2017 Sycamore

Th e S y c a m o r e |

SPRING 2017

CREDIT

STEPHANIE KUNIHOLM/WCT

N E W S F R O M W I L L I S TO W N C O N S E R VAT I O N T R U S T

I

am honored to have been elected to succeed Janice Murdoch as Chair of the Board and look forward to the challenges and opportunities that this new role brings.

Janice’s shoes will be hard ones to fill and on behalf of everyone and anyone who has participated in Trust activities over the last two years—THANK YOU JANICE for a job well done!

2017 will be a year of celebration and milestones. The Farm turns 10 years old! I was just starting out as a trustee when the decision was made to create the farm; what a remarkable decision this turned out to be. Through the tireless efforts of staff and volunteers, Rushton Farm has become a nationally recognized community farm and a role model for other land trusts to follow. The Trustees and staff will also be striving to close out the $10.5 million Willistown Countryside Forever campaign, the largest campaign in the Trust’s history, and to construct the Rushton Conservation Center which will allow the Trust to offer its diverse and compelling programs year round.

You will read about the Motus wildlife tracking system in this edition of The Sycamore, an exciting new program which yet again puts the Trust at the forefront of developing new ways to better understand birds and other migratory creatures that can teach us about our world and the impact of climate change.

I know I am not alone in understanding that climate change is real and that we cannot afford to look the other way and not take action. Now, more than ever, organizations such as the Trust need the support of every person who wants to insure that future generations experience the beauty of nature, open space, clean air, and drinking water and have access to healthy food sources. Please help the Trust continue its important work!

Thanks and hats off to Bonnie, our incredible staff, trustees, and the countless volunteers who dedicate hours to make our programs come to life for people of all ages to enjoy.

FROM THE CHAIR

Beth Hucker Chair, Board of Trustees

Thank You Janice!

We wish to express our deepest thanks to Janice Murdoch who has stepped down from the chair position after having served in that role for two years. Under Janice’s leadership the Trust made great strides in land protection initiatives and in advancing the Trust’s Willistown Countryside Forever $10.5 million Capital Campaign.

Janice will continue to serve on the board of trustees.

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WILLISTOWN CONSERVATION TRUST Jeanne B. Van Alen President/Executive Director BOARD OF TRUSTEES Elizabeth C. Hucker Chairman V. Richard Eales Vice Chairman Alice E. Hausmann Vice Chairman Mark T. Ledger Treasurer John F. Stoviak Secretary Bryan D. Colket Assistant Secretary Timothy B. Barnard, Esq. L. Clarke Blynn Gary A. Cox Kathryn Kinkade Gord William T. Howard George F. Krall, Jr. Leanne McMenamin Collin F. McNeil

Elizabeth R. Moran* Janice Murdoch Christine S. Seving Peter S. Strawbridge Matthew E. Taylor Carolyn W. Turner James L. Van Alen II Tana Wall**

*Honorary Trustee **Trustee Emeritus

STAFF Todd Alleger Agroecology Project Coordinator Chelsea Allen Rushton Farm Assistant Field Manager Sue R. Costello GIS Coordinator Fred de Long Director of Community Farm Program Laura de Ramel Director of Development and Community Outreach Alison Fetterman Bird Conservation Associate Blake Goll Nature Education Coordinator Eliza Gowen Community Farm Outreach Assistant Noah Gress Rushton Farm Field Manager William R. Hartman, Jr. Director of Stewardship Kristen Henwood Stewardship Associate Erik Hetzel Director of Land Protection and Public Grants Lisa Kiziuk Director of Bird Conservation Program Stephanie Kuniholm Associate Director of Development Kelsey Lingle Communications Associate Susie MacDonnell Events and PR Coordinator Barbara McIlvaine Smith Administrative Assistant Joyce D. Spragins Communications and Technology Manager WILLISTOWN CONSERVATION TRUST 925 Providence Rd. Newtown Square, Pa 19073 610.353.2562 LAND@WCTRUST.ORG Willistown Conservation Trust is a nonprofit, tax-exempt corporation under Section 501(c)3 of the I.R.S. Code. Donations are tax-deductible. A copy of the official registration and financial information may be obtained from the PA Department of State by calling toll free, within Pennsylvania, (800) 732-0999. Registration does not imply endorsement.

Contents

THE SYCAMORE SPRING 2017 VOL. XVIII NO.1

N E W S F R O M W I L L I S TO W N C O N S E R VAT I O N T R U S T

6

WWW.WCTRUST.ORG

GAINING GROUND New conservation easements add to Willistown’s mosaic of conserved lands.

8

LET’S KEEP THE MOMENTUM GOING From national to local efforts, the American conservation movement is a force for good.

10 11 12 14 16

7,200 ACRES AND COUNTING A look at protected lands maps from 1980 to present.

INTRODUCING THE CARROT CLUB It’s all about kids, farming, and nature.

THE POWER OF KIDS Inspired by Trust programming, youngsters take action.

TEN YEARS AND STILL GROWING 2017 is Rushton Farm’s10th anniversary.

BIRDS GET HELP FROM HIGH-TECH The Motus bird tracking network is making a big leap forward with a new Pennsylvania statewide array.

18 22 24 26

LOOKING FOR LYME DISEASE Research at Rushton Bird Banding Station could help provide answers about this debilitating disease.

MOVERS AND SHAKERS Staff and Trustee news.

CALENDAR OF EVENTS REPORT OF GIFTS

ELIZA GOWEN/WCT

ON THE COVER: The northern view from the farmshed at Rushton

Farm, which celebrates its 10th anniversary in 2017.

- Members of the Carrot Club learn how birds benefit from food

and shelter at Rushton Farm and Rushton Woods Preserve.

The Sycamore is printed on 30% post-consumer FSC-certified recycled paper with soy-based inks by a landfill-free printing facility that follows the highest standards of sustainability.

FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

T

here has never been a more important time to celebrate the work of land trusts both at home and across the country. Thanks to the thousands of passionate land trust board members, staff, volunteers and supporters, millions of acres of America’s beloved landscapes have been protected. While this has happened primarily through the private efforts of land trusts, the federal government has, to date, provided supportive legislation and funding to protect land, preserve endangered species, and keep our air and water clean. In this time of political uncertainly it is now up to all of us to be more proactive than ever in advocating for these precious resources, and to celebrate our successes with our public representatives. In the months to come we hope you will join us as we share our important stories with them and ask for their support.

And we have so much to celebrate right here in the Willistown countryside. A new Willistown resident recently asked me “what excites you most about the work of the Willistown Conservation Trust”? My easy answer is EVERYTHING we are doing (much of which you will read about in this issue of the Sycamore) including the Community Farm Program, the Bird Conservation Program, our ambitious Motus wildlife tracking collaboration, habitat restoration, education and research projects with students at every level, the Carrot Club, the Junior Birders, the proposed Rushton Conservation Center, and the list goes on and on.

But first and foremost, I am excited by the 7,200 acres of land that have been permanently protected in this community over the years. Those acres are comprised of the rolling hills, mature woodlands, stream valleys, rich habitat for wildlife, and the miles of trails and nature preserves that we all treasure, and that have become the hallmark of the Willistown countryside. The protection of this unique and special oasis of open space did not come easily. It represents the remarkable commitment of more than 160 foresighted landowners willing to restrict the land they love against future development, it represents the many generous friends and neighbors who have invested in 15 community conservation partnerships resulting in the preservation of 2,000 acres of critical land, and it represents the numerous collaborations with public funders such as Willistown Township, Chester County, and our Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. It is from these monumental efforts to preserve a rich reservoir of protected lands that all of the other exciting Willistown Conservation Trust programs flow.

So, as our enthusiastic new Chair, Beth Hucker, said - please read on, enjoy this issue of the Sycamore, and thank you so much for your support. I look forward to seeing you often in 2017 as we celebrate the ongoing work of the Willistown Conservation Trust!

Gratefully,

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JODI SPRAGINS / WCT

BLAKE GOLL/WCT

A common buckeye (junonia coenia) alights on mountain mint, an aromatic native perennial growing in the wildflower meadow at the Trust’s office at 925 Providence Road.

SPRING 2017 | 5

DAVID HUCKER

Gaining Ground

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Five More Acres of Habitat for Wildlife Beth and David Hucker Protect Five Additional Acres of 32-acre Family Compound on Whitehorse Road in Berwyn The story of Hidden Springs is tied tightly to that of Little Brook Farm. Together they form a family compound that has been home to the late Alan Crawford, Jr. and his extended family for over 90 years. On March 2, 2017, one of Alan Crawford, Jr.’s daughters, Beth Hucker, together with her husband David, donated a conservation easement protecting the five-acre Hidden Springs. This newest conservation easement creates 32 acres of contiguous conserved land, adding to the 27-acre Little Brook Farm, which was conserved by the family in 2014 with a separate easement donation.

Hidden Springs is primarily comprised of woodlands of mature oak, hickory, tulip poplar, and beech trees.

It is located within the headwaters of Crum Creek and contains sensitive riparian areas associated with Fox Run, a tributary to Crum Creek, which runs through the adjacent Little Brook Farm. The easement protects the woodlands and riparian areas that serve as important wildlife habitat, supporting the surrounding ecosystem

and contributing to the scenic nature of the property. The easement limits expansion of the existing house structure, thereby minimizing storm water runoff, erosion, and land disturbance.

Owned by a family of passionate nature and bird lovers, the extended property has been managed as a wildlife sanctuary since the early 1900’s. Years of nurturing native plants and trees and careful control of invasive species has created a veritable magnet for birds and other wildlife.

The late Alan Crawford, Jr.’s journal of birds sighted on the extended property spanned an 80-year period and documented over 220 species of birds. This journal provided critical documentation for the Audubon designation of much of the Trust’s focal area as an Important Bird Area.

The Audubon designation helped spawn the Trust’s Bird Conservation Program.

Thanks to the generosity of Beth and David Hucker, Hidden Springs will remain part of this important 32-acre conserved haven for wildlife forever.

25 Acres Conserved Forever

Rawson Property Joins the Mosaic of Conserved Lands in Willistown

On June 16, 2016, David and Therese Rawson donated a conservation easement to the Trust which protects their entire 25-acre property. Located along the southeast border of Willistown Township, the property abuts hundreds of conserved acres, extending the contiguous area of protected lands near the Trust’s 83-acre Kirkwood Preserve.

The beautiful Rawson property consists of a variety of undisturbed natural features and habitats, including gently rolling grasslands, mixed woodlands of oak, hickory, tulip poplar and beech trees, and 1,000 feet of Rawson Run, an important tributary of the Crum Creek.

The easement restricts future subdivision and building on the property to just one additional secondary residence.

Scenic views of the land and ecologically sensitive areas are protected by the easement, as it restricts the location of landscaping and secondary structures.

As with all of the Trust’s conservation easements, this easement is attached to the land in perpetuity, so even if the land is sold, future owners must follow its restrictions.

The property has been under the Rawson family’s careful stewardship for over 50 years, and this conservation easement donation is the ultimate gesture of their love for the land. With it, future generations can be assured that the land will be here essentially in its present state for all to enjoy forever. Thanks to David and Therese Rawson, heroes of the countryside!

LEFT: Cedar waxwings are among the many bird species that make Hidden Springs and Little Brook Farm their home. Property owner David Hucker

took this photo not long before the family donated conservation easements on the properties, permanently protecting this haven for wildlife forever.

Let’s Keep the Momentum Going

It’s not hard to imagine what would have happened to our extraordinary national treasures such as Yosemite and Yellowstone if they hadn’t been permanently protected. These early examples of land and natural resource protection were the result of an evolving conservation movement driven by nature-loving leaders in art, literature, and government and local communities who cared.

Locally, the Willistown countryside would look dramatically different were it not for a critical assemblage of passionate conservationists who had the foresight to take action nearly 40 years ago, creating an organization and a land ethic that continues to shape the health of our landscape today. Our story here in Willistown is just one piece of a larger and hard fought national conservation narrative—a fascinating story in its own right and one that helps inform our efforts even now.

others believed the long-term survival of the American experiment mandated ambitious exploration and sustained cultivation of the wilderness. In 1804, Lewis and Clark were dispatched on their expedition, facilitating our conquest of the frontier. Yet despite the progress realized in the following years, the vast resources and expanses of the continent, harnessed by the ingenuity of the industrial revolution, were sometimes consumed to the point of exploitation.

