The Bees Life
Park Hill Teens Find Mojo In Honey And Pollinators
By Cara DeGette
Editor, GPHN
Jack Antonson and Mariah Rosensweig take care of 2.4 million bees in Park Hill. That’s about 30 hives’ worth, and when you add the numbers up, it seems overwhelming.
When asked, Antonson says yes, they have named every single one of them. But he’s just joking. Usually, only the queens get named: Cleopatra, Elizabeth, Beyonce.
“You only see them once in awhile; they have really beautiful, unique coloring on their abdomens,” Antonson says.
Antonson and Rosensweig began working with bees as part of an 8th grade project at McAuliffe International School. Antonson stuck with it, and several Park Hill beekeepers, as well as wannabe beekeepers, began asking him for help with their hives. In 2019, Park Hill Bee Service was born. Antonson found himself surrounded by so many bees he asked Rosensweig to partner up.
Now, the two have just started senior year at East High. They have 18 clients, taking care of a total of 30 Park Hill hives.
They have brought on three younger mentors who will hopefully take over the business after they graduate and head off to college.
Neither is sure whether a lifetime of professional beekeeping is ahead. But caretaking the bees has definitely shaped both of their lives. Antonson likens his foray into the world of bees “a gateway drug to my desire to learn more about biology in all its contemporary forms.”
“At the beginning of my journey with our indispensable fuzzy friends, simply learning all these cool facts about insects that have been evolving for over 200 million years seemed to quench my curiosity,” he says. “However after keeping and losing hives I could finally appreciate the constant contesting of all aspects within the natural world and the fascinating ebbs and flows of organisms.”
Rosensweig says for her, the world of pollinators and honey has opened a window of profound appreciation for the natural world. “I’ve learned to be much more attuned to when certain trees bud, noticing the variety of bees on flowers and the many insects that keep the soil healthy if you just literally lay and stare at the ground for a minute. I’ve become much more appreciative of the food I eat, knowing that one in every three bites of food is thanks to pollinators.
“It’s also amazing to see the way a whole hive of [75,000 to 80,000] bees work in harmony to survive and thrive. The bees have taught me how important it is to focus on what is in front of us and given me hope for the magnitude of things we can accomplish when we all work together.”
Stop by the sustainability booth at the Sept. 25 Park Hill Street Fair to talk bees with Antonson and Rosensweig. The Park Hill Bee Service can also be reached at ParkHillBeekeepers@groups.io.