Building on 30 Years of Success - Winter 2022

ELAINE JORDAN RE-APPOINTED TO NC WILDLIFE COMMITTEE

Elaine R. Jordan was recently re-appointed as an At-Large Affili ate on the Nongame Wildlife Ad visory Committee of the North Carolina Wildlife Resource Commission. Elaine was initially nominated for the position in 2019 by the Coastal Land Trust. The NWAC is charged to investigate and make recommendations to the Wildlife Commission about the most vulnerable wildlife populations in our state, includ ing creation of protected animal lists and development of conservation pro grams for endangered, threatened, and special concern species.

“The first three years have been a fas cinating education for me,” said Elaine, “and hopefully I have contributed some insight to the group. The work of the Coastal Land Trust in conserving habi tats of our state’s wildlife is aligned with the state agency, and it is heartening to see private organizations stepping up to accomplish these critically important public goals.”

continued on page 5

BUILDING ON 30 YEARS OF SUCCESS

Remarks from the Annual Celebration, September 24, 2022

By Jesica Blake Associate Director

Today we celebrate 30 years of great work the Coastal Land Trust has accomplished: 31 counties, 85,000 acres and millions of connections to the land that is forever protected.

From the first project, just 11 acres of undeveloped land in New Hanover County, to our largest conservation easement, a whopping 6,442 acres in Brunswick County, the Coastal Land Trust has protected:

• undeveloped barrier islands that pro vide habitat and protection from coast al storms

• nature parks open to the public in Brunswick, Craven, Hyde, New Ha nover, Onslow and Pender counties

• working family farms and forests, like the one protected by the Hewett Family on the Lockwood Folly River

The property we are gathered on today, Old Town, is one of the Coastal Land Trust’s earliest projects. The 765-acre con servation easement was donated by the McRae family in 1999. Not only was this a stand-alone win for conservation, but it also laid the groundwork for protection of many of the other properties along the west bank of the lower Cape Fear River. Many thanks to Nelson and his family for being leaders in our conservation work, and for being part of the more than 15,000 acres the Coastal Land Trust has protected along the Cape Fear River and Town Creek.

Elaine R. Jordan was recently re-appointed as an At-Large Affiliate on the Nongame Wildlife Advisory Committee of the North Carolina Wildlife Resource Commission.

• biodiverse, natural heritage sites like the Waccamaw River and Meherrin River preserves

Speaking of leaders in conservation, I must recognize the original author in the story of the Coastal Land Trust, Camilla Herlevich. Camilla founded the Coastal Land Trust in 1992 and retired in

JORDAN,

Staff photo

GREETINGS FROM THE INTERIM EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

The North Carolina Coast

al Land Trust is a special treasure for eastern North Carolina. As a longtime sup porter of this organization, I have long been in awe of all the Coastal Land Trust has accom plished — with a relatively small staff! — protecting and stewarding the lands we love at the coast.

Now, serving as Interim Exec utive Director, I am happy to report to you that the staff you help support is even better than I imagined. They are deeply committed to finding and saving special places that need to be protected. They steward those lands and ecosystems carefully.

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Welcome Back Maddie

As an intern for the Coastal Land Trust last year, Maddie Woodard provided Spanish translation for maps and trail signs at Springer’s Point Preserve. She also translated a virtual walk tour for Spanish-speaking visitors at the Fire in the Pines Festival.

This year, during her service with the Conservation Trust for North Carolina and Americorps, Maddie will be conducting monitoring activities, participating with landowner outreach, assisting with environmental education activities, and much more!

They skillfully work to restore and manage conserved land scapes according to well-con ceived plans based on science. And they certainly stay busy planning fun and engaging ed ucation and outreach events to help us connect with you!

The staff are keenly aware of the trust and faith you have in the Coastal Land Trust, and en deavor to be good stewards of your gifts and contributions, as well as the land we protect.