In the Eyes of the Beholder

A Shift in Outlook

Today’s American conservation movement represents a fairly radical transformation from how land and the wilderness were viewed by the continent’s early European settlers. In contrast to the continent’s indigenous peoples— who generally lived harmoniously with the available natural resources—these early foreign inhabitants saw the continent’s wilderness as part threat and part opportunity. Forests were cleared out of fear to force lurking “evils” elsewhere and to open up land for use and development. Nature was something to subdue, not protect or appreciate.

As this young country matured, Thomas Jefferson and

1794

Attitudes toward the land changed in the mid 1800’s.

In contrast to the prevailing culture of control and utility, there emerged a nascent enlightenment that the American wilderness was not necessarily an obstacle to civilization, but rather a symbol of the courage of the American spirit. Nature had intrinsic beauty worthy of admiration and protection.

This shift to a more romanticized view of nature was well articulated by the creative minds of America’s most celebrated writers and artists. Thoreau andEmerson wrote extensively about their relationships with nature. Cole and Durand of the famed Hudson River School painted scenes

1854 PA’s first forestry law sets fines for legal conviction of “willfully setting the woods on fire.”

1873

Lewis & Clark expedition begins.

1804

PA Wildlife Act bans hunting on Sundays, establishes a bag limit of 2 wild turkeys, and makes it illegal to kill a fawn.

Thoreau publishes Walden.

First land trust in the United States is formed - The Trustees of [Public] Reservations in Massachussets.

Yellowstone is established as first national park.

1872

1891

National Park Service is created.

1916

STEPHANIE KUNIHOLM/WCT

RIGHT: Kirkwood

Preserve is an 83-acre nature preserve that was created by the Trust as part of a 324-acre land protection project in Willistown. The project combined several conservation tools and strategies, including donated conservation easements by individuals and a combination of private and public funding sources from individuals, non-profit, state, county, and township organizations.

portraying the tension between nature and civilization. Later, Bierstadt, Moran and Church created their epic scale paintings of the American West, bringing these wild places to life for a wide audience.

Continuing into the late 19th and early 20th centuries— and due in large part to the efforts of men such as Muir, Roosevelt and Pinchot—the conservation movement took on a national mandate, realizing many great achievements: the establishment of our first National Parks and the National Park Service, the creation of the National Wildlife Refuge System, the passage of the Antiquities Act, and the establishment of The Trustees of [Public] Reservations in Massachussetts, our country’s first land trust. These actions affirmed the strength, scale and perpetuity of the conservation movement. Conservation had finally become an ethical imperative, and there was no turning back.

Progress continued. Literature retained its influence on societal thinking with Leopold’s A Sand County Almanac and Carson’s Silent Spring. Federal initiatives remained crucial to progress as proven by Congress’s passage of the Wilderness Act, the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act and the enactment of the Land and Water Conservation Fund.

1965

1967

Land & Water Conservation Fund is created

by Congress, fullfilling a bipartisan commitment to safeguard our natural areas, water resources and cultural heritage and to provide recreational areas.

Pennsylvania Project 500 is established as legislature approves a $500 million bond for the Land and Water Conservation Reclamation Act, providing for land acquisition, recreational facilities, and environmental projects.

1970

1979

Emergence of the Land Trust Community During the past several decades, the emergence of a strong and well-dispersed land trust community has contributed significantly to the nation’s conservation success story. In 1980, there were approximately 400 land trusts in the United States. As of 2015, that number had grown to nearly 1,400, with land trusts located in every state. Between 2005 and 2015, the total number of acres conserved by land trusts grew to 56 million, a 55 percent increase. Land trusts continue to focus on protecting natural areas and habitat, water quality, working farms and ranchlands, and cultural resources, and now more than ever, our efforts depend upon partnerships among non-profit, public and private organizations.

For nearly 40 years, the work of the Willistown Conservation Trust and its founders has quite literally changed the local landscape for the better, protecting over 6,000 acres in our program area through conservation easements and land acquisitions. Challenges remain, and with the support of our extended community of individuals as well as private and public organizations, we will remain an important part in this ongoing and rich story in our country’s history.

1996

First Earth Day marks the birth of the modern environmental movement, leading to the creation of the EPA and the passage of the Clean Air, Clean Water, and Endangered Species Acts.

Willistown Area Conservation Program (Willistown Conservation Trust’s predecessor organization) is formed under the Brandywine Conservancy.

Chester County

Landscapes

Chester County

SPACE

1980

Chester County votes to Save Open Space with 82% of residents voting to support public funding of open space preservation.

Chester County publishes Landscapes, a comprehensive plan with managing development and preserving open space as its primary goals.

Willistown Conservation Trust is formed as an independent land trust.

1996

7,200 ACRES AND COUNTING Nearly 40 Years of Land Protection Makes the Willistown Area a Green Oasis of Open Space...

GREEN = Permanently Protected Lands

1979

2017

...and Erik Hetzel, the Trust’s Director of Land Protection, Works Every Day to Keep The Momentum Going

“

The momentum generated from nearly 40 years of land protection in the Willistown area is a remarkable force for good that I am privileged to help continue. Sometimes it takes years and a complicated assemblage of willing partners and multiple steps to protect a piece of land. The goal of conserving land for future generations of people and wildlife is what keeps me coming to work every day.

“

- Erik Hetzel, Director of Land Protection Willistown Conservation Trust

Erik is passionate about protecting the 4,000 acres of the Willistown area that remain vulnerable to development. He works with landowners, conservation partners (e.g., township, county and state governments, and other nonprofits), investors, and volunteers to protect special places for future generations of people and wildlife to enjoy. Erik is currently working on 16 conservation projects ranging in size from 1.5 acres to 140 acres. When completed, these projects could add another 584 acres of green to the protected lands map above.

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Carrot Club

Gets Kids’ Hands In The Dirt

Now kicking off its third season, the Carrot Club provides children with an opportunity to learn firsthand about sustainable farming, growing food for a community, and the many ways in which nature and agriculture can flourish side by side.

Meeting about once a month during the farming season, Carrot Club members and their families take part in hands-on activities that highlight the many facets of Rushton Farm and Rushton Woods Preserve. After a two-year pilot program, Carrot Club is expanding its membership to our extended community.

Carrot Club is for kids aged 7 through 12. For more information and to sign up, contact Eliza Gowen at emg@wctrust.org. Space is limited. See you out in the fields!

KAT GORD

Kids, Farming and Nature Have you ever planted a tiny sunflower seed in a pot and monitored its progress as it pokes through the soil and forms its first leaves?

Can you identify any native plant species that flourish in the hedgerows adjacent to the crop fields at Rushton Farm?

Fred de Long, Community Farm Program Director, gives Carrot Club members an overview of one of the crop fields and their project for the day—planting several rows of cabbage seedlings.

Have you tasted the honey from the Rushton Farm bees and tried to identify, by taste and smell, which flowers that hive may have pollinated?

Have you ever picked tomatoes from the vine and taken them to a community food cupboard that helps needy families?

Rushton Farm Carrot Club kids have done all of these things and more!

SPRING 2017 | 11

KIRSTEN SNYDER

OF KIDS

–Walt Whitman

“I held a saw-whet…,” whispered a little boy named Graydon as he gazed up at his bedroom ceiling after being tucked in on that October night. Smiling outside his door, his mom heard him repeating this to himself as if still processing this amazing thing that had happened to him. Far away, Fionna lay cozy in her bed with that same sparkle in her eye. As she pulled the covers up to her chin, she thought nothing could compare to what those owls felt like that night. “Imagine the softest throw blanket you can think of and multiply that by a thousand,” she decided. Or how about, “Softer than warm mashed potatoes,” she giggled as she fell fast asleep.

On any given autumn night, Rushton Woods Preserve and Rushton Farm welcomes kids of all ages to engage in the unforgettable experience of connecting with one of the most beautiful creatures of our night sky, the Northern Saw-whet Owl. Memorable experiences with nature have the power to wake children up to the magic this world so often seems to lack. This is evident in the eyes of kids who have participated in our bird banding program like Graydon, the young boy from Open Connections, and Fionna, a high school student from The Academy of Natural Sciences’ WINS (Women in Natural Sciences) program.

Fionna’s words to describe the owl she touched were striking in that she used specific imagery related to all things comfy. This innate comfort that kids feel from experiences with nature is sometimes buried under fear. For example, during a field trip to the Rushton Woods Preserve bird banding station last fall, one student stood out; he was afraid of birds. He would not help release the songbirds like all of the other children; instead he quietly observed at the banding station, listened to the birds in the woods, and saw them flying all around the farm while he was harvesting peppers.

By the end, he seemed to have begun to overcome his fear judging by his reflection journal. In it he triumphantly drew a bird with large, scary talons but wrote next to it, “frenly.”

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BLAKE GOLL/WCT

THE POWER

“Now I see the secret of making the best person: it is to grow in the open air and to eat and sleep with the earth.”

Kids helping with the harvest at Rushton Farm are exposed to an array of wildlife, as the agroecological practices create rich habitat for pollinators, birds, and other animals.

ABOVE:

Graydon, shown here holding a Northern Saw-whet Owl at the Rushton banding station, was inspired to visit Senator Pat Toomey to advocate for conservation.

ABOVE LEFT::

BLAKE GOLL/WCT

RIGHT::After

spending a day at Rushton, an apprehensive child overcomes his fear of birds as evidenced in his reflection journal where he captions a “frenly” bird with large talons.

Graydon’s passion for birds was fueled by an initial field trip like this to the Rushton banding station last spring. He appreciated being treated as an equal by the banding crew instead of as a kid with a cute hobby. It became clear to him that he could make a career out of something he really loves. After visiting Rushton, he was empowered to observe an ornithologist in Maine, attend the Acadia Birding Festival and climb a mountain in the cold to see Snowy Owls. With his mother, he even visited Senator Toomey’s office to advocate for conservation.

Michael is another shining star who was inspired by his experiences with birds as a Junior Birding Club member and is now participating in real conservation. He and a group of other seventh graders from Stetson Middle School designed an app for children to anonymously host petition drives. Michael then used this app to start a petition to save horseshoe crabs, which are unsustainably harvested around the world for their blood, which is used in pharmaceutical and biomedical industries. The crabs are close to extinction because of this activity which in turn endangers many shorebirds that depend solely on horseshoe crab eggs in the Delaware Bay to power their journey to the Arctic.

Michael’s petition urges pharmaceutical giants to instead use synthetic compounds to avoid collapsing the food web that the crabs support. The petition has received 1,500 signatures and raised $200 for Ecological Research and Development Group (ERDG) in Delaware. Two of the eight pharmaceutical companies that Michael and his classmates contacted have responded positively, and his team will join ERDG counting horseshoe crabs this May. Read more about Michael’s movement to save horseshoe crabs and sign the petition at http://ow.ly/6Slq309r03b.

These are just a few examples of how the Trust’s nature programs can transform children, and how in turn, children can transform the world.

RIGHT::A

ALISON FETTERMAN/WCT

catbird is admired by a Junior Birding Club member after it has been weighed, measured, examined, and banded at the Rushton Woods Preserve bird banding station.

RUSHTON FARM’S TENTH ANNIVERSARY

Much More than Vegetables

Ten years ago the first seeds of Rushton Farm were planted in the basement of the Trust office on Providence Road. With a 35-family community supported agriculture (CSA) initiative in mind, three newly hired farmers plotted fields and crop plans on paper, taking time out to seed and water the trays of soil that littered the basement floor. While the start was filled with trepidation, those seeds sprouted and flourished and bore more fruit than we ever could have imagined.

Bird Conservation Program Takes Flight

Rushton Farm was envisaged in 2007 as the centerpiece of the Trust’s Community Farm Program. Nestled within the 86-acre Rushton Woods Preserve, Rushton Farm was designed to demonstrate how sustainable agriculture on conserved land can be mutually beneficial with its surrounding ecosystem.

Designed and managed with nature in mind, small crop fields are interspersed with wildflowers to promote beneficial pollinators.

Crops and adjacent uncultivated areas are left to flower and seed to provide food for an intricate web of life. Bat and bird boxes are strategically placed around the farm, and meadows and hedgerows are left intact to provide habitat for birds.

