The activities featured in this year`s annual report

Thank YOU!
From helping a family establish a new nature preserve,
to battling invasive species, to opening new trails for our
community to discover and enjoy, it’s all possible because
of you!
The activities featured here are just a small sample of what
your generous gift enabled Little Forks to accomplish in 2014.
Whether you are a nature lover, an outdoor sports enthusiast,
or someone who simply wants to make a positive impact on
the community, your gift helps fulfill our important mission of
protecting our region’s rivers and natural lands. It also helps
in keeping our community wild about nature!
Thank you for being being an important part of Little Forks
Conservancy in 2014!
Dedicated to Nature Exploration
As a teacher in the Midland Public Schools, Albert Szok
helped develop environmental programming, including
statewide standards. “He was constantly taking his students
outdoors,” says his son Peter. “He felt that in the natural
world, one could find one’s goodness and also see the
goodness in others.”
The Szok children helped others find that goodness in nature
by donating an eight-acre parcel of family land to create the
Albert and Virginia Szok Preserve.
At the preserve opening in July, over 100 of the Szok’s family
members, friends and former students gathered to trade
stories of exploring the land. Located within the Pine Haven
Recreation Area, this peaceful preserve is nestled along 1,200
feet of the Salt River.
The preserve honors Albert and Virginia Szok’s love for this
land and commitment to outdoor education. Thanks to your
donations, this legacy will continue for generations to come.
This gorgeous stretch of the Salt River
is now part of a Little Forks nature
preserve!
Opposite page:
Peter Szok, his wife Cameron and his
daughter Virginia at the new Albert and
Virginia Szok Preserve. The preserve is
named in memory of his parents.
Discover a Beautiful Forest
A known roosting spot for bald eagles. An impressive wetland
home to many species of amphibians. An abundance of ferns
and a ridge of hemlock and white pine. These are just some
of the sights at Forestview Natural Area – opened to the
public for the first time in 2014.
The first trail is the result of the hard work of many groups
and individuals who donated their time and energy.
Volunteers from CPI Engineering, a division of Lubrizol,
kicked off the trail construction in the fall of 2013.
Local scouts Matthew Painter, Matthew Pawley, and Justin
Hoffman built boardwalks along the trail and Cade Sponseller
built a bridge over a small waterway on the property for
their Eagle Scout projects. Our stewardship crew, headed by
volunteers Ed Elliott and Glenn Sanford, devoted many hours
to marking the trail and cleaning up the preserve.
To discover Forestview Natural Area for yourself, visit
littleforks.org/preserves for directions and more!
Located off Tittabawassee River Road,
the 70-acre preserve is now open daily
from dawn until dusk!
Opposite page:
A couple takes in the sights from the
bridge at Forestview Natural Area.
(Photo: Michael Randolph, AAF-GLB.)
Taking a Closer Look
With over 600 acres now held as nature preserves, the
Conservancy faces a challenge: How do we balance providing
quality recreational access while maintaining the high quality
natural habitat?
Thanks to grants from the Midland Area Community
Foundation and the Charles J. Strosacker Foundation in 2014,
Little Forks worked with Michigan Natural Features Inventory
(MNFI) to survey our nature preserves.
The information will be used to ensure the habitats are
healthy enough to sustain a diversity of plants and animals.
This study will be used to guide our management of the
resources under our direct care.
With assistance from the USDA Natural Resources
Conservation Service, Little Forks is examining the health of
our forests in order to maintain them in a sustainable way.
Watch for the full reports on our website in early 2015!
A towering cottonwood is one of the
many tree species within Little Forks’
nature preserves.
(Photo: Lindsay Stoddard)
Opposite page:
Designated as a species of special
concern in Michigan, Blanding’s turtles
can be found at Riverview Natural Area.
(Photo: Michael Randolph, AAF-GLB.)
Partnerships in Action
From tree plantings along the Cedar River to stabilizing
eroding stream banks, Little Forks and our partners are
working to improve our rivers and natural lands. Together,
we’re identifying and solving natural resource issues in our
region. In 2014, Little Forks’s community partners included:
• Bay County Conservation
District
• Bay County Drain Commission
• Bay County Health Department
• Central MI Health Department
• Chippewa Nature Center
• Chippewa Watershed
Conservancy
• Clare Conservation District
• Delta College
• Gladwin Conservation District
• Gladwin High School
• Huron Pines
• Huron River Watershed Council
• Kawkawlin Watershed
Association
• Leon P. Martuch Chapter of
Trout Unlimited
• Michigan DEQ & Michigan DNR
• Michigan Forest Association
• NRCS-Gladwin Office
• Northeast Middle School
• Saginaw Basin Land
Conservancy
• Saginaw Bay CWMA
• Saginaw Bay WIN
• Saginaw Conservation District
• University of Michigan - Flint
• US Fish & Wildlife Service
A grant in 2014 will help Little Forks
gather citizen scientists to monitor the
health of the Cedar River.