Thank you for your support. Don’t forget to enjoy the beauty of our coast, in every season, from walks on the beach to hikes in the forest.

Harrison Marks Coastal Land Trust Interim Executive Director

Merrie Jo Alcoke New Bern, NC

Bob Emory New Bern, NC

Bernest Hewett Bolivia, NC

Yoshi Newman Greenville, NC

Linda Pearsall Raleigh, NC

Chad Pearson Wilmington, NC

President Hal Kitchin Wilmington, NC

Vice President Laurie McComas King Wilmington, NC

Vice President and Secretary Skip Morgan Manteo, NC

Treasurer

Nick Parker Wilmington, NC

Dr. Stan Riggs Greenville, NC

Ann Cary Simpson Chapel Hill, NC

Cheryl Bradley Smith Pine Knoll Shores, NC

Mary Tillery Chapel Hill, NC

Robert Wells Kitty Hawk, NC

George Wood Kill Devil Hills, NC

Contributed photo

Merrie Jo Alcoke

New Bern

Merrie Jo is originally from, and currently resides in, New Bern, NC. She recently served as the Director of the Governor’s Eastern Office. Prior to that time, Merrie Jo was in private practice as an attorney with Ward and Smith, PA, where she specialized in environmental matters, with a focus on coastal regulatory litigation, state and federal water quality permitting and enforcement, and land use planning.

Merrie Jo spent most of her legal career in the NC Attorney General’s Office where she served as a senior coastal attorney for the NC Division of Coastal Management. She has also worked as a certified mediator in NC Civil Superior Court. Merrie Jo is active in her community and is a past Coastal Land Trust Board member.

Bernest Hewett

Bolivia

Bernest is a lifelong resident of Brunswick County, where he has devoted many important and productive hours to helping with the Coastal Land Trust’s Reaves Chapel restoration project in Navassa. Bernest owns a family farm on the Lockwood Folly River. The land has been in their family for generations, and they have put it in conservation with the Coastal Land Trust.

Bernest is a past President of Brunswick County Branch 5452 of the NAACP, was Board Chairman of Southeastern Community Services, and is a member and ordained Deacon of Zion Hill Missionary Baptist Church. Bernest is married to Glenda Hewett and is the proud father of two and grandfather of two.

Ann Simpson

Chapel Hill

Ann grew up in rural Eastern NC and now lives in Chapel Hill where she works with moss+ross, a strategic consulting firm focused on nonprofits in the Triangle region. Ann has served in communications and fundraising positions with environmental organizations such as the US Fish and Wildlife Service and The Nature Conservancy and as executive director of North Carolina Catch, a nonprofit organization that supports local seafood promotion initiatives.

Ann has also contributed original photography to four UNC Press book collaborations with her husband, Bland, most recently North Carolina:

Land of Water, Land of Sky (Fall, 2021). She is a past president of the Coastal Land Trust Board of Directors and the NC Sea Grant Advisory Board. Ann is excited to return to the Coastal Land Trust Board and continue to pursue her lifelong passion for protecting the natural landscape of coastal Carolina.

Mary Gregg Tillery Chapel Hill

Mary was born in Charlotte, North Carolina, and for most of her life has spent summers on the North Carolina coast. Her fondest memories are of time spent with family enjoying the water and activities centered around nature. She currently lives in Chapel Hill with her husband and three dogs. They enjoy hiking, gardening, and spending time with their four grown children.

For the past eight years Mary has worked for NC State University supporting manufacturing in North Carolina. She is happy to see the tremendous economic development happening in our state and feels that now more than ever it is important to protect the natural resources that make North Carolina such a special place to live.

RE-ELECTED FOR A SECOND TERM

Henry (Hal) L. Kitchin Jr. Wilmington

Hal was elected to a second term on the Board and will serve as President. Hal is a partner with the law firm McGuireWoods LLP. He is active in bar and community affairs, including serving previous board chairmanships for the Wilmington Chamber of Commerce, the Cape Fear Future Foundation, the Greater Wilmington Chamber Foundation, the University of North Carolina Wilmington, and the UNCW Endowment.