Early in the spring of that first season, Fred de Long, Director of the Community Farm Program, fired up an old donated John Deere tractor and dropped a chisel plow into the virgin ground at Rushton. Before he completed the first pass, Lisa Kiziuk, a Trust stewardship staff member, stepped in front of the tractor exclaiming “You’re killing the songbirds, you’re destroying their nests!” Thus began a dialogue of how our farming practices could be adapted to help maintain bird habitat. One year later Lisa received a grant to start a bird banding station at Rushton Woods Preserve to see how our farming activities were impacting the bird population. This

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JODI SPRAGINS / WCT

A Farm Designed for Nature

was the start of the Trust’s Bird Conservation Program, which grew its own wings and took flight. Now hundreds of visitors flock to the station each year to witness science in action and get a close-up view of the amazing variety of birds that thrive in Rushton’s rich habitat.

Advancing Conservation The combination of the farm and bird programs at Rushton today form a powerful offering that promises to advance the next chapter of conservation in Willistown and beyond. Students of all ages and backgrounds visit the farm to learn about food, nature, and the importance of land conservation. Our programs have become a magnet for research, attracting scholars and university students from all over the world working on their theses and capstone projects.

Local universities such as the University of Pennsylvania and the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University

utilize Rushton for field ecology study.

Rushton’s internship programs provide training for aspiring farmers, ecologists, and conservationists. Our program staff members are invited speakers at conservation gatherings nationally, and land trusts all over the country are modeling their programs after ours.

Rushton Farm has truly transformed the community. What started as a small demonstration of sustainable agriculture has given rise to a regional resource for science, education, and research. And it’s still a beautiful place where visitors can walk the trails through crop fields, meadows, woodland, wetland, and streamside to see how a working farm on conserved land and nature can thrive side by side.

VISIT

RUSHTON FARM AND RUSHTON WOODS PRESERVE Open to the public every day from sunrise to sunset. Explore the trails, walk the farm fields, and see bird banding in season.

911 Delchester Road, Newtown Square.

LAND CONSERVATION PRIORITIES

Motus technology tells us which places are most critical for the survival of migratory birds .

Motus technology provides an enormous leap in scientists’ ability to help migrating birds, whose population numbers have declined by 50% since 1970. In this photo, founders of the Northeast Motus Collaboration (from left to right, Lisa Kiziuk of Willistown Conservation Trust, David Brinker of Project Owlnet, and Scott Weidensaul of Project Owlnet and the Ned Smith Center for Nature and Art) admire the first tower installed in the Pennsylvania statewide array at Rushton Farm in Rushton Woods Preserve.

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Pennsylvania Motus Takes Flight

By Scott Weidensaul Northeast Motus Collaboration

BIRDLIFE INTERNATIONAL

If you visit Rushton Farm at Rushton Woods Preserve, you be at risk from offshore wind development. Still other teams can’t help but notice the shiny antenna that sprouted last fall have used Motus to discover critical, previously unrecognized from the greenhouse. Constantly scanning the skies for radio stopover sites on James Bay in Canada for red knots, a federally signals, it is part of the new Motus network—one of the threatened shorebird species. most exciting wildlife research projects in decades, and one As rapidly as the Motus network has grown, there remain that Willistown Conservation Trust is taking a leading role in some significant gaps. Even in the Northeast, where the tower developing. density is highest, the coverage is primarily coastal, and there Motus (the word comes from the Latin for “movement”) are almost no receiver stations along the Appalachian Mountain is an international collaboration spearheaded by Bird Studies system, one of the great migratory corridors in the world.

Canada, and which now involves hundreds of researchers in That is why Willistown Conservation Trust—in the U.S., Canada, and beyond. Scientists deploy astoundingly collaboration with the Ned Smith Center for Nature and Art in tiny radio transmitters known as nanotags, which are tracked Dauphin County, and Project Owlnet—formed the Northeast across the landscape by automated receiver Motus Collaboration last year. Our goal is to towers with directional antennas, like the one fill that geographic gap by deploying an array at Rushton. Because all tags operate on the of receiver towers at inland locations from same frequency and each tag broadcasts a Pennsylvania through interior New England. unique ID code, any tower can track any tag We have already taken a huge step toward that comes within range and identify the making that a reality. With a combination of animal that carries it—a huge advantage over funding from private donors and a $54,000 traditional telemetry. grant from the Pennsylvania Department of For the first time, Motus is giving Conservation and Natural Resources, we will researchers the opportunity to track small, be erecting a line of roughly 20 receiver towers migratory animals like songbirds, shorebirds, this summer across the state, from southeastern bats and even migratory insects like monarch Pennsylvania to Lake Erie. That picket line will butterflies and dragonflies, all of which are intercept tagged migrants crossing the state too small for standard satellite telemetry. It along the mountain system. is rapidly opening a revolutionary window But we are not stopping there. We have set an into the travels and lives of these animals— ambitious goal of raising the funds to erect and providing critical information to help an additional 24 towers across the remainder ABOVE: Tiny transmitters are mounted to a bird’s back and provide tracking preserve them. For example, the system of Pennsylvania in 2018, and then more than information to Motus towers. provides detailed location information and 30 towers across the interior of New York helps pinpoint which places are most critical for their survival and New England in 2019, completing an interior Northeast and for land conservation. array. The result will be a dramatic expansion in the capability In just a few years, the Motus receiver network has of the Motus network (and will allow us to better explore the grown to more than 325 towers, from the Canadian Arctic migration of Northern Saw-whet Owls, a species that the Trust, to southern South America (and expanding now to the the Ned Smith Center and Owlnet have been studying for many Caribbean and Europe). It has allowed scientists to tag years). thrushes in Colombia and track their migration across the Motus promises to transform the study of migration, Gulf of Mexico and North America, including one bird and we are proud to be taking a leading role in developing this that flew to Indiana in just three days. Other researchers have powerful new technology to its full potential. shown that migratory tree bats cross Lake Erie—and thus may SPRING 2017 | 17

LAND MATTERS

Conserved land at Rushton Woods Preserve plays an important role in solving real world problems.

SCIENCE IN ACTION: Emily Ostrow, an MS/BS

BLAKE GOLL/WCT

student at the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University, is the lead research scientist focusing on birds and Lyme disease at the Rushton Woods Preserve bird banding station. She extracts blood samples from birds banded at the station, which she later analyzes at the Weckstein Lab.

Conserved land at Rushton Woods Preserve and the preserve’s bird banding station make research possible to the broader scientific community. Through partnerships with institutions such as the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University and the University of Pennsylvania’s Master of Environmental Science Program, students gain research and career experience while making measurable contributions to science and conservation.

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Looking for Lyme Disease

by Emily Ostrow

Drexel University student’s research utilizes Rushton Woods Preserve bird banding station to study birds and their relationship to this debilitating disease.

For the last two years Emily Ostrow has woken up at the crack of dawn to spend mornings working with bird banders at Rushton Woods Preserve. Visitors to the station can identify Emily easily: she is the student collecting blood samples from the birds after they have been banded. She is also collecting ectoparasites such as ticks, lice, and louse flies from the birds in order to learn more about the diverse array of creatures and pathogens found on and in our local resident and migrant birds.

The Rushton bird banding crew lovingly refers to Emily as Draculette because she is skilled at gently coaxing a few drops of blood from even the smallest birds before they are carefully released back in to the wild. Emily, a BS/MS student from the Biodiversity, Earth, and Environmental Sciences Department at Drexel University, is working on her MS thesis in Dr. Jason Weckstein’s lab at the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University.

Emily’s work has uncovered an interesting array of parasites in the blood of Rushton’s birds, including nematodes and avian malaria; however, her main focus is on studying the prevalence of the bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi in Rushton’s birds. Borrelia burgdorferi is the pathogen that causes Lyme disease, and until recently, birds were not considered to be a significant part of the Lyme disease equation. Because of Emily’s research, we now know that many migratory and resident birds are harboring this

bacterium and presumably play a role in vectoring and dispersing this pathogen.

Emily brings the blood samples back to the lab at the Academy of Natural Sciences where she uses DNA screening methods to survey birds for this pathogen. So far, Emily’s work has shown that birds at Rushton have a relatively high rate of Borrelia infection, which is perhaps not surprising given the prevalence of the disease in the region. She has also found that infections were most prevalent in samples collected in spring 2015, were less prevalent in summer 2015, and absent in the autumn of 2015. Thus, there appears to be a pattern of seasonality. One possibility is that birds might clear the infections from their bodies annually, or the intensity of the Borrelia bacterial infections decreases by autumn to the point where it is undetectable. Interestingly, older birds are infected with Borrelia more frequently than juvenile birds. Birds pick up ticks while foraging on the ground, so perhaps juveniles, which have been fed by their parents for much of their life, have little exposure to ticks carrying Lyme disease early in life. Emily plans to complete her thesis by June 2018.

The Rushton Woods Preserve bird banding station and its team of federally licensed banders makes all of this research possible. Their expertise and collaborative atmosphere attracts scientists like Emily who can leverage other research taking place at the station, share data, and advance science for the benefit of all living things.

SPRING 2017 | 19

Willistown Countryside Forever A Campaign for Land, People, and Nature $10.5 Million $ 9.6 Million

Our Goal Raised as March 1, 2017

Where is Your Support Going? $ 3.2 M

Increase the Pace of Land Protection

$ 3.0 M

Support and Enhance Vital Trust Programs

$ 2.4 M

Complete the 86-acre Rushton Woods Preserve

$ 1.9 M

Build the Rushton Conservation Center

$10.5 Million

DONATE TODAY and HELP FINISH THE CAMPAIGN!

Through December 31, 2017, the John and Janet Haas $1 Million Challenge will match $1 for every $2 donation received.

TO LEARN MORE OR TO MAKE A GIFT, Contact Laura de Ramel, Director of Development, 610-353-2562, ext. 21 or lkd@wctrust.org

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BLAKE GOLL/WCT Acres of prairie coneflower were in full bloom at one of the private properties on last July’s wildflower tour. The walk showcased several Willistown area conserved properties where wildflower meadows have replaced mowed lawns.

Growing a variety of native grasses and flowers improves the ecosystem and provides a multi-sensory and ever changing tapestry of color, texture, and wildlife activity. Check the calendar on pp. 24-25 for details on this year’s tour.

SPRING 2017 | 21

STAFF AND TRUSTEE NEWS

Movers and Shakers LEFT TO RIGHT: Clarke Blynn, Fred de Long, Alison Fetterman, Blake Goll, Bill Hartman, and Beth Hucker.

Photos: Mary Hunt Davis Photography, Kelsey Lingle, Jodi Spragins.

Clarke Blynn is our newest Trustee as of January 2017. He and his wife Barb are longtime supporters and have served the Trust in numerous volunteer and leadership capacities. Clarke has been an active member of the Finance and Land Protection Committees for several years. A graduate of Cornell University with an extensive background in hotel management, Clarke is principal of Gulph Creek Development. He is a board member of Nurturing Minds in Africa, which provides funding for Sega Girls School in Tanzania, and is also on the local board of Planned Parenthood. Passionate about nature and the environment, Clarke lives in Berwyn with his wife Barb along with several horses and dogs.

Alison Fetterman joined the Trust in January 2016 as a Bird Conservation Associate and project manager for

the Northeast Motus Collaboration prjoect. Alison worked as a bird banding intern at the Rushton banding station from 2013-2015. She brings to the Trust seven years experience in bird monitoring methods after working at Point Blue, a leading conservation science organization based in California. Alison completed her MS degree in Environmental Studies from the University of Pennsylvania in 2016. She enjoys spending her spare time with her husband Andy and two children, Gus and Etta, birding, hiking and playing in the frog pond in their remote backyard in Boyertown, Pennsylvania.

Beth Hucker was elected chair of the Trust’s Board of Trustees in January 2017, replacing outgoing chair Janice Murdoch. Beth served as the Trust’s treasurer from 2011 to 2016 and as a board member from 2007 to the present. She is the president of Superior Family Office, Inc., serves on the board of the Pennsylvania Chapter of The Nature Conservancy, and is a trustee of the Agnes and Sophie Dallas Irwin Foundation. She is the former chair of the Shipley School Board of Trustees and former treasurer of the Radnor Hunt. A graduate of The Shipley School and Princeton University, Beth and her husband David reside in Berwyn. Beth is an avid gardener, fly-fisherwoman, and animal lover.

