JANET’S RETIREMENT ANNOUNCEMENT
Please join North Central Conservancy Trust in extending best wishes to Janet Smith, who has retired after four years of service to our organization as Executive Director. Our organization has grown and become stronger thanks to Janet’s commitment to our mission, vision, and values. We will always remember her time with us with fondness and gratitude for her many contributions to our present and future.
Please take the time to read the notes from our Board President, David James, our Outreach Coordinator, Emily Weber, our New Executive Director, Chris Radford, and our former Executive Director, Janet Smith.
If you would like to send well wishes to Janet or make a donation in tribute to her work, please feel welcome to send a letter to 301 West Cedar Street, Stevens Point, WI, 54481, or you may email the office at ocncct@gmail.com or call (715)344-1910. We also encourage you to call or stop into the office to introduce yourself to our new Executive Director, Chris. He would happily welcome your introduction.
A letter from NCCT’s Board President, David James:
A Time of Change
When I woke up this morning there was a distinct chilliness to the air that I had not felt in a while. While we still have a few official weeks of summer left, it sure feels like the season change has begun. North Central Conservancy Trust is also in a season of change.
For those who do not know yet, Janet Smith is retiring as our Executive Director effective September 4th, 2020. While I am sad to see Janet go, I am excited for her and her family as they start this new chapter in life. I am also pleased that Janet will not be leaving the NCCT family. She will stick around on a volunteer basis to continue to lend her passion and knowledge for the benefit of our organization. During Janet’s tenure as our Executive Director, she has helped the organization in many ways. Most importantly, we have added nearly 600 additional protected acres under conservation easements. She has also helped develop partnerships with the Central Wisconsin Invasives Partnership, Natural Resources Foundation and others, set us up for accreditation with the Land Trust Alliance and worked with other volunteers to secure permanent office space and our first NCCT Preserve (the Mumford Three Rolls Property). THANK YOU JANET!
While it is always hard to see a passionate leader step down, we are super fortunate to have hired Christopher C. Radford as our new Executive Director. Chris is a Stevens Point native but comes to us from Hawaii where he has spent the last 15 years working in various field and leadership roles in the conservation field. Chris has actually been onboard for about a week now, working with Janet towards a smooth transition. Chris can be reached at the office or at the same email address that Janet has been using edncct@gmail.com. WELCOME CHRIS!
I hope you are looking forward to the upcoming fall season here in Wisconsin. I also hope you are as excited as I am about this new chapter for North Central Conservancy Trust!
A letter from NCCT’s Outreach Coordinator, Emily Weber:
It was a bittersweet morning yesterday, as I knew it is my last official day in the office with Janet. Luckily we were able to make it just a little sweeter by celebrating with a piece of apple pie. I have had the honor and pleasure of knowing and working very closely with Janet for the past year. I am so grateful for the time I have spent with her. She has been a mentor, friend, and the best coworker. I am so lucky to have learned so much from Janet in my first year as a staff member at NCCT. She was welcoming, kind, and extremely patient. I will always remember her kindness and support, as it has meant the world to me.
I will miss seeing her smiling face in the office each day, but I am happy this is not goodbye and that she will still be continuing her involvement with NCCT on a volunteer basis.
Janet has dedicated eight years to serving this organization, four of which she worked extremely hard as the Executive Director. Her work for NCCT and dedication to conservation are inspiring! Thank you so much, