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Read below as Little Forks Conservancy staff share what they are thankful for this 2024 year.  Elan Lipchitz, Executive Director This Thanksgiving, as I reflect on the past year, I am filled with gratitude for the incredible people who make our work at Little Forks possible. To our staff, board, and volunteers—thank you. Your dedication and hard work are the driving forces behind our mission to protect land and water in our region. Our board provides invaluable guidance and strategy, steering us toward success. Our volunteers give their time and energy to help us manage our lands, creating a lasting impact on our nature preserves. And to our dedicated staff—I am grateful for always going above and beyond to help make this year a success and always working together to help us meet our mission. Together, we are making a lasting difference protecting and improving land for current and future generations to enjoy. Thank you for being part of this journey.  Benjamin VanDyke , Volunteer and Preserve Steward I am thankful for the unique opportunity to play a role in the conservation of natural spaces, for both wildlife habitat and the enjoyment of our mid-Michigan communities. I'm fortunate that this means partnering with many volunteers and community partners who selflessly give of their time and energy to help us protect, conserve and improve our nature preserves in countless ways throughout the year. An example that comes to mind are the hard-working volunteers who helped hand-build the new rustic trail at Nelson Woods over the course of the year. This new trail will be a great way for our local communities to enjoy nature at this preserve, and like so many other projects this would not be possible without on-going support.  Shelby Gentle, Land Conservation Specialist This Thanksgiving, I’m reflecting on the things that I am grateful for — and my job is high on that list. Growing up, I spent endless hours outside, exploring, and connecting with nature. Those childhood memories sparked a deep love for the environment and wildlife, which ultimately led me to this career. I'm so thankful for the opportunity to protect and preserve the land in this area, ensuring that future generations can experience the same joy of playing outside that I did. It’s a privilege to be part of this important work, and I look forward to what we will continue to accomplish moving forward.  Lily Kelsey, Conservation Outreach Coordinator
Looking back at 2024, I realized I am truly grateful to know passionate people who care about making Midland inclusive for all. Whether this be in our neighborhoods, in our downtown, in our schools, or in our natural areas. We as community members hold so much more power to make progress than we know, and I am thankful to be able to collaborate with some of these individuals to make a positive impact for everyone who lives in our region.
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As my year at Little Forks Conservancy comes to a close, I want to reflect on the great variety of projects I've had the privilege to work on as a Huron Pines AmeriCorps member. These past 10 months have been filled with preserve stewardship, habitat restoration, volunteer engagement, conservation easement monitoring, invasive species management, and so much more. This experience has been invaluable in shaping my career in conservation and I am incredibly grateful to Little Forks for choosing me as their 2024 AmeriCorps member.  Mushroom at Lane Preserve. Projects
 Protecting deciduous trees with tree tubes. Another major project that took place over this year was trail building at Nelson Woods. Trail work is a passion of mine, and the timing of my service term aligned perfectly with the creation of trails at the new preserve. Some of my favorite workdays this year were spent out at Nelson Woods building trails with volunteers. There's something incredibly satisfying about seeing a day of hard work laid out before you in the form of a new trail. I can’t wait for people to get out there and enjoy it! volunteers
Conservation easementsI also had the opportunity to dive into the world of conservation easements and land protection. There are so many unique properties that are protected in perpetuity by the conservancy and I loved being able to explore them during monitoring season. These properties protect vital wildlife habitat, provide a diversity of ecosystems, and ensure that the land will be protected from future development. I had so much fun seeing the variety of ways that landowners practice sustainable land management. A big thank you to Shelby who taught me so much about this important method of conservation and shared her passion for land protection with me.
As Land Steward, I spent much of my time doing fieldwork on the preserves. The best part about this was having my workdays enriched by all of the little wonders these natural areas protect and allow to thrive. It’s so important to slow down and appreciate the little things-the flowers and plants growing along the trail, the mushrooms sprouting from the ground and fallen logs, and the birds singing in the trees. There's rarely a bad day when you get to be working outside in the fresh air. Nature teaches us so much! And of course, it never hurts to take a photo. Here are a few of my favorite field finds this year:
thank you!
 Staff selfie :) |
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