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Lambton Wildlife History of Lambton Wildlife - 1966 to 1991 APPENDICES Appendix I - President's Honour List & Other Awards, |
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Tasker EARTHWAYS Award 12 1982 Les and Isobel Greenop Phil Turner Memorial Gate Dennis Rupert Remembered President's Honour List The President's Honour List was formalised in 1974 by President Elizabeth Tasker to recognize people that are not on the Board who have made a significant contribution to the Corporation during the current or previous years. |
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1974 Joan Banks Bill Bechhold Ron LaFlair Don Smith |
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A year later President Fern Noël wrote, "Several suggestions were made to the President for consideration of this honour for which Executive Officers are not eligible. It was with great difficulty that the choice was narrowed to the four chosen to have their names printed in the Honours List Book for permanent record." | ||
1975 Joyce Fairlie Thelma Gibbs Les Greenop Peter Tasker 1976 Jean Smithen 1977 Marj Harris Randy Loxton Fern Noël 1978 Bill Bechhold Joan Kay Margaret Rider Tony Roach 1979 Joan Banks Audrey Cole Rena Coulter Margaret Rider Hazel Ritchie Edith Soden 1980 Krista Banks Lisa Laudenbach Horace Milsom Margaret Rider Bill Rutledge Edith Soden 1981 Gerry Clements Antoinette Dewaele Dorothy Edwards Win Hoad 1982 Margaret Rider Brian Savidant Don Smith 1983 John Harman Joyce Fairlie |
1984 Horace Milsom 1985 Joan Kay 1986 Nan Macnair 1987 Margaret Coe Joe Connop Marilynne Dennis Dorothy Edwards Enid Gilbert Bob Killey Alice Lester Doris Rutter Don Smith Keith Wilson 1988 Joe Connop 1989 Bernice & Bill Bechhold Mertel & Bob Killey Dorothy & John Tiedje 1990 Dorothy Edwards 1991 Sheila White 1992 Faye Allin Ross MacMillan 1993 Carole Buck Joe Connop Delmar Ellis Fern Noël 1994 Stephen Bright Carole Buck Gord Catterson Joe Connop Ross MacMillan Don Smith |
1995 Joan & Peter Banks Bernice & Bill Bechhold Nadina & George Krause Nan Macnair Ross MacMillan Don Whitman 1996 Bernice & Bill Bechhold Janet Chalmers Doris Coe Floyd Elliott Nadina & George Krause Dorothy & John Tiedje 1997 Peter Banks George Krause Delmar Ellis Sydenham Field Naturalists Ross MacMillan 1998 John Bellar Kim Gledhill George Krause Terry Litrenta Ross MacMillan Sarnia Urban Wildlife Committee 1999 Peter Banks Joe Connop Paul Crosbie Judy & Bill Scott Elisabeth & Balder Van Stam 2000 Alice & John Bellar Lambton Industrial Society Nadina & George Krause Phyllis Pepper Sarah Rupert 2001 Gord Catterson Gita & Modris Zandbergs |
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The Lambton Wildlife Conservation Award was originally created to acknowledge significant local contributions by groups or individuals outside of LWI that had a beneficial effect on the environment. LWI Conservation Awards Somewhere along the line the concept was changed to include our own members .1977 Fern Noël Jessie Skippon Elizabeth Tasker Jack McDonald (Reeve of Bosanquet) 1978 Doug Eagles 1980 Don Smith Alf Rider Bob McLaughlin The award was renamed in 1989 to the LWI Environment Award and again restricted to nonmembers. With the award, a year's complementary membership in LWI was also given. LWI Environment Awards
1989 In 1993, the Board decided to promote both Conservation Awards and Environment Awards on recommendation of the Conservation and Environment Committees respectively. These awards would only be granted to nonmembers. Recipients were to be invited to the Annual General Meeting and dinner to receive their award and also were to receive a one year complementary membership in LWI. LWI members working on environmental projects that are not directed by Lambton Wildlife are eligible for the Conservation and Environment Awards.
