Wildlands Staff Retreats to Vermont

Wildlands staff on a hike up Mount Tom in Woodstock, Vermont, during an October retreat.

By Thomas Patti, Communications Coordinator

For four days in October, the Wildlands staff took a short break from our daily duties to reflect and recharge from a busy summer amid the breathtaking autumnal woodlands of Bridgewater, Vermont. We returned to Plymouth rested and ready to elevate our service to the people and places of Southeastern Massachusetts.  

“Putting together our 50th Anniversary Celebration in September was a full-staff, full-year effort that required new and veteran staff alike to go above and beyond their typical work duties and schedules,” said Rachel Bruce, Wildlands’ Director of Special Projects. “Taking a pause after such an undertaking and immersing ourselves in a new environment allowed our staff to better understand each other and our work in a broader context. This retreat aided us in fostering an environment of collaboration and creativity at Wildlands that will guide our work for the next 50 years.” 

Before arriving in Bridgewater on Tuesday, October 10, we made a stop at the Vermont Institute of Natural Science (VINS) in Quechee. For 51 years, VINS has striven to “motivate individuals and communities to care for the environment through education, research, and avian wildlife rehabilitation.” We gained new perspective (literally) atop their Forest Canopy Walk, met avian ambassadors during a live raptor presentation, and drew inspiration for our work in Brockton from their own outdoor learning areas. 

Wildlands staff atop the Forest Canopy Walk at the Vermont Institute of Natural Science.

On Wednesday, Josh Bower from Center for Wildlife in Cape Neddick, Maine, led our staff in team-building exercises at our home base in Bridgewater. Through fun, low-stakes exercises, we learned about the diversity of experiences on our staff, and how to use this asset to our advantage. Then, Craig Sanborn of the Cardigan Highlanders Volunteer Trail Crew taught us his lessons learned from 40 years of recruiting, training, and motivating land stewardship volunteers across New Hampshire. Finally, Kirk Jones of Evolvlove Sound Therapy led us in a meditative sound bath, using singing, crystal, and bronze bowls to promote deep relaxation. 

We made good use of our last full day in Vermont. In a staff meeting led by President Karen Grey, we reviewed our five-year strategic plan, assessing our progress toward our goals and reaffirming our organizational values. Then, Suzanne Belleci and Fabio Ayala of the Amherst College Center for Restorative Practices presented “Approaches to Conflict Resolution,” a workshop that challenged our preconceived notions about interpersonal conflict and offered new paths forward. To end the retreat on a high note, we took to the mountains, hiking Mount Tom in Woodstock before exploring the city below. 

Team-building exercises with Josh Bower from Center for Wildlife.

Around these scheduled activities, Wildlands staff had plenty of time to bond over shared meals, yoga workshops led by Rachel, and heated matches of foosball and ping pong, from which our multitalented President, Karen Grey, emerged victorious. 

A full month since we returned from our retreat, the Wildlands staff is still benefiting from the camaraderie we built and the time we took out of our hectic schedules to take stock of our work and imagine a bold new future for regional conservation. We will continue to apply what we learned at the retreat to advancing our mission across Southeastern Massachusetts! 

Remembering Allison Gillum

By Karen Grey, President

In 2011, Wildlands embarked on a commitment to support and mentor the next generation of land trust practitioners with our early adoption of the MassLIFT (Land Initiative for Tomorrow) AmeriCorps program. Our first round of AmeriCorps members did not disappoint; Alex Etkind, Sarah Kugel, and Allison Gillum were bright, enthusiastic, eager-to-learn young conservationists who were a delight around the office. This impressive trio spent two years with us, and their work opened strategic opportunities for Wildlands that are still bearing fruit over a decade later.

Allison Gillum arrived at Wildlands Trust fresh from a UPenn master's program in planning. We immediately sensed her professional abilities and excellent people skills and felt comfortable handing her a challenging assignment. The Town of Plympton, one of the most rural towns in our coverage area, was at the bottom of state rankings for conservation land. Plympton was facing a surge in development, and the Town was unprepared to address it, lacking the most basic tools, including an Open Space Plan. We tasked Allison with assisting the nascent Plympton Open Space Committee in completing the plan and building a toolbox for a land protection program. Thanks to the groundwork laid by Allison and her Plympton partners, the Town went on to protect its first significant pieces of open space, Cato’s Ridge and Churchill Park, and since then, has saved nearly 1,000 additional acres of conservation land.

