Sharkathon donation helps King High students enjoy day at Padre Island National Seashore

CORPUS CHRISTI — Mary Lou Martinez excitedly ran to the railing overlooking the water at the Padre Island National Seashore.

Too distracted to apply sunscreen, Mary Lou, 15, climbed onto the railing Tuesday morning and breathed deeply the salty air as she watched the Gulf waves.

The Sharkathon fishing tournament’s donation helped bring her and her classmates in King High School’s special education department to the seashore for a daylong field trip.

Dubbed Hidden Treasures, the class is one of a handful of education and conservation programs at the park.

Park Ranger William “Buzz” Botts said in the past two years the park received about $6,000 from Sharkathon, a tournament on the seashore. The money funds park conservation programs.

“We’ve been lucky,” Botts, a nine-year veteran of the park, said of the donations.

After a brisk application of sunblock, the fidgety students did their best to give Park Ranger Chelsea Aldrich their undivided attention. Pointing to a Gulf Coast map illustrating the currents that feed estuaries and bays, Aldrich told the students about the prevailing winds that feed the abundant beach creatures.

Initially, many students are scared to go in the water, she said.

“But you see these kids have light-bulb moments where you pique their curiosity,” Aldrich said. “That’s our goal.”

It took just 15 minutes for the students to hit the beach. Close on their heels, four park rangers carried seine nets, shovels and other fishing gadgets the students used to catch wildlife.

Some students enjoyed the water in custom stainless steel wheelchairs with large inflatable tires designed for the sandy, wet beaches. Each chair cost the park about $2,000.

Michael Lash, 14, whisked his screeching classmate into the ocean. The wheelchair floated on its four buoyant appendages as Heather Muñiz, 18, laughed.

After a few minutes, the students had collected fish, small crabs and sea sponges. Student Michael Soza approached with what, at first glance, seemed like a sand-filled hunk of seaweed. Park Ranger Aubri Morrison said the sand is actually hundreds of baby crabs huddled together on the seaweed.

“We have so much fun out here when the kids are enjoying themselves,” Morrison said. “But if we don’t have some form of conservation, we won’t have this later on down the line.”