Stephanie Kuniholm joined the Trust as Associate Director of Development in June 2016. Stephanie comes to the Trust after completing master’s research on the success of membership programs at public gardens as a fellow in the Longwood Graduate Program for Public Horticulture. Prior to graduate school, she lived and worked at several Philadelphia-area gardens including Morris Arboretum of the University of Pennsylvania and Jenkins Arboretum & Gardens. Stephanie continues to spend much of her free time exploring gardens and can usually be found taking a mid-day walk at one of the Trust’s preserves.

Stephanie currently resides in Phoenixville, Pennsylvania.

Mark Ledger returned to the Trust’s Board of Trustees and was elected treasurer in January 2017. Mark has a long

history of leadership at the Trust, having served as the chair of the board from 2012 to 2014, chair of the Community Farm Program in 2011, and board member from 2007 to 2010. Mark was the co-founder of Aegis Property Group and, now semiretired, devotes much of his time and talents to a number of non-profits in the areas of urban homelessness, inner-city micro finance, environmental protection and sustainability. He is an avid outdoorsman and fly-fisherman, and serves on the board of the Western Sustainability Exchange in Montana. He and his wife Ann have lived in Willistown since 1994.

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LEFT TO RIGHT: Lisa Kiziuk, Stephanie Kuniholm, Mark Ledger, Barbara McIlvaine Smith, and Bonnie Van Alen. Photos: Mary Hunt Davis Photography, Kelsey Lingle.

Staff Presentations, Awards, and Professional Advancement

Outstanding in Their Fields Fred de Long Presented Land Conservation, Food Systems and Agriculture: Multiple Strategies for Participation & Finding Funding at the Yale Conservation Finance Camp. (June 2015) Allison Fetterman Awarded a master’s degree in Environmental Studies from the University of Pennsylvania. (May 2016) Received the Frederick N. Scatena Award for outstanding research in tropical forestry from the Department of Earth and Environmental Science at the University of Pennsylvania. (May 2016) Instructor/guest lecturer for: University of Pennsylvania Master of Environmental Studies course, Puerto Rico’s Ecology; University of Pennsylvania’s School of Design, Department of Landscape Architecture lecture, Avian Ecology: Birds and Their Landscapes; Chester County Night School’s Joys of Birding. (January-November 2016) Presented research display Assessing Habitat Quality for Migratory Landbirds in Southeastern Pennsylvania at the North American Ornithological Conference. (August 2016) Blake Goll Presented Bird Banding: Reading Feathers and Advancing Conservation at West Chester Bird Club. (March 2016) Nominated as a Council member for the Eastern Bird Banding Association.

(April 2016) Presented at Westtown-Thornbury Earth Day Celebration and Westtown School first grade. (May 2016) Taught Birds, Bird Banding and Conservation, a five week course at Widener University’s Osher Lifelong Learning Institute in Exton, Pennsylvania. (May 2016) Authored Igniting Fascination Through Birdscaping in County Lines Magazine. (September 2016) Developed and facilitated a teacher-development workshop for Open Connections in Newtown Square, Pennsylvania. (August 2016) Presented Birdscaping: Designing Your Garden With Birds In Mind to Chester County Master Gardeners Club. (September 2016)

Bill Hartman Presented at the University of Pennsylvania School of Design Work & Days symposium, focused on design careers. (April 2016).).

Named trustee of Philander Chase Conservancy in Gambier, Ohio surrounding Kenyon College. (October, 2016).

Lisa Kiziuk Adjunct Professor for University of Pennsylvania Master of Environmental Studies Course Creating Gateways to the Land with Smarter Conservation.

(Fall 2016) Fred de Long and Lisa Kiziuk Presented Conservation Gone Wild to members of Radnor Hunt in Malvern, Pennsylvania. (March 2016) Barbara McIlvain Smith Appointed by Governor Tom Wolf and confirmed unanimously by the PA State Senate to the Board of Governors of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education. (November 2016) Moderated a nonpartisan panel discussion on women’s issues in the 2016 presidential campaign hosted by The Chester County Fund for Women and Girls. (September 2016) Bonnie Van Alen Awarded the Zone V Conservation Commendation by the Garden Clubs of America Zone V Conservation Committee for her visionary leadership in land conservation. (October 2016) Lisa Kiziuk, Todd Alleger, Alison Fetterman, Blake Goll and Doris McGovern Provided bird banding demonstrations/regional field ecology sessions for the following groups: University of Pennsylvania Landscape Architecture Program; University of Pennsylvania Master of Environmental Studies Program; PennVet; Temple University; Villanova University Poetry Class; Boys Latin School of Philadelphia; Goshen Friends; Natural Lands Trust; Westtown School’s First Grade; Pennsylvania Young Birders; VOYA; Abington Friends School; Germantown Academy; Open Connections; Swarthmore College Bird Club; Birding Club Delaware County; WINS; Agnes Irwin School; Widener Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, Delaware Dunlins and Welkinweir/Green Valleys Watershed Association.

SPRING 2017 | 23

PROGRAMS & EVENTS March Rushton Farm CSA Winter Gathering Sunday, March 5 5:00 – 6:00 pm Rushton Farm Members of Rushton Farm CSA gather in the greenhouse for a cup of winter warmth and conversation with the farmers and fellow CSA members.

April

May

Junior Birding Club - “Secret Life of the Red Fox” Book Signing Workshop Friday, May 12 9:30 – 11:30 am Rushton Woods Preserve This charming children’s book gives a beautifully illustrated look into the lives of foxes. llustrator Kate Garchinsky will give a drawing lesson and all kids will receive a signed copy of the book.

Contact bhg@wctrust.org to sign up.

Songbird Banding Open House Saturday, April 29 6:00– 10:30 am Rushton Woods Preserve Stop by the banding station to observe the fascinating science of bird banding, learn how the banding station contributes to global bird conservation, and see beautiful migratory birds up close.

Contact bhg@wctrust.org to sign up.

Plant Sale Saturday & Sunday, April 29-30 10:00 am – 3:00 pm Rushton Farm Early vegetable and annual flower seedlings, raspberry canes, and a limited supply of wildflowers and perennials.

Barns & BBQ Saturday, May 13 3:00 – 10:00 pm Five Barns in Willistown Tour of five barns followed by a bountiful BBQ. Space is limited, by advance reservation only. More information at wctrust.org.

Wednesday “Just Show Up” Volunteer Days at Rushton Farm Begin Every Wednesday through October beginning Wednesday, May 17 9:00 am – 4:00 pm Rushton Farm This is a great way to get your hands dirty, help the farm, and learn about sustainable agriculture.

Junior Birding Club - Birding by Ear Sunday, May 21 9:30 – 11:30 am Kirkwood Preserve Enjoy a leisurely stroll through our lovely grassland preserve while tuning your ear to bird songs. Contact bhg@wctrust.org to sign up.

Film—Hometown Habitat Thursday, May 25 6:30 - 9:30 pm Episcopal Academy A 90-minute environmental, education documentary focused on showing how and why native plants are critical to the survival and vitality of local ecosystems. Advance registration required at wctrust.org.

Carrot Club - Introduction to Rushton Farm April TBD 4:00- 6:00 pm Rushton Woods Preserve Farm and nature fun for kids age 7-12. Sunflower seed planting in the greenhouse, tour of the farm. Contact emg@ wctrust.org for more info.

June Junior Birding Club - University of Pennsylvania BioBlitz Friday, June 2 5:30 – 8:30 pm Rushton Woods Preserve Participate in our annual bioblitz, and meet real scientists who will be surveying the plant and animal life of the preserve. We’ll survey the milkweed habitat for insects, monitor bird boxes, and take a ride in the bat mobile at dusk to survey bats!

Contact bhg@wctrust.org to sign up.

Spring Migration Bird Banding Begins Tuesday, April 11 Sunrise to around 11:00 am Rushton Woods Preserve Come meet Willistown’s most colorful inhabitants up close. To express interest and to receive regular banding schedule updates, contact lkr@wctrust.org.

Earth Day/CRC Creek Week - Stream Clean Up Saturday, April 22 9:00 – 11:00 am Location TBD Help us clean up one of our creeks during the Chester Ridley Crum Watersheds Association’s annual stream clean-up.

Contact kmh@wctrust.org to sign up.

Carrot Club - Potato Planting May TBD 4:00 - 6:00 pm Rushton Farm Farm and nature fun for kids age 7-12. Work with farmers to plant potatoes in the field, transplant sunflower seeds from pots to soil, nature hike at Rushton Woods Preserve with mini species count and scavenger hunt. Contact emg@wctrust.org for more info.

First CSA Pick Up Of The Season Tuesday, May 30 2:00 – 7:00 pm Rushton Farm Now in its tenth year, Rushton Farm CSA members pick up their weekly share of sustainably-grown vegetables on their assigned day, either Tuesday or Friday through mid-November.

For more info or to get on the CSA member waiting list, contact emg@wctrust.org.

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Junior Birding Club - Purple Martin Banding Late June or early July, date to be announced 9:00 – 11:00 am The Glen Mills School Watch the banding of hundreds of Purple Martin chicks.

Contact bhg@wctrust.org to sign up.

Junior Birding Club - Behind the Scenes at the Academy of Natural Sciences Thursday, June 22 1 – 3 pm Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia A behind-the-scenes visit to the Academy, home of one of the world’s largest collections of bird specimens. We will get to observe ornithologists preparing study skins and see the amazing bird collection! Contact bhg@wctrust.org to sign up.

Carrot Club - Artistic Agroecology June TBD 4:00 - 6:00 pm Rushton Woods Preserve Farm and nature fun for kids age 7-12. Watercolor painting, nature poetry, and animal habitat art. Contact emg@wctrust. org for more info.

July Junior Birding Club - There Be Dragons Wednesday, July 12 5:30 – 7:30 pm Rushton Woods Preserve Did you know that dragonflies migrate like birds, or that they eat pesky mosquitoes? John Black, Master Naturalist and president of the Native Plant Society of NJ, will be presenting his program about dragonflies and then we will find these dragons!

Check wctrust.org for updated calendar.

Junior Birding Club - Wildflowers, Watercolor, and Pollinators Thursday, July 27 1:00 – 4:00 pm 925 Providence Road, Newtown Square Explore the spectacular wildflower meadow at the Trust’s office, learn about Monarch butterflies and the importance of native plants, and paint with watercolors in the fresh air with a local artist. Contact bhg@wctrust.org to sign up.

Wildflower Tour Thursday, July 20 4:30 - 7:30 pm Visit several private Willistown properties teeming with wildflower blooms. Space limited - reserve a spot by email to land@wctrust.org.

September Junior Birding Club - Nighthawk Watch Friday, September 1 6:00 – 8:00 pm Haverford College Watch the skies with expert bird watchers during the height of Common Nighthawk migration for the official count. Contact bhg@wctrust.org to sign up.

Fall Songbird Open House for all Ages Saturday, September 16 6 – 10:30 am Rushton Woods Preserve Stop by the banding station to observe the fascinating science of bird banding, learn how the banding station contributes to global bird conservation, and see beautiful migrant birds up close. All are welcome, but Junior Birding Club members should sign up

by emailing bhg@wctrust.org. Carrot Club members should sign up by emailing emg@wctrust.org.

August Junior Birding Club - Discover Rushton Mini Camp Wednesday, August 23 9:00 am – 1:00 pm Rushton Woods Preserve Spend half a day at Rushton exploring the woods and fields, birding and working on the farm harvesting. We’ll also get to meet the honeybees! Contact bhg@wctrust.org to sign up.

Fall Migration Banding Begins Thursday, August 31 Sunrise-early afternoon Rushton Woods Preserve Come meet Willistown’s most colorful inhabitants up close. To express interest and to receive regular banding schedule updates, email lkr@wctrust.org.

Carrot Club - Rushton Farm Mini-Camp August TBD Time TBD Rushton Woods Preserve Farm and nature fun for kids age 7-12. Spend the whole day at Rushton, including a field trip to the Chester County Food Bank. Contact emg@wctrust.org for more info.