Laurie McComas King Wilmington

Laurie was also re-elected and will serve as Vice President.

Laurie is Senior Director of Drayage Operations at NFI Industries, managing their MCO division on the east coast. Laurie has served as a volunteer with the Coastal Land Trust’s most popular outreach event, the Flytrap Frolic, for several years.

ANNUAL, continued from page 1

January of 2021 after growing the organization into the successful, regional conservation organization it is today. Since her retirement, she has enjoyed a much-deserved break and the organiza tions has continued its important conservation work.

In just the past year we:

• Purchased 265 acres in Bladen County with more than a mile of frontage on the Cape Fear River and transferred it to Wildlife Resources Commission to be part of their gamelands

• Transferred 350 acres in Craven Coun ty to the US Forest Service to become part of the Croatan National Forest. The Coastal Land Trust expanded a National Forest this year!

• Received donated conservation ease ments from the Outer Banks Con servationists Inc. on Island Farm on Roanoke Island containing the historic 1845 Etheredge Homeplace, and par cels surrounding the Currituck Light house in historic Corolla Village

• Purchased three miles of frontage along the Chowan River and Keel Creek in Bertie and Hertford counties

• Purchased 105 acres along Brices Creek that will become a Craven Coun ty nature park in the coming years

• Have stewarded the land by

monitoring, and by actively conducting management activities such as controlled burns and removal of inva sives on some of our preserves

• Expanded the beloved Springer’s Point Preserve on Ocracoke Island, creating more trails and more inclusive signage

• Broke ground and have made great progress on the restoration of Reaves Chapel

And, the year ahead will be as busy as ever because Land Protection Specialist

Janice Allen submitted $8 million in grant requests this fall for land projects that were all approved!

In an ever-changing world of uncertainty, I can confidently say that the conservation work of the Coastal Land Trust will contin ue, year after year, success after success, project after project. Through pandemics, and hurricanes, and leadership transi tions, the staff works hard day in and day out to accomplish the mission: to save the lands you love along the coast.

Jesica Blake, Yoshi Newman, Cheryl Smith, and Suzie Marks have fun at the Coastal Land Trust’s Annual Celebration September 24.

Staff photo

Top left: Nature’s dance floor.

Left: Food, fun, and someone’s fascinated!

Above: Lee Leidy and Ann Simpson are having a good time.

Staff photos

SCRAPBOOK

Volunteer Trail Day | Brunswick Nature Park | Brunswick County September 10, 2022

JORDAN, continued from page 1

Elaine is General Counsel for The Coastal Companies, which has been a generous supporter of the Coastal Land Trust for several years through donations and con servation land transactions. One ongoing and particularly successful program is the “Host of the Coast” partnership facili tated by Coastal Vacation Resorts. Since its successful launch in 2017, Host of the Coast has generated more than $140,000 for the Coastal Land Trust through a $1/night fee voluntarily added by guests to vacation rentals in Holden Beach and Oak Island. Coastal Vacation Resorts promotes the program and the work of Coastal Land Trust on websites and in brochures placed in each of the hundreds of vacation rentals they man age. Mark Saunders, chief executive officer of The Coastal Companies ex plains, “Many of our guests who vacation here appreciate the opportunity to donate a small amount to help protect beautiful beaches, coastal wildlife, and scenic places to paddle. Those dollars add up and help the Coastal Land Trust accom plish their visionary goals.”

Elaine added: “The Coastal Land Trust serves 31 counties along the entire North Carolina coastal plane. Just think of the potential for donations to Coastal Land Trust if other hospitality businesses would expand the Host of the Coast program!”

If your business would like to participate in the Host of the Coast Program, please contact Eric Vreeland at 910-790-4524 x2100.

