In 1970 I joined the Sierra Club primarily to get involved in the backpacking and white water paddling activities. This began what for me has been a journey of developing a land ethic—a passion for conservation, preservation, and education. Through these 30-some years, I have been involved with local issues such as the early efforts to include Harper’s Creek and Little Lost Cove areas in the Wilderness System as well as work on the Linville Gorge Wilderness Area. I have participated in 15 national Sierra Club service trips through the years that further stimulated me to be a more militant/active participant in conservation issues.

When I first became aware of efforts at forming land trusts in the high country I was in the process of buying a small farm (48 acres). My wife and I were excited about trying to save a small oasis in an area of smothering development. Through the Blue Ridge Rural Land Trust we were able to donate a conservation easement on this area and know that this area will be protected forever.

I have recently come to believe that land trusts offer a very valid counterattack against those who have not a clue what stewardship of this creation is all about. It is a way of personally making a commitment to conserve and preserve part of our natural heritage and say to those who are driven by profit and greed that there are those who care about the generations that will follow. I also believe that the land trusts offer a community a very viable and valuable land use planning tool. I am excited about the opportunity to serve on the Board of the Blue Ridge Rural Land Trust.