Run-A-Muck & Countryside Bash Saturday, October 21 Kirkwood Preserve 2:30 pm – dusk You can Run or Muck (walk) on a beautiful cross-country trail this Fall, and stay for the Countryside Bash! Young, old and canine—all gather in this spectacular setting for a day of running, mucking and raucous fun. There’s nothing like it!

Registration at wctrust.org.

Junior Birding Club - Halloween Hike Friday, October 27 4:30 – 6:30 pm Ashbridge Preserve Take a fun haunt through the woods to enjoy the fall leaves, migrant birds, and other busy woodland creatures. Contact bhg@wctrust.org to sign up.

Tomato Tasting Saturday, July 29 5:00 – 7:00 pm Rushton Farm Tomatoes are the stars! Enjoy wine, beer & fabulous tomato preparations from Rushton Farm.

Carrot Club - Tasting, Tasting, 1-2-3 July TBD 4:00 - 6:00 pm Rushton Woods Preserve Farm and nature fun for kids age 7-12. Let’s taste what’s growing at Rushton! Introduction to Henry’s Garden and sharing the bounty. Contact emg@wctrust.org for more info.

Owl Banding Begins Wednesday, October 18 Rushton Woods Preserve By reservation only. Contact lkr@wctrust.org.

Junior Birding Club - Moth Party Friday, September 29 8:00 – 9:30 pm Rushton Woods Preserve Spend an autumn evening learning all about moths and surveying species by using blacklights and sugary moth bait painted on trees. Contact bhg@wctrust.org to sign up.

October Radnor Hunt Horse Trials & Pig Roast Saturday, October 7 Competition: 8:00 am – 5:00 pm Pig Roast: 5:00 pm Radnor Hunt Pony Club and Radnor Hunt This “horse triathalon” has been taking place in the Radnor Hunt countryside for over 40 years. Proceeds benefit organizations that support the local equestrian community, including Willistown Conservation Trust. More info at www.radnorhuntht.org Junior Birding Club - Hawk Watch Sunday, October 15 2:00 – 4:00 pm Rose Tree Park, Media Join expert hawkwatchers and e-Birders during the height of the fall migration. You’ll learn all about raptor identification and see migrating raptors overhead. Contact bhg@wctrust.org to sign up.

Sycamore Society Party Sunday, October 1 5:00 - 7:00 pm Supporters who donate $1,500 or more per year to the Trust will be mailed an invitation to this special cocktail party celebrating and thanking the Trust’s leadership giving society.

Carrot Club - Harvest party October TBD 5:00 - 7:00 pm Rushton Woods Preserve Farm and nature fun for kids age 7-12. Pumpkin carving, cider pressing, and hayrides. Contact emg@wctrust.org for more info.

November

.

Radnor Hunt Pony Club Chase for Conservation Sunday, November 5 Proceeds from this annual trail ride crossing through miles of Willistown’s open space and protected lands benefit the Trust.

More info at www.radnorhuntpc.org.

Junior Birding Club - Saw-whet Owl Banding Friday, November 10 6:00 – 8:00 pm Rushton Woods Preserve Observe Northern Saw-whet Owl banding. These tiny owls travel through our area in the fall in search of ideal overwintering habitat. Email bhg@wctrust.org to sign up.

December

.

Junior Birding Club - Winter Bird Count Sunday, December 10 Time TBD Enjoy a morning of bird watching at Rushton Woods. We will count birds in the tradition of the National Audubon Christmas Bird Count (CBC), which is the longest running wildlife survey in the world. We’ll serve up some hot cocoa in the

greenhouse after!

SPRING 2017 | 25

The Sycamore Society

KELSEY LINGLE/WCT STAFF

The Sycamore Society honors individuals and organizations who annually contribute $1,500 or more to the Trust. Gifts listed below include contributions to the Annual Fund, Willistown Countryside Forever capital campaign, and other special gifts from January 1, 2016 to January 31, 2017

P L AT I N U M S YC A M O R E S ($25,000 or more)

Anonymous (2) Franny and Franny Abbott Mr. and Mrs. Warren I. Claytor Mr. and Mrs. Robert V. Duprey Mr. and Mrs. Charles A. Genuardi Dr. Janet F. Haas and Mr. John Otto Haas

Beverly S. Hattersley Barbara M. Jordan Kirby Foundation George F. Krall Mr. and Mrs. Collin F. McNeil Mourning Dove Foundation

Otto Haas Charitable Trust Quaker City Foundation Seaspring Real Estate Partners Starrett Foundation Ms. Lida A. Wright Janine and Alejandro Zozaya

G O L D S YC A M O R E S ($10,000 to $24,999)

Anonymous (5) Elizabeth G. Atterbury Mr. Charles J. Bernard Mandy Cabot and Peter Kjellerup Bryn Mawr Trust Company Mr. Mitchell R. Davis E. Murdoch Family Foundation Dick and Nancy Eales Kimberley and Russell Galligher Jim and Cherie Gerry Dale and Kris Goodman

Kat and Steve Gord Graham Partners Tucker C. Gresh Griffiths Construction, Inc. Alice and Peter Hausmann Mr. and Mrs. W. Anthony Hitschler Mr. and Mrs. J. David Hucker Mr. Francis M. Jennings and Ms. Terri Cappelli John Milner Architects, Inc. Kinsley Foundation Janice and Britt Murdoch

Mr. and Mrs. Seymour S. Preston III Mr. and Mrs. David W. Rawson Dr. Amanda A. Ryan and Mr. Kevin T. Ryan Spinner Family Charitable Fund Holly and Steve Spinner Mr. and Mrs. Michael A. Stolper Mr. and Mrs. John F. Stoviak Tally Foundation Mr. and Mrs. James L. Van Alen II Veritable, LP Don and Nancy Weaver

The Annual Fund provides annual operating support for the Trust’s Land Protection, Bird Conservation, Community Farm, and Habitat Restoration Programs.

Sycamore Society members look on as Al Murphy of Bryn Mawr Trust and Willistown Conservation Trust Executive Director Bonnie Van Alen share celebratory comments.

The 2016 Sycamore Society gathering was held at the home of Janine and Alex Zozaya.

S I LV E R S YC A M O R E S ($5,000 to $9,999)

Anonymous (2) Blue Water Home Mr. and Mrs. W. Thacher Brown Claneil Foundation, Inc. Mr. and Mrs. Gary A. Cox Fly Advanced – Stratus Foundation Ms. Linda Gordon Steven and Christina Graham Messrs. Hinkle-Brown Ms. Francie Ingersoll and Mr. Matthew Taylor

Sharon and Rick Jones Ms. Susan A. Kokat Mr. and Mrs. Robert S. McMenamin Mr. and Mrs. Charles C. Moller Jim and Joan Moore Caroline Moran Moran Family Charitable Foundation Ms. Meghan Moran-Kraut and Mr. Robert Kraut Mr. and Mrs. James A. Nolen IV

Mr. and Mrs. Conrad Radcliffe Radnor Hunt Horse Trials Dr. Donald E. Red Mr. and Mrs. Peter A. Rohr Saul Ewing, LLP Mr. and Mrs. Peter S. Strawbridge Mr. and Mrs. Gerard H. Sweeney Mr. and Mrs. Robert E. Turner, Jr. Virginia Wellington Cabot Foundation Mr. and Mrs. Richard A. Warden

B RO N Z E S YC A M O R E S ($2,500 to $4,999)

Anonymous (2) Arader Tree and Landscape Mr. Timothy B. Barnard and Ms. Meredyth Patterson Caroline and Olin Belsinger Mr. and Mrs. F.L. Bissinger, Jr. Clarke and Barb Blynn Mr. and Mrs. James Bruder Cherokee Construction Mr. and Mrs. W. Morgan Churchman III Mr. and Mrs. Bryan D. Colket Mr. and Mrs. Tristram C. Colket, Jr. Mr. and Mrs. Anthony D’Alessandro Dr. and Mrs. Sanford H. Davne

Anthony and Linda DiValerio Mr. and Mrs. C. Kim Drackett E.C. Trethewey Building Contractors, Inc. Elite Group, LLC First Cornerstone Foundation Mr. and Mrs. Paul Gansky Dr. and Mrs. Robert P. Good Les Green and Ethie Ziselman Growing Tree Foundation, Inc. Hamilton Family Foundation The Herr Family Mr. and Mrs. William T. Howard James Brown Plumbing Heating & Air Conditioning, LLC

Mr. and Mrs. Anthony C. Keane King Construction Company, LLC Kreischer Miller Sally and Joe Layden Mr. and Mrs. D. Christopher Le Vine Le Vine Foundation Stephanie and John McGowan Mr. and Mrs. Robert D. McNeil Mrs. Anne G. Moran Joan and John Mullen Mr. and Mrs. John J. Nesbitt III Mr. and Mrs. Arthur E. Newbold IV Peter Zimmerman Architects, Inc.

Mr. and Mrs. William J. Petrauskas Radnor Hunt Pony Club Ranieri & Kerns Associates, LLC Mr. and Mrs. Karl R. Schoettle, Jr. Fritz and Christine Seving Shreiner Tree Care Stephen Sordoni Mr. and Mrs. Douglas Swope Mr. and Mrs. David B. Thayer Warren Claytor Architects Mr. and Mrs. W. Christian Weirich White Horse Village Mrs. Ethel Benson Wister

SPRING 2017 | 27

Donor Support

S YC A M O R E S

($1,500 to $2,499)

Anonymous (2) Sandra K. Baldino Peter J. Bohn and Alexandra Hettinger Mr. and Mrs. Edwin H. Borgh, Jr. Mr. and Mrs. Douglas S. Briggs Mr. and Mrs. Robert M. Campbell, Jr. Ms. Beatrice M. Cassou Colket Foundation Mr. and Mrs. John F. Cozzi Daley Family Foundation, a fund of the Chester County Community Foundation Mr. and Mrs. James M. D’Arcy Mr. and Mrs. James M. Davidson Mr. and Mrs. Neil H. Davis Ms. Colleen J. DeMorat and Mr. Raymond E. Dombroski Diamond Ice Foundation Ronald E. DiSimone and Patricia Torna Mr. and Mrs. John H. Donaldson Mr. and Mrs. Stephen J. Eldredge Ann Ercolani and Drew Conboy Mr. and Mrs. Benjamin Etherington Lynn and Steve Flynn Mr. Brook Gardner and Ms. Jodi Spragins GBH Foundation Mr. George T. Graham and Ms. Suzanne M. Roth

Ms. Yolanda M. Gray Anne and Matt Hamilton Dorrance H. Hamilton Mr. and Mrs. J. Wesley Hardin Philip J. and Elizabeth A. Harvey Mr. Scott T. Hattersley Karen K. and Thomas B. Helm Mr. and Mrs. Thomas W. Hofmann Mr. and Mrs. Gary M. Holloway Mr. Bradford F. Johnson Jonathan Alderson Landscape Architects Margot and Bob Keith James and Amanda Kennedy Mr. and Mrs. Hugh Kenworthy III Jerome R. Keough Mr. and Mrs. Karl M. Kyriss Ms. Catherine LaFarge Mr. and Mrs. J. Richard Leaman, Jr. Mr. and Mrs. Mark T. Ledger Mr. and Mrs. Kurt V. Leininger Mr. and Mrs. Edward W. Leisenring Dr. and Mrs. N. Blair LeRoy William and Suzy Lowther Mr. and Mrs. Ian A. MacKinnon Mark D. Slouf Custom Building & Design Mary and Jay McElroy Mrs. Wendy W. McLean

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Mr. and Mrs. Matthew Naylor Mr. and Mrs. Steven M. Oblack Sandra and Warren Ormerod Keith M. Pension Mr. Lance T. Piecoro Mr. and Mrs. Christopher Rorer Mr. and Mrs. Jonathan Rorer Rorer Foundation Ms. Sarah Sanz Christa and Calvin W. Schmidt Mr. and Mrs. John A. Simkiss, Jr. Simkiss Family Foundation Lang and Marilyn Smith Spurlino Family Foundation Mr. and Mrs. Arthur L. Strawbridge Mr. and Mrs. Steven L. Strawbridge Dylan and Anne Supina Eric and Susan Swanson Mr. and Mrs. Anson W. H. Taylor III Mr. and Mrs. Stuart A. Taylor Mr. Gary M. Tocci Mr. and Mrs. James L. Van Alen, Jr. The Honorable and Mrs. Thomas D. Watkins Lisa M. Whitcomb and John H. Krick, Jr. Margaret and Tom Whitford Ms. Josephine Lippincott Winsor Mr. and Mrs. Jerold T. Wright

We are grateful for the following donors who have generously supported the Trust’s conservation efforts from January 1, 2016 through January 31, 2017.