Allison was a bright light and, to no one’s surprise, went on to do fantastic work as a Land Protection Specialist at the Piscataquog Land Conservancy, as the Executive Director of the Southeast Alaska Land Trust, and as a Land Specialist for the U.S. Forest Service. We learned recently that this amazing woman succumbed to a cardiac arrest while giving birth to her second child. We are so saddened by her loss and are reminded how lucky we are to have had this amazing person as part of the Wildlands staff.

Town of Avon Earns Grant to Expand D.W. Field Park

By Thomas Patti, Communications Coordinator

Local, regional, and state partners convened at D.W. Field Park to celebrate an award to expand the park.

Since its inception, Wildlands Trust’s D.W. Field Park Initiative has striven to revitalize the beloved open space in Brockton and Avon through education, outreach, planning, and restoration. Physical expansion was hardly on our radar; comprising 700 acres in the heart of our region’s most populous city, D.W. Field Park seemingly had little room to grow.

Yet less than two years into the Initiative, D.W. Field Park is set to receive a modest yet meaningful boost to its open space portfolio. On August 27, government officials and nonprofit partners convened at D.W. Field Park to celebrate the award of $1.5 million from the Massachusetts Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness (MVP) grant program to the Town of Avon for the purchase of 32 acres adjacent to the urban park. 

Wildlands President Karen Grey (left) speaks to the group.

Wildlands raised $450,000 in private funding to support the grant proposal, which will also expand our revitalization efforts of D.W. Field Park north and west of our current project area. The award will also fund another semester of partnership with the Conway School, from which two graduate students provided crucial design input last spring. 

“There are only two significant undeveloped open space assemblages contiguous with the park, and we were fortunate that one was owned by an individual who wanted to see his land become part of the park,” Wildlands President Karen Grey said. “The Town of Avon was a lead partner in putting together this exciting project.”  

The project awaits final approval from a town meeting later this fall. 

From left: Wildlands Communications Coordinator Thomas Patti, State Senator Michael Brady, Wildlands President Karen Grey, and Wildlands Director of Special Projects Rachel Bruce.

Thank you to Secretary Rebecca Tepper of the MA Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, City of Brockton Mayor Robert Sullivan, State Senator Michael D. Brady, State Representative Michelle DuBois, Town of Avon Selectman Eric Beckerman, and many others for voicing your support of this exciting new project! 

To learn more about our D.W. Field Park Initiative, visit wildlandstrust.org/dwfieldpark. 

Stay tuned for updates as this project and the larger D.W. Field Park Initiative march on.

Photos: Wildlands Celebrates 50th Anniversary

By Thomas Patti, Communications Coordinator

Board Chair Sam Chapin delivers remarks at Wildlands’ 50th Anniversary Celebration.

On Saturday, September 23, Wildlands Trust celebrated its 50th anniversary in the company of over 300 partners, neighbors, and friends from across Southeastern Massachusetts and beyond. The rain was no match for the camaraderie and good cheer of the Wildlands community, which gathered at Davis-Douglas Farm to honor the people and places that make our region a special place to live, work, and play.

Central to these commemorative efforts was our “50 Remarkable Years, 50 Remarkable People” gallery in the Conservation Barn. Photos, videos, and written profiles showcased the immense contributions of 50 key Wildlands partners.

Just outside the barn doors, event attendees got up close and personal with live owls, courtesy of Mark and Marcia Wilson of Eyes on Owls. Live music from the Louise Adams Acoustic Duo and the Pan Loco Steel Band created a lively atmosphere throughout the day. Local food trucks offered innovative and scrumptious meals, and guided walks gave guests the chance to explore the historic Davis-Douglas property.

Thank you to all who celebrated with us! A special thanks to the volunteers, sponsors, and vendors who generously provided time and resources to help us create an unforgettable event.

Missed out on the fun? Wildlands will host multiple smaller celebrations through the winter and spring. Follow us online for updates!

Click through the gallery below for sights from our 50th Anniversary Celebration. Photographers included volunteers Cierra Isakson and Paul Carey.

Celebration attendees admire a Great Horned Owl.

Celebration attendees share a laugh under an umbrella.

A rainy celebration-day hike to the Beech Tree Clearing at Emery Preserve.

A young guest admires a Eurasian Eagle-Owl.

Celebration attendees gather under a tent.

Taxidermy birds from the Town of Plymouth's wildlife education trailer.

Wildlands President Karen Grey addresses the crowd.

Celebration attendees hug an oak tree.

A young guest poses with autumnal decorations.

Wildlands Office Manager Tom D'Allessandro mans the merchandise table.

Davis-Douglas Farm during the celebration.

The Louise Adams Acoustic Duo performs.