SAVE THE DATE

December, 2022

11% Partnership “Beer of the Month” Wrightsville Beach Brewery

Thursday, Dec 15, 2022 Beergarden Gathering

Join us for an informal evening under the WBB live oaks to connect with constituents (and our beer of the month will be featured on tap!)

Dec 23, 2022 – Jan 2, 2023

CLT Office Closed for the Holidays

Saturday, Jan 7, 2023

Volunteer Trail Day Abbey Nature Preserve

Saturday, Feb 4, 2023

Volunteer Trail Day Seagate Woods

Saturday, Feb 11, 2023

Valentine’s Day Hike Love Your Land Location TBA

Saturday, Mar 4, 2023

Volunteer Trail Day Piney Ridge Nature Preserve

Saturday, Apr 1, 2023

Volunteer Trail Day Location TBA

Monday, Apr 3, 2023

21st Annual Golf Tournament Country Club of Landfall

Saturday, Apr 22, 2023

Work on Wilmington

Saturday, Apr 22, 2023

Pollinator Palooza

Saturday, Apr 29, 2023

Mid-Coast 30th Anniversary Celebration

Tryon Palace North Lawn

Saturday, May 6, 2023

Volunteer Trail Day

Location TBA

Saturday, May 13, 2023

Member Paddle Town Creek

Friday, May 26, 2023

Party for the Point Ocracoke

Saturday, June 3, 2023

Flytrap Frolic, National Trails Day, Land Trust Day

(% proceeds from Great Outdoor Provision Co.)

Check CoastalLandTrust.org/events for the most up-to-date details and events!

NATURE PARK TRAIL

Volunteers tidy up an overgrown trail at Volunteer Trail Day at Brunswick Nature Park.

Staff photos

A GATHERING ON THE GRASSLANDS AT B.W. WELLS SAVANNAH

More than twenty years ago, a group of botanists came together to help the Coastal Land Trust purchase and con serve 117 acres of land along Pelham Road in Pender County. The property, now 177 acres and called the B.W. Wells Savannah Preserve, hosts two small open grassland habitats that had been perpet uated for many years by mowing under neath the power line right of way. Since the purchase in 2002, the Coastal Land Trust has worked to restore even more open savannah habitat on the preserve through prescribed burning, occasional timbering, and additional mowing. Open ing up the ground to sunlight awakens native seeds that have lain dormant underneath larger shrubs and trees, and beautiful meadows emerge. In fact, these savannahs support a profusion of more than 200 documented species of wild flowers including orchids, carnivorous plants, and some rarities.

On October 11th, 2022, the same bota nists that championed the site’s protec tion gathered at the B.W. Wells Savannah

to provide input on the ongoing restoration work. Richard LeBlond, retired botanist with North Carolina’s Natural Heritage Program who discovered the meadow under the power lines, gave the Coastal Land Trust HHHHH out of five for our efforts. Donna Wright, Jon Stucky, and Tom Wentworth, all retired from NC State University Botany Department, provided helpful recommendations on further resto ration and botanical inventory work. Linda Pearsall (retired), Scott Pohlman, and Misty Buchanan of the Natural Heritage Program cheered on the prescribed burning. The Coastal Land Trust’s forestry consultant, Tim Tabak, along with Charlie Marshburn of Tri-State Land and Timber, LLC were there to hear the feedback and further learn the importance of the savannah.

It was a great fall day to gather on the grassland — crisp air, blue skies, purple and gold flowers — to reminisce about the successful conservation campaign, to reconnect with old friends and col leagues, and to be awed by nature.

At the B.W. Wells Site Visit are, left to right, Janice Allen, CLT Director of Land Protection; Jon Stucky, Professor Emeritus NC State; Scott Pohlman, NC Natural Heritage; Misty Buchanan, NC Natural Heritage; Richard LeBlond, retired NC Natural Heritage; Donna Wright, Teaching Technician Emerita NC State; Tom Wentworth, Professor Emeritus NC State; and Linda Pearsall, retired NC Natural Heritage.