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Preamble | ||||
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The earliest vehicle of communication of the forerunner of LWI, Lambton Field Naturalists, appears to have been called LAMBTON FIELD NATURALISTS. This name remained from 1966 to 1970, at which time the name of the club was changed to Lambton Wildlife Trust. Naturally a new name was required at the top of the newsletter and some brave soul suggested LAMBTON WILDLIFE TRUST. In May of 1971, perhaps with a new Executive anxious for change, the old was swept away and the name of the newsletter was changed to LAMBTON WILDLIFE NEWS. This name was retained until June of 1973. In September of that year, coincident with other major changes including incorporation, the name was changed to EARTHWAYS, a name invented by Elizabeth Tasker. Eventually this name was formally incorporated into the Bylaws. Henceforth and forever the newsletter name was to be kept as EARTHWAYS. You may have noted a © after the EARTHWAYS name on the masthead. That is because we are claiming copyright of this name. We thank Don Whitman for his advice and research on this topic. You may also have noticed that EARTHWAYS has been printed from 100 per cent recycled paper for some time. Gord Catterson, our present Editor, joins a long list of dedicated specialists performing a very necessary function in our club. The job has not been without a lot of hard work and occasionally draining controversy from time to time over the years. Newsletter Editors to date have been: |
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Dennis Rupert Peter Tasker Joyce Fairlie Margaret Rider Nan Macnair Margaret Rider Nan Macnair Carole Buck Avalon Hamlin Ross MacMillan Gord Catterson- |
1966 - Apr 1971 May 1971 - May 1974 Oct 1974 - Jun 1977 Sep 1977 - May 1983 Jun 1983 - Apr 1988 May 1988 - Apr 1990 Jun 1990 - Apr 1992 May 1992 - Apr 1997 May 1997 - Apr 1998 May 1998 - Apr 1999 May 1999 - |
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Often the Editor has and does act as typist. Over the years there has been significant help. One of these dedicated people was Thelma Gibbs. Margaret Rider was another EARTHWAYS typist long before she became Editor. In February of 1992, Ross MacMillan applied his skills and computer system to assist with the setup of EARTHWAYS. This has lowered our costs or at least has permitted us to have larger issues at little incremental cost. With Ross' assistance the format and readability have been greatly improved. Now editor Gord Catterson is able to perform the set-up tasks unaided. Bill Bechhold printed our newsletter for almost 20 years. During this time Bill and Bernice stapled and folded the pages together and kept our costs down. Computer generated labels have speeded up getting the newsletter ready for distribution. Over the years we have appreciated the efforts of Bill Rutledge, John Hollemans, Joe Connop, Fern Noël , John Bellar and currently Joan Biggs. Joan Kay was in charge of distribution of the newsletter for many years and did an excellent job. George Krause ably coordinated the task for over 10 years, assisted by Nadina. Presently Modris Zandbergs assisted by Gita is in charge. Amongst other things Modris keeps tabs on how many we print. Sudden surges in membership or dramatic changes in our complementary lists can keep him on his toes. Cost is another of Modris' concerns. Home delivery by volunteers of about 170 newsletters is the secret. Recruiting and organization of these couriers, dividing the city up into 10 major areas, subdividing larger areas into smaller areas, mailing some 80 newsletters out of the city keep him busy. These distributors are the unsung heroes of LWI and one of the reasons why we can continue to offer a frequent news update in these times of high postage costs. Our records are not clear on who all have been helpers in this area. We know the list at one time or another has included: |
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Frank Baugh, Joan Baugh, Vickey Breedyk, Lois Bremner, Kevin Crowell, Antoinette Dewaele, Dorothy Edwards, Patricia Edwards, Floyd Elliott, |
Delmar Ellis, Francoise Gillingham, Mary Harmon, Marjorie Harris, Bill Hoad, Win Hoad, Joan Kay, Bob Killey, Mertel Killey, |
George Krause, Nadina Krause, Eric Lawton, Horace Milsom, Frances Panton, Dorothy Plumley, Susan Roberts, Roger Simms, Boyd Snider, |
Lucy Snider, Carol Sterling, George Sunaitis, Marion Toms, Keith Wilson, Gita Zandbergs, Modris Zandbergs. |
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Some of these people such as Joan Baugh and Dorothy Edwards have been doing this job for almost 20 years. And contributors to the newsletter! The list would be too long to print. It seems as if almost every member of the club has submitted something at one time or another. Some membersï have been very good and consistent in this regard. Finally, the readers. From time to time the Board gets discouraged that the newsletter is not serving its purpose, that people are not reading it, that there is little feedback to the Editor. But then something happens that tells them perhaps that they are headed in the right direction after all. A case in point was quite a few years ago when the Corporation significantly overspent. One remedy chosen to rebalance the finances was to reduce the number of issues of EARTHWAYS. In retrospect, this was not the best of ideas although it certainly helped to bring costs under control. Communications significantly suffered and the Board vowed to not do this again without aggressively considering other options. |