Marcia Wilson presents a Northern Saw-whet Owl.

A young guest admires an American Kestrel.

Marcia Wilson presents two Eastern Screech-Owls.

The busy raffle table.

Wildlands President Karen Grey drives a golf cart.

Morrison's Home & Garden displays native plants.

IndieFerm Brewing served beer, wine, and kombucha.

The Pan Loco Steel Band performs.

Photographer Drew Lederman and Wildlands Programming Coordinator Max Phelps.

Guests explore the "50 Remarkable Years, 50 Remarkable People" gallery.

The bustling Conservation Barn.

Welcoming faces at the registration table.

Wildlands Director of Special Projects Rachel Bruce distributes raffle tickets.

Improving Walkability at D.W. Field Park

By Maddie Luongo

Maddie Luongo is a senior at Wheaton College. This summer, she served as an intern with Wildlands Trust, assisting Green Team Brockton with various stewardship projects and organizing our 50th anniversary raffles. 

Green Team crewmembers with Iolando Spinola (center) of WalkMassachusetts.

On August 15, members of the 2023 Green Team participated in a walking audit of D.W. Field Park in Brockton. A walking audit is an assessment of the accessibility and walkability of an outdoor space, and for somewhere with as much foot traffic as D.W. Field Park, it is an integral step in the restoration planning process. 

The audit was conducted by Iolando Spinola of WalkMassachusetts, a nonprofit organization whose mission is to make walking safer and easier for people in all types of outdoor spaces. Having grown up in Brockton, Spinola was personally familiar with D.W. Field Park and its amenities. Spinola instructed the Green Team by assigning crewmembers specific tasks, such as assessing the condition of the roads and walkways, counting benches, and evaluating park signage. Despite the rainy day, the Green Team was attentive to their tasks, photographing potential problem areas in the park and discussing their findings with each other. 

Iolando Spinola of WalkMassachusetts leads the Green Team in a walking audit of D.W. Field Park.

One of the keys to a successful walk audit is the people conducting it. As residents of Brockton, the Green Team was familiar with the area and, through this paid summer service-learning program, had already worked on other projects in D.W. Field Park. The walk audit gave the kids an opportunity to view the park through a new and more inclusive lens, attuning them to some of the park’s finer details. This skill can serve crewmembers well in many of their future endeavors. 

Spinola spoke highly of the walk audit as a whole, but also of the Green Team members specifically. “I thought the walking audit was a great way to get a sense of the accessibility and overall walkability of D.W. Field Park,” he said. “The park has a lot to offer, but there are also some areas that could be improved. For example, the sidewalks are uneven in some places, the entrance of the park could be redesigned to ensure pedestrians are safe, and there could be more wayfinding signs to improve the user experience of the paths and park. The park also lacks some basic amenities, such as accessible restrooms, drinking fountains, and bike racks. I loved that the Green Team youth group was working to improve the park throughout the summer and took part in our walk audit. They are super inspiring and had great insights on how to improve the park.” 

As part of the walking audit, Green Team members measured vehicle speed along a roadway in D.W. Field Park.

When pursuing sustainable development, accessibility is crucial to consider. Accessibility and sustainability are intertwined in important ways that few people consider unless they directly apply to them. “Accessibility is important to sustainable development because it ensures that everyone, regardless of their abilities and background, can participate fully in society and in our public spaces,” Spinola said. “When people are able to access the same opportunities, services, and resources, it creates a more equitable and inclusive society. Our public spaces are richer and more enjoyable when we can all fully live and utilize them. Sustainable development is about creating a better future for everyone, and accessibility is about ensuring that everyone has the same opportunities to participate in that future. When we design our communities and infrastructure with accessibility in mind, we make them more sustainable for everyone.” 

The D.W. Field Park Initiative is working to create these equal opportunities in Brockton, so that all residents of Brockton can easily access the amenities of D.W. Field Park. It takes projects such as those the Green Team worked on this summer to bring these ideas to fruition, and it is vital that young Brockton residents lend their voices and visions to this effort.  

Green Team members walk down a damp path at D.W. Field Park.

On a personal note, watching Green Team members participate in the improvement of their city was deeply motivating. It even inspired me to conduct similar projects on my college campus. I am incredibly grateful to these dedicated youth for their hard work, and I can’t wait to see how future Green Team projects advance the sustainable mindset in D.W. Field Park and beyond. 

Thank you to Maddie for her many contributions to Wildlands this summer. To learn more about the D.W. Field Park Initiative, visit wildlandstrust.org/dwfieldpark. To learn more about Green Team, visit wildlandstrust.org/green-team.