CONSERVATIONISTS ($1,000 to $1,499) Armond Aquatech Pools, Inc. Barbara and Richard Barnhart Berkshire Hathaway/Fox & Roach Realtors Joanne M. Berwind Brandywine Realty Trust Broadacres Trouting Association Community Clothes Charity Dr. and Mrs. Robert Corrato Country Barn Construction & Landscape Services, Inc. Country Properties Carol and J.R. Delich E.B. Mahoney Builders Mr. and Mrs. Benjamin Etherington Ferguson & Shamamian Architects, LLP Germeshausen Foundation Mr. Richard J. Green and Ms. Hope Cohen GreenWeaver Landscapes, LLC Jeff and Diane Groff Meg and Chris Hardesty John B. Ward & Co. L. S. Stone Masonry, Inc. Mrs. Lawrence E. MacElree Mr. and Mrs. Thompson A. Maher Ms. Victoria B. Mars and Mr. David R. Spina John and Nima Marsh Martin J. Cappelletti Custom Builders, Inc. Dr. F. Arthur McMorris and Dr. Joanna Balcarek McMorris Mr. and Mrs. Peter J. McNeely Donna and Bill Oliver Out There Outfitters Mr. Derek N. Pew and Ms. Blaire E. Baron Mr. and Mrs. Gerald B. Rorer Missy Schwartz Julie and Bob Spahr Mr. and Mrs. Randal J. Steinhoff Edward and Elizabeth Stone Dr. and Mrs. Robert Taggart Dr. Sharon Taylor and Mr. Joe Cannon Mr. and Mrs. Thomas R. Trala, Jr. Tyler Donald Fine Furniture, Inc. U.S. Bancorp Community Development Corporation Mr. and Mrs. Robert B. Van Alen Mr. Charles F. Van Doren Mr. and Mrs. Brock J. Vinton Vinton Family Foundation Mrs. William G. Warden III Wawa Foundation, Inc. Ted and Susan Wentz Dr. Kathy Zoll and Mr. Joseph C. Zoll NATURALISTS ($500 TO $999) Anonymous Altus Partners Anne Stroud Hannum Charitable Fund, a fund of the Chester County Community Foundation

Aqua America, Inc. The Bank of New York Mellon Community Partnership Bartlett Tree Expert Co. Benner & Sons Painting and Wallcovering Bryn Mawr Landscaping, Inc. Claytor/Noone Plastic Surgery Comcast Corporation Countryside Consulting Cover & Rossiter Robin and Alan Crawford III

Mr. and Mrs. William O. Daggett, Jr. Ms. Laura de Ramel Janice Ramsay Elston Mr. Michael P. Erdman FireCraft, Inc. John and Dolly Fisher Mr. and Mrs. Kevin Gallagher Mr. and Mrs. J. E. Gibson Mr. and Mrs. Edmund Goll Mr. and Mrs. Louis Hahn Mr. John G. Harkins, Jr. Mrs. John A. Harris IV

Mr. and Mrs. William R. Hartman, Sr. Hawthorn, PNC Family Wealth Ms. Melissa Heller Ms. Caroline Hicks Mr. Thomas P. Hogan, Jr. Mr. and Mrs. Harry J. Hurley III Joint & Spine Physical Therapy Ms. Christine V. Kanter Dr. and Mrs. Keith Kennedy Sara Williams and Tom Koester Mrs. Anne D. Koffey Mr. Jeffrey R. Larsen

Ordinary People. Extraordinary Impact.

“

We have lived in Willistown for close to 38 years and have raised our children here along with a host of dogs, chickens, and sheep.

We feel this landscape is part of our DNA. Willistown Conservation Trust has helped to shape and influence our relationship to this land where we have been so fortunate to live. We want to ensure that this magnificent place is here to similarly influence future generations.

That is why we have remembered Willistown Conservation Trust in our will.

“

LEFT: By getting people out on the land in myriad ways, the Trust hopes to build a deeper appreciation for Willistown’s open spaces. Last September, over 500 people enjoyed the glorious countryside and Run-a-Muck trail.

- Alice and Peter Hausmann

Please consider joining the Legacy Society by adding some simple bequest language to your will, or by making Willistown Conservation Trust a beneficiary of your life insurance or retirement plan.

W I L L I S T OW N

CONSERVATION TRUST

Legacy Society

For more information contact Laura de Ramel at (610)353-2562, ext. 21.

Pam and Greg Levinson Mr. and Mrs. Wade L. McDevitt Mr. and Mrs. David A. McElhinney Jim and Judy Milne Jay and Nancy Mossman Dr. Pamela H. Nagy and Mr. Peter A. Nagy Oliver Heating, Cooling, Plumbing Ned and Rachel Owen Reed Smith, LLP Mr. and Mrs. George F. Rubin Alice M. Sharp Sarah and Gary Sheehan Ellyn Spragins and John Witty Mr. and Mrs. Jack M. Taylor Mr. and Mrs. Justin N. Thompson Mr. Richard H. Thompson, Jr. Mr. and Mrs. James J. Tornetta Mr. and Mrs. John Tuten Vanguard Charitable Mr. and Mrs. Jeffrey S. Vincent Lee and Bill Warden Weeds, Inc. Dan and Sharon Yonker STEWARDS ($250 to $499) Anonymous (3) Abington Friends School Mr. and Mrs. John Anderson Dr. and Mrs. Joseph Bellanca

Dr. and Mrs. Steven W. Breecker Mr. and Mrs. John O. Buckley Mr. and Mrs. H. Augustus Carey Mr. and Mrs. Roger Carolin Mr. and Mrs. Jeffrey Collins Mr. and Mrs. Eric A. Corkhill III Ms. Pamela Costanzi Mr. and Mrs. Donald P. Coulston Mark and Michele Cruise Vince and Kali Curran Colleen M. Del Monte Mr. and Mrs. H. Jeffrey DeVuono Sallie and Saunders Dixon Debbie Somers Eichman and John Eichman Mr. and Mrs. Dennis J. Elko Mr. and Mrs. John Familetti Mr. and Mrs. Wendell Fenton Mr. and Mrs. Samuel T. Freeman III Ms. Anne M. Stanley Glunk Mr. and Mrs. Harry C. Groome III Mr. and Mrs. Nathaniel P. Hamilton, Jr. Tracey and Gil Hanse Ms. Lisa Hatcher Mr. and Mrs. Azeez Hayne Mr. and Mrs. James R. Holt, Jr. Mr. and Mrs. Joseph H. Huston, Jr. Juniper Networks Foundation Fund Mr. and Mrs. Rudolf L. Laveran Karen P. Lenker Anita and Frank Leto Ms. Pamela E. Lewis Tim Lewis

Nick and Cass Ludington Ms. Mary E. MacLachlan Mr. Ralph W. Marsh Miss Deborah Anne Mathes Mr. and Mrs. Patrick McGovern Ms. Akiko Mitsui and Mr. James Heath Mr. and Mrs. Robert L. Moser, Jr. Mr. Kevin Murphy Janneke Seton Neilson Open Connections Bob and Susan Peck Mr. and Mrs. Dale A. Pope Dave and Kelly Prevost Ms. Megan Quigley Ms. Claudia Rash Mr. and Mrs. H. Clifford Reves Mr. and Mrs. John Rhoads, Jr. Chip and Nancy Roach Mary and Rob Ruggiero Mr. and Mrs. Jesse Saunders Nate and Edda Schwartz Ms. Hannah H. R. Shipley Mr. and Mrs. Andrew Smith Eric and Genevieve Snyder John and Fay Snyder Mr. and Mrs. Morris Stroud II Mr. James K. Thompson Vanguard Community Fund Vanguard Group Foundation The Weeders Mr. and Mrs. Bradford F. Whitman Mr. and Mrs. R. Kurt Williams Mr. and Mrs. V. Scott Zelov

PROTECTORS ($100 to $249) Anonymous (6) Ardrossan Beagles, Inc. Ms. Laurie M. Bachman Mr. and Mrs. Jeffrey E. Baena Mr. and Mrs. R. Gregory Barton Mr. and Mrs. James L. Beam Dr. and Mrs. Michael P. Bibbo Ms. Barbara L. Bird Betsy and Luke Block Melanie and Thom Boerner Mr. and Mrs. Scott Boyance Bill Brennan and Joy Atwell Ms. Elaine Brody Dr. A. Michael Broennle Henry and Martha Bryans George A. and Elizabeth R. Buckland Laura Burgess Ms. Susan C. Butterworth Mr. and Mrs. Edward Ross Carpenter, Jr. Mr. and Mrs. Joseph R. Caspar Mr. and Mrs. Patrick Clancy Mrs. Patricia Clement Jackie and Tom Cobb Sandy Collins Hank and Rika Conlan Mr. and Mrs. Paolo P. Costa Mr. and Mrs. William H. Cranney Ron D’Angeli Mr. and Mrs. Charles H. Davis Drs. Paul and Caroline Davis Rob and Melinda Davis

MARY HUNT DAVIS PHOTOGRAPHY

Run-a-Muck guests and volunteers enjoy delicious BBQ, live music, and a stunning sunset at the 2016 event, raising $49,000 for the Trust’s open space programs. The 2017 Run-a-Muck will once again take place overlooking the beautiful Kirkwood Preserve. The running and mucking (walking) trails will wind their way through beautiful properties that are not normally open to the public.

RIGHT: The

2016 Barns & BBQ tour and auction raised $125,000 for the Trust’s open space programs.

Mr. and Mrs. C. Frederick de Long, Sr. Mr. and Mrs. William M. Diehl Mr. and Mrs. Louis A. DiMartino Mr. and Mrs. Walter J. Dowling Ms. Lisa Dudash and Mr. John P. Forde Theodore and Debra Fetterman Mr. and Mrs. Michael Fitzpatrick Mr. and Mrs. Andrew Flaherty Mr. and Mrs. Malcolm E. Flint Mr. and Mrs. Thomas F. Foerster Mr. Edward D. Frank II and Ms. Susan G. Lea Dr. and Mrs. Thomas G. Frazier Mr. and Mrs. Edwin Garrubbo The Gardeners Germantown Academy Mr. and Mrs. Robert Gilfillan Elizabeth Gilpin Dr. Janice Taylor Gordon Mr. and Mrs. K. David Graham Mr. and Mrs. James A. Grant, Sr. Mr. and Mrs. Perry C. Gresh Mr. and Mrs. M. John Ham Mr. and Mrs. J. Marshall Hamilton Ryan and Lori Heenan Ms. Hannah L. Henderson Mr. and Mrs. Denny Howell Ms. Kristin Morsman Jacoby Mrs. Hugh McBee Johnston III Rex Kessler Ms. Sarah Keyes Mr. William M. Keyser Ms. Lucy M. Kiziuk George and Nicola Knoell Ms. Lisa Krall Mr. and Mrs. Robert Latyak Mr. and Mrs. David P. Lavins Mr. and Mrs. John Lear Mr. and Mrs. Richard S. Lee Mr. and Mrs. Dana T. Lerch Mr. and Mrs. John F. Link Joan W. Mackie Dr. and Mrs. W. Steven Mark Mr. and Mrs. Scott Markley Ms. Jacqueline Badger Mars Mr. Harv W. Martens and Ms. Janet Querner Joan and David Martin Ms. Marianne R. McClatchy Mr. and Mrs. Andrew McDermott Robbi and Jim McErlane Ms. Barbara McIlvaine Smith Mr. James Meehan Mr. and Mrs. Edwin H. Metcalf Ms. Louise Miller Mr. and Mrs. John Day Mohr Mr. and Mrs. Chris Moran Mr. and Mrs. William F. Mowbray Mr. and Mrs. Alex Mowday Anne and Gary Murphy Jim and Kayo Nolan Mr. and Mrs. Richard Owens Mr. and Mrs. Martin R. Page Laura Sauer Palmer and David Palmer Margo and Mac Patterson Mrs. Stephen Pearson Mr. and Mrs. Andrew J. Pesthy Mrs. Eleanor R. Peterson Ms. Amy Piccola and Mr. Eric Kublius Mr. and Mrs. John R. Previti, Jr. Mr. Jeffrey M. Price and Ms. Avery Rome Judy and Joseph J. Radano David and Faye Rogers Mr. and Mrs. Blake Rohrbacher Mr. and Mrs. William Rouse

Mr. and Mrs. Henry E. Schellenger Mr. and Mrs. David R. Shaman Mr. and Mrs. Keven Shanahan Frances and Keith Sharkan Mr. and Mrs. Ken Silverwood Mr. and Mrs. Sidney V. Smith, Jr. Mr. and Mrs. Timothy C. Stapf Michael G. Starecky Mr. and Mrs. R.J. Stedman Michael Steinberger Ms. Morgan Stoviak Deborah S. Terzian Ilene Chester and Frank Tobin Ms. Anna Coxe Toogood Bobbi Tower Mr. and Mrs. Peter Townsend W. Scott Tuttle Michael Tyler Waltzing Matilda Dr. and Mrs. Michael Ward Washburn Family Foundation Mr. David E. Watt Jenny and Bill Webb West Chester Bird Club Mr. and Mrs. David R. Wilmerding, Jr. Mr. and Mrs. Steven Witsil Sally Ann Wood Mr. and Mrs. Charles R. Wood Mr. George C. Wood Mr. Minturn T. Wright III Mr. Christian D. Wynne Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Zungailia

ABOVE: The

Radnor Hunt Horse Trials highlights our conserved lands with its beautiful cross country course.