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From a chance meeting with Helen and Hunter MacKenzie, Les and Isobel Greenop found that a woodlot they often visited was for sale. Quickly contacting other Lambton Wildlife officers, Peter and Elizabeth Tasker, the feasibility of purchase was established. After a final inspection of the property by the Greenops, Gerry Clements and Laura Knight, a decision was made by the Executive "to go for it". The property was purchased in 1972 for $10,500. There were some errors in conveyance at the time, that have been satisfactorily resolved. In order to finance the purchase, a Fundraising Committee was established, initially for a short time under Geoff Lane, and then under Joan Banks' leadership. Over a two year period the money was raised. Assisting Joan with the managing of some of the various projects were Peter Banks & Jim Coulter, Rena Coulter & Antoinette DeWaele, Thelma Gibbs, Marge Harris, and Laura Knight. The Mandaumin Woods Nature Reserve was formally opened by Peter Tasker on the 26th of April, 1975 and dedicated to the memory of LWI conservationist Laura Knight (1935-1973). The main trail through the Reserve, Michael's Trail, was also named at this time in memory of Michael Smithen, a young member of the organization. At the opening, thanks were given to the Alexander Vidal Chapter of the I.O.D.E. for their generous donation to the property in memory of Lois Smart of Sarnia. In 1986 the Mandaumin Road was paved and widened. LWI received $669 for loss of property, plus approximately $200 in the sale of wood. One entrance was eliminated and the main sign and gate were relocated. A proportion of the taxes paid were refunded under the Ontario Managed Forest Tax Rebate until 1992 at which time the program was cancelled. The rebate varied yearly from 50 to 100%. |
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In the fall of 1987 the Lambton Wildlife Karner Blue Committee was formed comprising Ben and Brenda Kulon, Gerry Clements, Frank Baugh and Nan Macnair. A land-purchase project was proposed to the Board of LWI. The project was approved and $5000 was taken from the General Conservation Fund to kick off the fundraising. The property in question was owned by a Martin Maylard, consisted of 36.95 acres and was home to a small population of the endangered Karner Blue Butterfly. The asking price for the land was $80,000. In addition to the original committee many others put time and effort into the project that ultimately led to success, Ron Macnair from the real estate end, Don Whitman providing legal expertise, Hunter Mackenzie doing the surveys and Clarence E. Hodgson and Glen Webb offering to do appraisals. All of these individuals made their contributions at no charge to the Corporation. Fundraising for the project became critical. Major corporate donations were received from Canada Trust of $1000 through Peter Banks, $500 from Royal Bank through Roger Simms and $250 from Labatt's Canada through Ben Kulon. Joan and Frank Baugh secured a major donation of $500 from the Blue Water Audubon Society in Port Huron. LWI members and other conservation-minded individuals and groups from all over the country donated over $10,000. Publicity for the project managed by Brenda ranged far and wide in many naturalist's newsletters as well as major publications such as Seasons and Nature Canada. Nan Macnair got coverage on CBC's "As it Happens". Sid Rose of the London Free Press wrote many articles and perhaps was largely responsible for $3000 from Londoners alone. But all of the money raised was less than a quarter of what was required. On Terry Crabe's suggestion, the fledgling Carolinian Canada organization was approached. Ultimately, spear-headed by Paul Prevett and Yvette Wells the Carolinian Canada Steering Committee agreed to fund the whole purchase of almost $88,000 with 50 per cent of the actual monies coming from the Province of Ontario through the Ontario Heritage Foundation, 25 per cent from Wildlife Habitat Canada and 25 per cent from the Nature Conservancy of Canada. Money raised by the Committee was able to be used for fencing the property and other incidentals. On July 6, 1988 a dedication of the Karner Blue Sanctuary took place. Purchase was complete. Tom Creech of Canada Post offered to release a new set of stamps, designed by Heather Cooper of Toronto, in conjunction with the purchase. These were unveiled on the site by Wyoming post office representatives. Thus ended the initial phase of one of LWI's biggest projects. |
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It was Wendy and Stephen Bright, in early 1994, that noticed the property was for sale. Knowing it was in the Port Franks Wetlands and Forested Dunes ANSI, they quickly contacted representatives from various organizations that might effect an acquisition: Doug van Hemessen of Carolinian Canada, John Grant from the Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC) and Peter Banks from Lambton Wildlife Incorporated (LWI). In spite of the fact that Peter Banks had been spearheading an effort by LWI for the previous four years of trying to save up donations in an LWI Carolinian Canada Fund for just this kind of eventuality, the Watson property price was just too much. However, LWI could be a contributor or partner in an acquisition project with the Nature Conservancy. John Grant took the initiative to work up a project proposal with Doug van Hemessen's blessing. He ultimately negotiated a price of $207,000 including appraisal costs and legal fees. The Carolinian Canada organization was asked to provide 50% of the funding which came to $102,500; the LWI Board approved offering $12,000 towards the total acquisition costs. This, along with a donation towards the purchase of the ñVan Valkenburgî property, also by NCC, would clean out LWI's Carolinian Canada Fund that it had been accumulating. Tom Prout of the Ausable Bayfield Conservation Authority confirmed that $45,000 would be forthcoming attributable to the value of the cottages and other buildings on the property lying within the flood plain that would have to be removed. This left $47,500 for NCC to raise through its fundraising arm. From the Carolinian Canada standpoint the project was in competition with several other acquisition possibilities, nevertheless, the Acquisition Subcommittee was unanimous in its support. The Steering Committee also fully supported the project. The project still had to be approved by the Board of the Ontario Heritage Foundation who were looking after the Carolinian Canada purse at that time. It all came to pass and a contract between LWI and NCC was approved by both bodies early in 1995, giving LWI the management responsibilities for the next 50 years. Don Whitman of LWI did a lot of the legal work for this acquisition and his in-kind contribution was part of the total $25,000 that was eventually donated to the Carolinian Canada organization by LWI. Doug Russell, the realtor who handled the purchase, donated his whole fee to Lambton Wildlife. |