Amy Moore Skursky is the woman behind the camera lense, many people may not know her, but much of Palm Coast is aware of Irwin the Gator, and his photos that are often shared in many of the neighborhood groups on Facebook. Irwin the Gator and his brother are residents of a certain area of the C-Section canals. Since discovering the gator, she has since dubbed Irwin, she has taken to photographing him as he goes about his daily routines. She decided to share the photos in a local Palm Coast neighborhood group and was pleasantly shocked when many of the group members found her photos of Irwin to be a beautiful and positive addition to the group.
As time went on, Amy spent more and more time sharing her photos in more groups in Palm Coast, and Irwin began to grow in local fame. He now has his own Facebook group, which you can find here. Many residents around Palm Coast now look forward to the photos of Irwin that Amy shares. A number of people have nominated Amy as a positive and inspirational person in the community.
“It’s very flattering, I was kind of surprised by it. I like to share when I interact with people, but I never realized the perception of how I answered people,” said Amy.
As with anything on social media, there are always negatives; Amy told us, “I have actually had some haters. I have been called names for being a tree hugger. I think if people are nasty or negative there’s something going on in their life or they’ve had a bad experience somewhere. We’ve all been through things, so I don’t take it personally. I enjoy sharing with people, getting to know people, especially with Irwin I can educate some people. They may have moved here from the north, which I did, and they’re terrified. So it gives me that chance to just say, Hey, if you understand them, they’re not that bad. I’ve actually built a lot of friendships that way.”
Amy explained she has always been pretty positive, her outlook being that, “life’s too short, you might as well get out and enjoy it.” Amy continued explaining that Irwin has really inspired her to start teaching and educating. She said when if comes to Irwin that she loves teaching and educating.