The horse competition continues a 40-year tradition of eventing at Radnor Hunt, and it has donated over $45,000 to the Trust’s land conservation programs since 2009.

LEFT: Over 100 riders enjoyed

Willistown’s trails that crossed hundreds of acres of protected lands at the 2016 Radnor Hunt Pony Club Chase for Conservation.

HOOFPRINT IMAGES

FRIENDS (up to $99) Anonymous (3) Page Allinson John and Diane Bartusiak Mr. Timothy M. Beadle Mr. and Mrs. Thomas K. Beckett, Jr. Debbie Beer and Adrian Binns Mr. Peter A. Bergson Ms. Julia Bergson-Shilcock and Mr. Michael Hilbert Mr. Rodger A. Bovenkerk Mr. and Mrs. L. Steuart Brown, Jr. Mr. and Mrs. William T. Burns Mr. Leonard A. Busby John Odell and Maryanne Buschini Mr. and Mrs. Nick Caniglia Mr. and Mrs. Jeffery Cantlin Mrs. James T. Carson Ms. Karen A. Celia Ms. Lynne W. Chapman Ms. Pamela Pennewell Cloud Jonna D. Coachman Dr. and Mrs. Bernard Cooker Mr. Christopher B. Cryer Dr. and Mrs. Francis X. DeLone, Jr. Mr. Eric Charles Delss Mr. John deProphetis Ms. Angelique Dibruno Mrs. Elisabeth Gula Duffy Episcopal Academy Mr. and Mrs. Peter Ernst Virginia Fanfera Mr. Thomas J. Farrell III and Ms. Alison D. Ogelsby Mr. and Mrs. Anthony L. Fernandes Mr. and Mrs. Brian G. Field Mr. and Mrs. John Finkbiner Jody and Alan Fitts Mr. and Mrs. Keith Fox Ms. Amy Francis Mary Fran and Bob Frankenheimer Ms. Mary O. French Ms. Patricia M. Gallagher Mrs. Diana T. Garson Ms. Glenna F. Geiger Dr. and Mrs. Edward F. Gilardi Mr. Stephen M. Gollomp Ms. Penny Goulding

Mrs. George F. Gowen Andrea Hanaway, MD Ms. Nancy G. Harris Paul Nigel Harris Dr. Frank S. Harrion, Jr. Mr. and Mrs. John E. Hazard Mrs. Carol Henn Ms. Amy Hertzog John and Linda V. Hicks Mr. and Mrs. James W. B. Hole Mr. and Mrs. Robert M. Howard Mr. Robert Itin and Ms. Mary Garrett Itin Mr. Francis B. Jacobs II Beth E. Johnson Mr. Dennis P. Kane Ms. Marjorie P. Kinkead Ms. Fiona Kyck Mr. and Mrs. Joseph G. Lewis Ms. Denise Liszewski Ms. Marian Lockett-Egan Mr. and Mrs. Gennaro J. Maffia Mr. and Mrs. Karl A. Malessa Dana and Roddy Marino Mr. and Mrs. Robert C. McAdoo Ms. Heather McDevitt Daniel P. McHugh Mr. and Mrs. Louis Megosh Ms. Judith Mendelsohn Ms. Kristine Messner Arthur P. and Marjorie L. Miller Ms. Sally Wistar Miller Mr. and Mrs. Joe Morrissey Ms. Edith G. Parnum Mr. Stephen Paylor Jane G. Pepper Barbara Pettinos Ms. Nindy Pike Mrs. Gale A. Rawson Tom Reeves Mr. and Mrs. J. Permar Richards III Mr. and Mrs. Michael W. Runkle Mark and Emily Saks Ms. Rebecca Sargent Ms. Anne Satterthwaite The Schlegel Family Nancy and Richard Schwab Mrs. George C. Shafer, Jr. Mr. Jan T. Sklaroff Dr. and Mrs. W. John Smith

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Derek J. Stefanik Jo Ann and David Stephens Mr. Henry Stevens Ms. Winifred Hare Stout Ms. Eileen R. Stoveld Liz and Ken Tankel Joan G. Thayer Craig and Judy Thomas Mr. and Mrs. Aaron R. Thurlow Bruce and Caron Ulmer Mr. and Mrs. Duncan W. Van Dusen Ms. Carol A. Verhake Mr. Howard Walker Mr. and Mrs. Michael A. Warner Mr. and Mrs. Steven E. Welch Lawrence and Elizabeth Wilson James H. Wilson Mr. and Mrs. Philip Witmer Mr. and Mrs. Frederick J. Yannessa Mr. and Mrs. John L. Young Jean G. Zeien Mrs. M. Sinclair Adams Ziesing CORPORATE, FOUNDATIONS, and MATCHING GIFTS Anonymous (1) Amazon Smile Foundation Claneil Foundation, Inc. Colket Foundation Comcast Corporation Daley Family Foundation, a fund of the Chester County Community Foundation Diamond Ice Foundation First Cornerstone Foundation GBH Foundation Germeshausen Foundation GlaxoSmithKline Growing Tree Foundation Otto Haas Charitable Trust Hamilton Family Foundation Anne Stroud Hannum Charitable Fund, a fund of the Chester County Community Foundation JCF Foundation Johnson & Johnson JPMorgan Chase Foundation Juniper Networks Foundation Fund Kinsley Foundation

Kirby Foundation Le Vine Family Foundation McKinsey & Company Merz Family Foundation Moran Family Charitable Foundation Mourning Dove Foundation E. Murdoch Family Foundation Network for Good Quaker City Foundation Reinvestment Fund, Inc. Rorer Foundation Simkiss Family Foundation Spinner Family Charitable Fund of Community Foundation Serving Richmond and Central Virginia Starrett Foundation Tally Foundation The Bank of New York Mellon Community Partnership The Wawa Foundation, Inc. U.S. Bancorp Community Development Corporation Vanguard Charitable Vanguard Group Foundation Vinton Family Foundation Virginia Wellington Cabot Foundation Voya Foundation Washburn Family Foundation

MEMORIAL GIFTS In memory of Dr. George F. Gowen Ms. Lynne W. Chapman Ms. Nancy G. Harris Ms. Hannah L. Henderson Ms. Marian Lockett-Egan Mr. and Mrs. Robert C. McAdoo Ms. Sally Wistar Miller Mrs. Janneke Seton Neilson Mrs. Stephen Pearson Mr.* and Mrs. George C. Shafer, Jr. Ms. Winifred Hare Stout Ms. Anna Coxe Toogood Mr. and Mrs. Duncan W. Van Dusen Mr. and Mrs. James L. Van Alen II Mr. and Mrs. Steven Witsil Mr. and Mrs. Charles R. Wood Mr. and Mrs. Frederick J. Yannessa Mrs. M. Sinclair Adams Ziesing In memory of Pat Jacobs Mr. William M. Keyser In memory of Janice Elizabeth Elston Knecht Janice Ramsay Elston In memory of Mr. R. James Macaleer Mrs. Carol Henn In memory of Elizabeth Ross Hungerford Ms. Louise Miller In memory of George C. Shafer, Jr. Mrs. George F. Gowen

*Deceased

In memory of Bruner Strawbridge Community Clothes Charity Mr. and Mrs. Louis A. DiMartino Mr. and Mrs. S. Matthews V. Hamilton Mr. and Mrs. Michael W. Runkle Ms. Hannah H. R. Shipley In memory of Louis C. and Barbara R. Washburn Elizabeth Washburn Pesce Washburn Family Foundation TRIBUTES and SPECIAL GIFTS In Honor of Deb and John Donaldson Jane Pepper In Honor of the Marriage of Ms. Laura Taylor Gorham and Mr. John Horton Ms. Caroline Hicks Mr. and Mrs. Edwin H. Metcalf Mrs. Gale A. Rawson Ms. Carol A. Verhake In Honor of Tony Hitschler Tucker C. Gresh In Honor of Rosanne Mistretta Ms. Fiona Kyck In Honor of Holly and John Stoviak Mr. Richard J. Green and Ms. Hope Cohen In Honor of Britt Murdoch’s Generosity Mr. and Mrs. George F. Rubin In Honor of Michele and James J. Tornetta Ms. Christine V. Kanter BIRD CONSERVATION PROGRAM Abington Friends School Ms. Pamela Pennewell Cloud Ms. Angelique Dibruno Germantown Academy Mr. and Mrs. Louis Hahn Meg and Chris Hardesty Ms. Lucy M. Kiziuk Mr. and Mrs. Mark T. Ledger Dr. F. Arthur McMorris and Dr. Joanna Balcarek McMorris Open Connections Ms. Edith Parnum West Chester Bird Club Ms. Josephine Lippincott Winsor Mr. and Mrs. Philip Witmer Mr. and Mrs. John L. Young COMMUNITY FARM PROGRAM GBH Foundation Mr. Scott T. Hattersley Barbara M. Jordan Wawa Foundation EASEMENT FUND Dr. Kimberley H. Galligher and Mr. Russell T. Galligher Mr. and Mrs. David Rawson EITC Graham Partners HENRY’S GARDEN Barbara M. Jordan

INTERNSHIP FUND Ms. Karen Celia The Episcopal Academy, Gifts for the Greater Good Mr. and Mrs. Eric Swanson MOTUS FUND Anonymous (1) Mandy Cabot and Peter Kjellerup Kinsley Foundation Mr. and Mrs. Ian A. MacKinnon Jim and Joan Moore Mr. and Mrs. Jesse Saunders Starrett Foundation Mr. and Mrs. James Van Alen II Virginia Wellington Cabot Foundation BENEFICIARY INCOME AmazonSmile Foundation The Episcopal Academy, Gifts for the Greater Good Out There Outfitters Radnor Hunt Horse Trials Radnor Hunt Pony Club’s Chase for Conservation Waltzing Matilda EVENTS 2016 Barns & BBQ Barn Hosts Mary Joan and Jim Cleary Kimberley and Russell Galligher Christina and Steve Graham The Lange and Shoemaker Family Carolyn and Bob Turner Barns & BBQ Co-Chairs Kat and Steve Gord Holly and John Stoviak Carolyn and Bob Turner Presenting Sponsors Griffiths Construction, Inc. John Milner Architects, Inc. Community Farm Sponsor Stratus Foundation with Fly Advanced Bird Conservation Sponsors Blue Water Home Saul Ewing LLP Wells Fargo Advisors, LLC Habitat Restoration Sponsors Arader Tree Service Bryn Mawr Trust Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. Cherokee Construction E.C. Trethewey Building Contractors, Inc. F.L. Bissinger, Inc. Gardner/Fox Associates, Inc. James Brown Plumbing Heating & Air Conditioning, LLC Jonathan Alderson Landscape Architects, Inc. King Construction Company, LLC Peter Zimmerman Architects Ranieri & Kerns Associates, LLC Shreiner Tree Care Sycamore Racing Warren Claytor Architects, Inc. White Horse Village Lifecare Community

