It’s one thing to invite someone to join a movement. It’s quite another to inspire them by our commitment and passion.
In 1999, MN Rebecca Yoder invited her friend, Suzanne Young, to an event at the Cibolo Nature Center (CNC) in Boerne. It was the first annual Wildlife Field Research, a week-long BioBlitz now conducted twice a year. Teams of Citizen Scientists combine their experience, knowledge and enthusiasm to survey CNC’s ecology.
Suzanne had always enjoyed nature, and her husband, Steve—a geologist and outdoor enthusiast—encouraged her to join the effort.
She loved it!
“I learned so much about the uniqueness of our local ecosystem,” she says. “This was no secondhand knowledge about a distant area like the Amazon, but right here in Texas!”
Rebecca went further, suggesting that Suzanne become a MN. That invite found its greatest allure in Rebecca’s love for our environment. Suzanne accompanied her on native plant rescues, digging up species threatened by freeways and city streets, then transplanting them to safer places.
“I worked beside her in the heat along Interstate 10,” says Suzanne, “and it amazed me how careful she was to preserve every root.”
Suzanne went on to graduate in the Alamo Area’s Class 7 of 2000. Since then, she has been a tireless volunteer, concentrating most of her efforts at CNC. She has worked in the outdoor classroom, the demonstration garden, and has been part of every BioBlitz since 1999, taking only one break to celebrate her mother’s 85th birthday. When you visit CNC, notice the prominent plaque that hangs in the Volunteer Headquarters. It honors Suzanne for her longtime commitment to CNC’s mission.
Suzanne’s efforts have also fanned out beyond CNC. She was a founding member of the Native Plant Society of Texas (NPSOT), Boerne Chapter, as well as its focus on Bigtooth Maples for Boerne.
The maple project is especially dear to her heart. These magnificent trees were once prevalent in Boerne, especially along creek bottoms, but were gradually decimated by the overgrazing of Whitetail Deer. Many of the area’s old-timers remember their gorgeous fall colors.
In its efforts to reintroduce these beauties, NPSOT provides maples for adoption to businesses, organizations and residents. Along with the trees, recipients get mulch, protective cages, and assistance in planting—everything to insure the best possible outcome. Since the project’s inception, 1800 trees are now part of the landscape in and around Boerne.
Recently, Suzanne helped the Environmental Club at Boerne’s Champion High School plant three Bigtooth Maples on their campus.
“They were so eager to learn,” she says, “so willing to take on the responsibility. It thrilled my heart!”
When asked what sustains her volunteering as a MN, Suzanne is quick to respond.
“It’s simple. I care. I want the stories of those involved in preservation to be told for generations to come. I want to continue learning, because you can’t pass knowledge on to others unless you have it yourself.
“Besides,” she says with a big smile, “when I became a MN I felt like I had found my tribe!”
Rebecca Yoder died in 2011, but the passion that attracted her friend to the MN movement is now paid forward in Suzanne’s own life.
(Written by Krin Van Tatenhove, Class #45))