Staff photo

Can you find the spider with an egg sac in this photo?

Staff photo

STAFF ATTEND NATIONAL CONFERENCE FOR CONSERVATIONISTS

The Coastal Land Trust was honored to have two staff rep resentatives at this year’s Na tional Land Trust Rally in New Orleans. Put on by the Land Trust Alliance, this celebration of conservation provided edu cation and networking oppor tunities for more than 1,500 conservationists from 47 states and seven countries.

Land and Stewardship Man ager Mellissa Dionesotes attended thought-provoking workshops and presentations. Jesica Blake, Associate Di rector, contributed her ex pertise as a presenter of two workshops as well as co-host ed the stewardship break fast roundtable. Additionally, Jesica served on the program committee.

SCRAPBOOK

NATURE TRIVIA ANSWER

from page 3

Answer: A – Swamp Sunflower, Helianthus angustifolius, a native perennial that was recently pho tographed at the Coastal Land Trust’s B.W. Wells Savannah by Tom Wentworth of the NC State University Botany Department.

Mellissa and Jesica with “The Big Easy” far below!

Photo credit: Michelle Ly

FIELD TRIP TO HALYBURTON

During School Days, hosted by the Coastal Land Trust as part of the Fire in the Pines Festival, students from Winter Park Model Elementary School took a field trip to Halyburton Park to learn more about fire dependent ecosystems. In the photo above, they are enjoying a game of “forest ecosystem Jenga.”

Staff photo

Environmental Education | Halyburton Park | Wilmington, NC

SCRAPBOOK

Fire in the Pines Festival | Halyburton Park | Wilmington, NC | October 8, 2022

FIRE DRAWS A CROWD

Show Me Day | Everett Creek Preserve Onslow County | October 29, 2022

Volunteer Trail Day | Everett Creek Preserve Onslow County | October 15, 2022

SHOW ME

THE COSTUME

Staff

Front

left:

Row 2,

Back row, from left: Bryce Tholen, Kenneth Lingerfelt.

FEEDING THE BIRDS

Kids

TRAIL DAY WORK

Volunteers Richard Teixeira (right), Sharon Guarino (center), Sharlyn Tatom and her son Talon Tatom turned out for Volunteer Trail Day at Everett Creek to help prepare the trails for Show Me Day at the preserve. Staff photo

Approximately 2,000 people turned out for this year’s Fire in the Pines Festival. There was a lot to enjoy! From the photo booths (left), to the education tables (center), to the free gifts being given away (right). This annual event shares information about the importance of prescribed burns and fire for our native plants, wildlife and ecosystems.

Photos courtesy of Alan Cradick

and volunteers dressed up to celebrate Show Me Day.

row: Jesica Blake (panda).

from

Maddie Woodard, Kathy Tucci, Nancy Trott, Mellissa Dionesotes, Sydney Gardner.

made natural bird feeders at Show Me Day at Everett Creek Preserve.

Staff photos

and Laura Brockingham monitor a conservation property in Brunswick County. Staff photo

Thank you! POND PADDLE Janice Allen

makes this work possible –

Your steadfast support

Wilmington, North Carolina 28412 VOLUME 22 // ISSUE 4 // Winter 2022 SCRAPBOOK Nature by Design Captured + Conserved | Big Sky Shop + Studio Wilmington, NC | October 6, 2022

U.S. Postage PAID Permit No. 316 Wilmington, NC

3 Pine Valley Drive COAST LINES CoastalLandTrust.org PAGE 10

Pond Monitoring | Brunswick County | August 1, 2022 NATURE BY DESIGN Guests sip, mingle and enjoy Janette K. Hopper’s paintings arranged throughout Big Sky’s curated vignettes and gallery walls. A percentage of the proceeds from Nature By Design were donated to the Coastal Land Trust during the month of October. Staff photo