Auction Supporters Heritage Metalworks Hetzel Brothers Peachtree & Ward Catering Radnor Hunt WCT Bird Conservation Program Staff

Sycamore Society Party Hosts Janine and Alejandro Zozaya

2016 Run-a-Muck Hosts Janice and Britt Murdoch

EVENT PATRONS Anonymous (4) Chris Arader Barb and Rich Barnhart Barb and Clarke Blynn The Bruder Girls Terri Cappelli and Fran Jennings Jayme and Bryan Colket Catharine and Gary Cox Colleen DeMorat and Ray Dombroski Mr. and Mrs. Robert V. Duprey Melissa and Steve Eldredge Lynn and Steve Flynn Kimberley and Russell Galligher Esther and Paul Gansky Glennbrook Farm Jean and Rob Good Kat and Steve Gord Christina and Steve Graham Renée and Larry Granger Dorrance H. Hamilton Mary and Wes Hardin Alice and Peter Hausmann The Herr Family Lynn and Tony Hitschler Beth and David Hucker Mary Beth and Harry Hurley Francie Ingersoll and Matt Taylor Anne D. Koffey Susan Kokat George F. Krall Le Vine Foundation Pamela and Thompson Maher Mr. and Mrs. Wade L. McDevitt Stephanie and John McGowan Leanne and Rob McMenamin Nia and Collin McNeil Nancy and John Mohr Caroline Moran Mullen Family Foundation Janice and Britt Murdoch Heather and Matthew Naylor Janneke Seton Neilson Douglass and Arthur Newbold Margaret Anne and Jim Nolen Karen and Skip Petrauskas Amanda and Conrad Radcliffe Christine and Fritz Seving Spinner Family Ellyn Spragins and John Witty Holly and John Stoviak Doris and Art Strawbridge Mr. and Mrs. Peter S. Strawbridge Jane and Stuart Taylor Michele and James Tornetta Melissa and Tom Trala Bob and Carolyn Turner Bonnie and Jim Van Alen Penny and Tom Watkins Ethel B. Wister Sharon and Dan Yonker

Run-a-Muck Co-Chairs Catharine and Gary Cox Susan Kokat Carolyn and Justin Thompson Jody and Dale Vandegrift Band Sponsor Kreischer Miller Mechanical Bull Sponsor Wells Fargo Advisors, LLC Horse Trailer Sponsors Barnard, Mezzanotte, Pinnie and Seelaus, LLP County Lines Magazine Major Muckety-Muck Sponsors Blue Water Home Griffiths Construction, Inc. John Milner Architects, Inc. Saul Ewing LLP Stratus Foundation with Fly Advanced Wells Fargo Advisors, LLC Muckety-Muck Sponsors Aqua America, Inc. Arader Tree Service Bartlett Tree Experts Benner & Sons Painting and Wallcovering Brandywine Realty Trust Bryn Mawr Landscaping, Inc. Bryn Mawr Trust Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. Cherokee Construction Claytor/Noone Plastic Surgery Institute Country Barn Construction and Landscape Services Country Properties Countryside Consulting Cover & Rossiter E.C. Trethewey Building Contractors, Inc. F.L. Bissinger FireCraft Gardner/Fox Associates, Inc. GreenWeaver Landscapes, LLC Hawthorn – PNC Family Wealth James Brown Plumbing Heating & Air John B. Ward & Co. Arborists Joint & Spine Physical Therapy Jonathan Alderson Landscape Architects King Construction Company, LLC Mark D. Slouf Custom Building & Design Martin J. Cappelletti Custom Builders, Inc. Missy Schwartz, Berkshire Hathaway / Fox & Roach Realtors Oliver Heating, Cooling, Plumbing & Electrical Peter Zimmerman Architects Ranieri & Kerns Associates, LLC Reed Smith, LLC Shreiner Tree Care Sycamore Racing The Elite Group Warren Claytor Architects, Inc. Weeds, Inc. White Horse Village Lifecare Community

Sycamore Society Sponsor Bryn Mawr Trust

Lists may be incomplete.

Please forgive omissions or errors.

SPRING 2017 | 33

EDUCATION AT THE TRUST Partnership Schools and Programs The Trust’s education programs serve more than 900 individuals, including 500 schoolchildren, each year. Whether it's working with urban youth, suburban school children, or graduate level university students, the Trust uses the protected Willistown countryside as an outdoor classroom for students of all ages and backgrounds.

BELOW: The Haverford School crew team combined community service with a

Abington Friends School Abington, PA The Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University Women in Natural Sciences Philadelphia, PA Agnes Irwin School Bryn Mawr, PA Boys Latin of Philadelphia Charter School Philadelphia, PA Cheyney University Cheyney, PA Episcopal Academy Newtown Square, PA Germantown Academy Fort Washington, PA Goshen Friends School West Chester, PA Green Valleys Watershed Association Pottstown, PA Harriton High School Bryn Mawr, PA Haverford High School Havertown, PA Haverford School Haverford, PA Open Connections Newtown Square, PA University of Pennsylvania Master of Environmental Studies Program Philadelphia, PA University of Pennsylvania Department of Landscape Architecture Philadelphia, PA Swarthmore College Swarthmore, PA Temple University Philadelphia, PA The Shipley School Bryn Mawr, PA Villanova University Villanova, PA Westtown School West Chester, PA Westtown- Thornbury Elementary School West Chester, PA Widener University Osher Lifelong Learning Institute Exton, PA

challenging physical workout by spending a day in late August at Rushton Farm weeding, preparing planting beds, harvesting hundreds of pounds of tomatoes, and running laps around the crop fields.

34 | W I L L I S TO W N C O N S E R VAT I O N T R U S T

volunteers INTERNS AND CONSERVATION ASSOCIATES Todd Alleger Bracken Brown Molly Clark Denise Ecker Alison Fetterman Michael McGraw Fabien Richard Danielle Smith VOLUNTEERS Franny Abbott Todd Alleger Chelsea Allen Cyndi and Edgar Andrews George Armistead Ellie Bach Sid Baglini Rachel Coxe Shoemaker and Erich Barchi Meredy Patterson and Tim Barnard Lindsay Barrow Kathryn Bartling Caroline Beebee Barb and Clarke Blynn Sarah Bouboulis Brianna Brigham Bracken Brown Maripeg and James Bruder Martha Bryans Alice and Christian Bullitt Laura Burgess Brian Byrnes Kathy and Bob Campbell Terri Capelli Katie and Jonnie Charlson Ilene Chester Meta and Mike Christaldi Jolie Chylack Molly Clark Caroline and Warren Claytor Mary Joan and Jim Cleary Jayme and Bryan Colket Mike Coll Sandy Collins Tracy Costa Wendy and Paolo Costa James Costello Carter Costello Tracey and Jon Costello Catharine and Gary Cox Robin and Alan Crawford Bryan Currinder Melissa Davey Carolyn Ann Davis Andy Davis Shannon and Chase Davis Fred de Long Kris Debolt Sarah Deutsch

Our sincere thanks to the following individuals who offered their time and talents to help the Trust. List reflects volunteer activities between January 1, 2016 and January 31, 2017.

Bryn Devine Jill Devine Amy Diercks Lee Dietterich Eva Dillon-Rutledge Laura Dolan Dolan Deb and John Donaldson Amanda Dunbar Dick Eales Denise Ecker Kate and Ben Etherington Colleen Farrell Alison Fetterman Katie Flaumer Christine and Tom Foga Tracey and Sam Freeman Stephanie Fuller Kim and Russ Galligher Esther and Paul Gansky Adriana Garcia Ian Gardner Jodi Spragins and Brook Gardner Mary Garrett Pooh Gephart Elaine Gilmartin Blake Goll Jean and Rob Good Kat and Steve Gord Eliza and James Gowen Julie Graham Christina Morin and Steve Graham Noah Gress David Groff Lyn Groome Lou Hahn Janet and John Ham Shaina and Nat Hamilton Elyse and John Hanlon Meg Hardesty Pam Harrison Bill Hartman Meg Hauler Alice and Peter Hausmann Erika and Azeez Hayne Kristen and Matt Henwood Andrea Herr Erin and Frank Herz Kevin Hesse Erik Hetzel Mark Hetzel Lynn and Tony Hitschler Lyn and Bill Howard Beth and David Hucker Joseph Hudson Mary Hundt Sarah Hutchin Kevin Hynes Sarah and Jason Ingle Olga and Fred Jackson Kristen Johnson Sheryl Johnson

Brad Johnson Kari and Tony Keane Alex Keane Kim and Keith Kennedy Denise and Andy Kerns Bill Keyser Lisa Kiziuk Susan Kokat Heather Kostick Joanne Kostick George Krall Jenny Kusters Sally and Joe Layden Mark Ledger Ted Leisenring Mike Leptuck Linda Leroy Pam Lewis Doris McGovern Stephanie and John McGowan Lauren McGrath Michael McGraw Gina and Chris McHugh Leanne and Rob McMenamin Arthur McMorris Collin McNeil Allyson McTear Bridgett McTear Adam Mitchell Jennifer Moller Chuck Moore Jill and Brian Muck Janice and Britt Murdoch Norris Muth Pam and Pete Nagy Heather and Matt Naylor Douglass and Art Newbold Margaret Anne and Jim Nolen Donna and Bill Oliver Chris O’Shea Emily Ostrow Tim Owen Martin Page Edith Parnum Susie and Tom Paul Sandi Perkowski-Sutherland Karen and Skip Petrauskas Mike Pierro Ian Putnam Jason Racey Carrie and Topper Ray Thomas Reeves Todd Richards Mike Rizzo Avery Rome Michael Rosengarten Nancy Rosin Diane and Bob Roskamp Amanda and Kevin Ryan Paige Turner

Cynthia Scheeler Cooper Schlegel Katie and Karl Schoettle Louise Schorn Smith Elaine Scott Alice Severeid Christine and Fritz Seving Marilyn and Edwin Shafer Jessica Shahan Karen Sharrar Sarah Coxe Lange and Bill Shoemaker Deacon Shorr Victoria Sindlinger Deb Small Danielle Smith Marilyn and Lang Smith Vince Smith Genevieve and Eric Snyder Holly Spinner Jamie and Tim Stapf Cathy Staples Holly and John Stoviak Doris and Art Strawbridge Liz and Peter Strawbridge Steve Strawbridge Dan Sullivan Jackie and Jerry Sweeney Jeanne Swope Francie Ingersoll and Matt Taylor Debi and Lance Taylor Dr. Sharon Taylor Olenia Czerwoniak and Ihor Terleckj Laryssa Terleckj Carolyn and Justin Thompson Rick Thompson Maryann Toner Melissa and Tom Trala Carolyn and Robert Turner Lindsey and David Turner Bonnie and Jim Van Alen Colby and Rob Van Alen Jody and Dale Vandegrift Barbara and Jeff Vincent Kris and Peter Wade Jane Walker Tana Wall Kathy and Rick Warden Penny and Tom Watkins Jason Weckstein Jason Weintraub Mike Weisensee Caitlin Welsh Rory and Don Wilkins Sally and Joe Willig Josephine and Henry Winsor Effie Wister Ellyn Spragins and John Witty Vicki and Chuck Wooters Liz and Scott Zelov

This list may be incomplete. Please forgive any omissions or errors.

The Sycamore

NON-PROFIT ORG. U.S. POSTAGE PAID SOUTHEASTERN, PA PERMIT NO. 96

WILLISTOWN CONSERVATION TRUST 925 Providence Road Newtown Square, PA 19073 www.wctrust.org

Save the Date!

October 21, 2017

Come out for a beautiful fall afternoon and evening celebrating Willistown’s conserved lands.

Run or muck (walk) the beautiful 5k or 1+ mile trails, or just hang out to enjoy the live music, bonfire, beer, wine, stargazing, and a country supper by Jimmy’s BBQ. Leashed dogs welcome! More info at wctrust.org.