AFS alumna Judy Keim's job isn't exactly a walk in the park but it's close. Judy "62 runs her own business, Pedal and Paddle, which offers kayak and bicycle tours around her adopted city of Santa Barbara. Her tours, although often physically demanding, are about much more than exercise, including information about local art and architecture, and most importantly for her, nature and the environment. "I really focus on educating people about the world around them," said Judy. "People who have watched birds and learned the names of trees and flowers are much more likely to do things to preserve the environment. They are more likely to recycle or to think twice about taking a car on an errand they could do on foot." Judy's tours are custom created for each individual or group, taking into consideration the clients' interests, experience, energy level, and pocketbook. During the winter months, the trips consist primarily of bike tours, including one twenty-five mile trip that Judy particularly enjoys. The adventure takes riders around local wetlands. Equipped with binoculars and bird books, the travelers take their time making the flat, easy bike ride. The leisurely pace allows them to enjoy the wide variety of birds who winter in the temperate Santa Barbara climate. The bikers' special reward at the end of the tour is a spectacle that few people ever witness. "There is a grove at the end of the trail where the monarch butterflies come to roost in the trees in the winter," said Judy. "There are literally millions of butterflies, so many that you can actually hear their wings fluttering. It is amazing." As summer approaches, Judy's focus turns to the water, with nearly ninety percent of her clients opting for kayaking. She guarantees her tour-takers that they will see sea lions, who seem to enjoy the company of human visitors, sometimes even following the tour all the way down the coast. The kayakers also often see dolphins, and sometimes even gray whales. The whales, which come back

with their babies in the spring, stick close to shore, allowing Judy and her clients to get close to these marine giants. "On one tour we has a mother and baby go right under our boats," said Judy. "The mother was about forty feet long and the baby about fifteen to twenty feet. It was absolutely heart stopping."

In between al the marveling, Judy injects quite a bit of learning into her tours. She gives information on animals and plants, and makes plugs for conservation and environmental stewardship. And, Judy practices what she preaches. She walks or bides nearly everywhere she can and is a committed recycler. She also makes a point of picking up a piece of trash during each tour she gives, to show that everyone can do simple things right in their own backyard to help the environment. "I believe we each have to take care of our corner of the world," said Judy, who insists that some of that conviction came directly from her experience at Abington Friends. "I still carry many gifts from AFS AFS with me and one of them is the Quaker's very quiet, gentle way of changing things where you are." She believes that her life would be queite different without the influence of AFS, which she says inspired her to become a VISTA volunteer for two years and to choose Quakerism as the religious path for her adult life. In addition, Judy says, AFS taught her how to learn, a skill that has come in enormously handy, particularly in her business. In order to keep her tours interesting, informative, and accurate, Judy has learned vast amounts of information about the birds, animals, plants, history, and art of Santa Barbara area. "I simply got the books and references I needed and set out to learn. I read, re-read, took notes, and discussed the information with friends," said Judy. "People were amazed at how much information I was able to take in. That is really a skill I learned at AFS-how to find and use information for myself." It is just that sort of self-sufficiency and determination that have helped Pedal and Paddle flourish. And, while Judy admits the business will never maker her a tycoon, she also adds that it has made her life rich in other ways. "I wanted to do something that I enjoy and that I believe in," said Judy. "The fact that I've done that is success enough for me."