Opposite page, from top left: Students
planting cedars along the Cedar River;
Stabilizing two sections of stream bank
in Gladwin; An inventory of road-stream
crossings with students from Michigan
State University; A workshop for
landowners who manage forest lands.
From Trails to Invasive Species
Little Forks’ stewardship crew was out in full force in 2014.
Perhaps the biggest projects were the completion of brandnew trails at Forestview Natural Area and the Albert &
Virginia Szok Preserve.
Eagle Scout candidates Matthew Pawley and Daniel Haines
(both of Troop 767) completed projects at Forestview Natural
Area. Pawley led 26 volunteers to construct a 170-foot
boardwalk and Haines built a beautiful split-rail fence for the
parking area.
Even with these big projects, our work at our other preserves
didn’t stop. Volunteer leaders Ed Elliott and Glenn Sanford
dedicated their summers fighting invasive species at the
Averill Preserve. They were also hard at work restoring a
meadow to protect a critical habitat for birds.
Want to lend a hand? You can learn more about volunteering
by contacting our office.
Glenn Sanford and AmeriCorps Member
Tori Guerrini install boundary markers
Forestview Natural Area.
Opposite page, clockwise from top left:
Matthew Pawley and his volunteers on
the boardwalk they built at Forestview
Natural Area; Little Forks’ stewardship
crew enjoys a break from chainsaw safety
lessons; Daniel Haines’ split rail fence at
the Forestview Natural Area parking lot.
Generous Gifts Make a Big Impact
Thanks to a $10,000 grant from the Consumers Energy
Foundation, the Conservancy will soon begin construction
on a stairway to cross the ravine at Riverview Natural Area!
The stairway will create an easier path connecting the two
steep slopes of the ravine, which prevented safe crossing to
the northern 200 acres.
Tom Begin, Consumers Energy Public Affairs for the Great
Lakes Bay Region, stated, “When Consumers Energy
sees a great opportunity to help our customers obtain
better access to nature through projects such as this, we
are excited to give our support and funds to help make it
happen.”
Another gift from a long-time member made it possible for
Little Forks to purchase a used truck for field work. The truck
enables staff and volunteers to transport equipment
and tools for work days.
A long-time member made it possible
for Little Forks to purchase a field truck!
Opposite page: Tom Begin, Consumers
Energy Public Affairs, presents a grant
to Board President Bill Gebo to build a
stairway at Riverview Natural Area.
A Howlin’ Good Time
It was another gorgeous night at Dave and Patti Kepler’s Lazy
Turtle Ranch for Little Forks’ Hoot-n-Howl on September 6.
With a record of nearly 300 guests, we raised $44,000 for
land conservation!
Guests couldn’t resist taking to the dance floor accompanied
by the high-energy performance of Ike Beehr and the Blues
Guise. Bruce Magurno of Double “L” Haulin’ Smoke and
Doug Krawcek of Just Grillin’ fought valiantly, but Robin
Crook of Box 5 BBQ took home the prize for People’s Choice
Best BBQ this year.
Hoot-n-Howl was sponsored by SSP Associates, Inc.
Additional support was provided by The Dow Chemical
Company and Three Rivers Corporation. Other sponsors
included Conservancy Law PLC, Dow Corning Corporation,
East End Development, Ieuter Insurance Group, Lubrizol,
Morley Companies, SYM Financial Advisors and Warner
Norcross & Judd LLP.
Guests enjoy delicious BBQ and a
different kind of “rocking out.”
Opposite page: Guests dance under
the pavilion at Lazy Turtle Ranch to the
rocking sounds of Ike Beehr and the
Blues Guise.
About Little Forks Conservancy
Little Forks Conservancy is an accredited non-profit
organization that works to permanently protect and preserve
natural lands that add to the quality of life in our midMichigan community.
Our community has many natural areas that deserve
protection – for their beauty, for their wildlife, for the sense of
wonder and awe they can create in young and old alike.
Little Forks Conservancy protects dozens of these places as
nature preserves or through conservation agreements. We
view these places as gifts – of wilderness, of natural beauty,
of recreational space – to the community.
Since 1996, Little Forks has helped local families conserve
over 3,000 acres of land and more than 18 miles of river
shoreline.
For more information, visit littleforks.org.
CHAMPION SPONSOR
CONSERVATIONIST
SPONSORS
GUARDIAN SPONSORS
STEWARD SPONSORS
• AKT Peerless
• Century 21 Signature Realty –
Shelley Koop
• Chippewa Nature Center
• Coldwell Banker Professionals
• ESPN 100.9
• JE Johnson
• Members First Credit Union
• McMahan Thomson &
Associates
• Rider Type & Design
• Space, Inc.
• Wolverine Bank
GUIDE SPONSORS
• Andrews Hooper Pavlik, PLC
• Midland Cogeneration Venture
• MidMichigan Health-University
of Michigan Health System
• Omni Tech International, Ltd.
• Poznak Dyer Kanar
Garchow PLC
105 Post Street
Midland, MI 48640
989.835.4886
littleforks.org