
Miguel Morales and his 1885 Grill team served a fabulous meal.
Hutton & Smith Brewery donated four separate kegs of craft beer.
All of it taking place at the party spot near the gardens overlooking the city and Tennessee River.
“You always hear about Chattanooga being a city in a park,” said Chelsea McIntire. “You feel that here.”
When Chelsea and Cody McIntire visited LMC’s Bouldering Park at Old Wauhatchie Pike for the first time, they, like many others, were so surprised.
It’s this best-kept-secret in Chattanooga, a place and program that holds so much beauty and meaning, yet so few know about it.
“The first time we came up here, we were enthralled,” said Chelsea. “It is fantastic.”
They were partying at the Shrimp Boil, enjoying drinks and dinner as some of the interns began telling their own stories.
“It’s inspiring,” said Cody. “I didn’t realize the program was this in-depth.”
Most people don’t. LMC hires, mentors, pays, trains and supports dozens of students from The Howard School as interns in the Howard Leadership Program. In turn, they care for each other, themselves and the land around them.
“Over the years, LMC has taught me many valuable lessons, but the most important one is how to be a team player,” said Jennifer Mateo. “I used to be shy, quiet, and uncomfortable socializing. Looking back, I realize it was simply because I had never been exposed to that kind of environment. LMC showed me that it’s okay to put yourself out there, to work with others, and to lead.”
Jennifer spoke at the Shrimp Boil, telling her powerful story of leadership and transformation. She’s a rising junior at Southern Adventist University and will soon be the Program leader at LMC.
“I guide interns and encourage them to discover what they love doing most for their future careers,” she said. “This isn’t a job - it’s a passion. Conservation has shaped me in ways I never expected. Through the challenges and obstacles I faced at LMC, I gained invaluable life lessons and real-world experiences that I can apply to my adult life.”
“LMC is more than just conservation; it’s about transformation. It’s about empowering one another, breaking down barriers and proving that no challenge is too great when you have a strong team by your side.”
That night, those four interns touring the group down the Guild-Hardy Trail represented the embodiment of a strong team, side-by-side, in conversation and transformation.
Who cares for the land?
Who cares for one another?
Who serves the greater Chattanooga region?
We.
Do.
(David Cook is the former columnist with the Times Free Press and founder of Food as a Verb, our region’s only media devoted to local food stories. He also serves as the Director of Storytelling for the Lookout Mountain Conservancy. He may be reached at david@lookoutmountainconservancy.org)