about carl
Carl Young pursued his dreams with a creative flare, unbounded curiosity and concern for others that would define his life. Carlʼs interest in Earth Sciences, was greatly shaped by a childhood spent along the Big Sur coast here his mother, Ada, and stepfather, Sal Lucido, established an endangered bird sanctuary along with co-founder Jerry Petkus.
Carlʼs passion for nature was born and nurtured there, but it was at Lake Tahoe Community College, while taking science classes that Carl discovered his true passion: meteorology. That path led him the University of Nevada, Reno where he earned a masters in Atmospheric Science and began focusing on extreme weather.
torNADO RESEARCH WITH TWISTEX
Carlʼs curiosity, creativity and concern for others converged when he met TIm Samaros, whose work re-shaped how scientists study tornados. Carl joined Team TWISTEX (Tactical Weather Instrumented Sampling in Tornadoes Experiment). Carl helped with field operations, and probe deployments, while also documenting the storm environment, capturing context that made the data meaningful.
Over multiple seasons of the Discovery Channel’s Storm Chasers, TWISTEX brought real tornado science into public view — giving the world a closer look into their efforts to better predict when, and where a tornado might emerge. Discovery later credited the TWISTEX team with helping improve tornado warning times — research that translated directly into lives saved.
On May 31st, 2013, Carl Young, along with Tim and Paul Samaras, faced the largest tornado ever recorded near El Reno, Oklahoma. Though they passed away they were doing what they loved most in their final moments—pursuing the heart of nature’s fury to help others better understand and survive it.
THE CARL YOUNG STORY (VIDEO)
This video shares Carl Young’s journey and his commitment to the understanding of earth science to save and improve lives. His legacy continues through the students benefitting from the scholarship created in his memory.
“This is the legacy of my brother, of someone who can take something as furious as a tornado and turn it into something good.
A LEGACY CONTINUES
The Lucido family established the Carl Young Memorial Earth Science Endowment Fund at the Community Foundation for Monterey County to provide scholarships at Lake Tahoe Community College, where Carl taught. The Fund will provide awards in perpetuity through the Carl Young Memorial Earth Science Scholarship to honor Carl’s memory and inspire the next generation of earth scientists. Empowered by this scholarship, students carry forward Carl’s example, turning curiosity into action, and sending its impacts outward through Earth Sciences — into the world we all share.
All of his research was meant to be productive. Productive for humanity. That was his goal. Its all to benefit and improve the lives of living things on this earth… that's what earth sciences is all about, to understand it, either to live within it or improve it.
CARL YOUNG MEMORIAL EARTH SCIENCE ENDOWMENT FUND- Ways to give
There are many ways to give:
- Donate directly and securely online:
- Send checks made payable to “Community Foundation for Monterey County” or “CFMC” with “Carly Young Endowment” in the memo line.
- Mail to: 2354 Garden Road, Monterey, CA 93940
- To make a gift of stock, IRA Qualified Charitable Distribution or other assets, please call the CFMC Office at 831.375.9712.
Donations to the Carl Young Memorial Earth Science Endowment Fund of the Community Foundation for Monterey County (CFMC) are tax deductible. The CFMC is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, tax ID #94-1615897.
