Natural Fit nature with everyone he meets

Whether lesson plans include observing birds or letting kindergartners make a campsite in the woods, Resch makes sure their needs are met. He and Sandy Willmore, fellow outdoor education coordinator for the schools, ensure that students benefit from this hands-on approach to learning.

“To do what this job entails, you have to have someone with the spark and the vision – that’s Bill,” says Willmore. “There’s been nobody I’ve met who’s had as much impact on the community.”

Though arthritis has made it difficult for Resch to get around the trails in the nature preserve, it hasn’t stopped him.

His solution: a red recumbent bike.

“I’m faster on my bike than I am on my feet,” he jokes.

Resch enjoys giving visitors a “green carpet tour” – which Willmore describes as one of many “Reschisms” – on his bike. A unique feature of the nature preserve is a large oak tree whose age surpasses 300 years, and when Resch brings newcomers to the tree, he shares with them the tree-hugging ritual. After wrapping their arms around the tree, visitors repeat after Resch: “Thank you, tree, for the air we breathe and the food you make.”

He doesn’t just live and breathe nature during the work day, though.

Resch and his wife, Pauline, are currently building a LEEDcertified (Leadership in Energy Environmental Design) home on Morgan Road near the edge of the school campus, allowing him to live close to the wetlands and surrounding areas. The house is slated to be finished by January.

LEED certification guarantees that a house or building meets certain requirements in categories including water efficiency and energy, thus making it a green and environmentally friendly home. Not wanting to waste anything, Resch even recycled pieces of the old house that previously sat on the land.

“I love the nature preserve because it is a window into the beauty and magnificent balance of nature,” he says. “All learning for the students can be enhanced by this enriched environment. We are an award-winning program which is first in the state of Ohio, and we have a great staff that is very involved.”

By Garth Bishop