APRIL 2019 | SPRING NEWSLETTER
Highlands Biological Foundation HIGHLANDS BIOLOGICAL HIGHLANDS BIOLOGICAL FOUNDATION FOUNDATION P.O. Box 580 | 265 N. 6th Street Highlands, NC www.highlandsbiological.org | 828-526-2221 265 N 6th Street | P.O. Box 580 Highlands, NC 28741 828-526-2221 | www.highlandsbiological.org
SPRING NEWSLETTER | 2019
LETTER FROM THE PRESIDENT Julia Grumbles, Highlands Biological Foundation Summer is just around the corner and many good things have happened at the Highlands Biological Station since last fall. Paige Engelbrektsson, our new Nature Center Education Specialist, is well into registering campers and planning summer programs. She is no stranger to Highlands – she was the AmeriCorps member at the Highlands-Cashiers Land Trust two years ago. You'll hear more from her in the pages of this newsletter. Chan Chandler, our beloved horticulturist, left for the opportunity to work at an agricultural research center. We will miss him, but the Botanical Garden volunteers haven’t missed a beat. Thanks to a lot of hard work over the winter by Chan and our amazing Garden and Greenway volunteers, several of the trails in the Garden have been widened and graveled, and low branches have been trimmed. The Garden took a huge hit from the December snow and ice, so you may notice more openings in the woods and limbed shrubs. Again, with much work, these hard-hit areas were cleared of debris and are recovering nicely. The 2019 Zahner lectures have been confirmed, and will be as interesting, relevant, and timely as those last summer. Many thanks to HBS staff and HBF Board members for all the great speaker and topic suggestions! Additional educational opportunities are planned throughout the summer including the weekend of June 28 -29 when HBF will host "Highland's Deep Roots," a 2-day event devoted to our trees and forests. Many recent studies tout the therapeutic effects to people of being in the woods, and others provide evidence of information exchange between plants. Forests are more complex than we ever imagined! Planning is also underway for the 2019 Soiree on July 28 and Highlands on the Half-Shell in the fall. Finally, I can say that construction of the North Campus is well underway despite the aforementioned winter weather plus lots of rain. We hope the new entrance on Lower Lake Road, the pollinator garden, and the boardwalk around Lindenwood Lake will encourage residents and visitors to wander the campus often to enjoy the scenery, learn about native plants, and just find peace in the woods while remembering why Highlands is so special. If the weather cooperates (BIG IF!), we hope to celebrate the grand opening of North Campus this summer. But come whenever you like – most of the boardwalk is complete. As you read this newsletter, which expands on many of the topics I have touched on, you can see we had a productive winter. Progress does not happen in a vacuum. So first, thanks to our very capable staff, our dedicated and committed Board of Trustees, and to the many volunteers who work in the Garden and at the Nature Center, plan and host events, and cheerfully do all the little things that combined make a big difference in our successes. I also want to acknowledge the huge thanks we owe the hundreds of donors who believe in our education and outreach missions and who generously support our goal to be more accessible to, and involved in, the Highlands community. The North Campus is a testament to our donors and to their commitment to protecting and preserving our beloved plateau. None of this could happen without generous donor support. On behalf of the HBF Board of Trustees and the Highlands community, we say:
THANK YOU! And to our members, I hope you will continue to support us by attending events; donating time, talent and resources; and of course, renewing your membership and encouraging others to join you. I look forward to seeing you this summer, Julia Grumbles
Photo: Clay Bolt