Read below for an essay excerpted from 50 Remarkable Years, 50 Remarkable People, Wildlands’ 50th anniversary book honoring the partners and volunteers who have made remarkable contributions to land conservation in Southeastern Massachusetts.

Read “The Next Remarkable Chapter,” our series introduction by President Karen Grey.

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Children often develop a lasting interest in nature by spending time in beautiful outdoor landscapes. Yet other times it happens differently, as it did for Jerry Sheehan, who was born and raised in Jersey City, the second-biggest city in New Jersey.

For Jerry, the natural world of his youth consisted of plants growing in sidewalk cracks and along the railroad beds. His mother taught him to identify these plants he had come to love, and his beloved Jesuit teachers empowered him to learn their Latin names.

Jerry moved to Plymouth as a young man and discovered great happiness spending time in nature with his family, where he routinely recreated the Jesuit Latin lessons on plant names. He attributes his success in business to the opportunity given to him by his wife Maureen’s family, hardworking Italian immigrants who started the L. Knife Company, a business that Jerry has run for most of his adult life.

Driven by the desire to give back to their community, Jerry and Maureen Sheehan were early supporters of Wildlands Trust and the movement to save land in Southeastern Massachusetts. Their genuine love for nature and their passion for learning inspired them to protect important agricultural and conservation parcels for all to experience and enjoy.

Purchase 50 Remarkable Years, 50 Remarkable People today: wildlandstrust.org/shop50