WILLISTOWN CONSERVATION TRUST

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Update Regarding COVID-19 (Coronavirus)

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Last updated 6/8/20

Our hearts go out to all of our friends, visitors and supporters during this unprecedented public health crisis. We want to remind you of the incredible gift of nature that 40 years of local conservation in the Willistown area has made possible for you and your families to enjoy.

Being outside in nature can reduce your stress, and exercise can boost your immune system. We encourage you to come visit our nature preserves, Ashbridge Preserve, Kirkwood Preserve, and Rushton Woods Preserve, for a walk in nature, some fresh air, and a break from the relentless news.

We ask that you follow CDC guidelines at our nature preserves by maintaining social distance from other visitors, even on the trails. And if the parking lot at the preserve is full, please come back another time.

We currently have a variety of virtual events available for your participation. Check our Events Calendar for more information and registration. As our county moves into the yellow, and then green phase, we will closely monitor available guidance, and hope to offer an updated selection of programs and events celebrating our environment and the many people who work with us to advance conservation and sustainability when it is safe to do so.

Thank you for your continued support. . . and get outside!

Welcome Andrew Kirkpatrick

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We are thrilled to have Andrew Kirkpatrick join the Willistown Conservation Trust staff as Associate Director of Stewardship, working with Director of Stewardship, Bill Hartman. He joins us from the Schuylkill Center for Environmental Education where he was Land Stewardship Manager, in charge of its 340-acre preserve. As part of his duties, Andrew led trail projects, coordinated volunteer activities, and managed their retail native plant nursery.

So how does a guy with a bachelor’s degree in politics and government wind up in land conservation and stewardship? Well, it started in Georgia and ended in Maine.

But before that, fresh out of college, Andrew worked for the Department of the Treasury. It was a great fit for his background and interests at the time. But he found the work, in his words, “really boring.”

He decided to take a little time-out and hiked the Appalachian Trail from Georgia to Pennsylvania. He walked home, as he put it. Then after a short hiatus, he picked up where he left off and continued on to the northern terminus in Maine.

Along the way, he marveled at how well the small, tightly knit community of hikers communicated. The way he describes it, the flow of information was organic and seamless, which turned it into a literal and figurative voyage of discovery. Through-hikers like Andrew usually have a trail name – his was Leaf Treader, taken from a Robert Frost poem that describes an individual’s awareness of nature and its cycles. And it was his own awareness of nature, being immersed in it day-after-day (even grim periods of non-stop rain), that led Andrew from the trail to a career in conservation.

He learned about a master’s program in Landscape Architecture and Ecological Restoration at Temple University from his wife. Upon graduation from that program, he started on the path of his new career at Morris Arboretum. And the rest is history.

Andrew is most excited to learn more about conservation easements and monitoring. He and Bill have already hit the ground running conducting monitoring visits throughout our program area and with more than 100 easement properties, there will be plenty of opportunity to learn!

Not surprising, in his free time, Andrew enjoys gardening and hiking with his 7-year old daughter, Stella. When you see him out-and-about, please say hello and join us in welcoming him to the Trust!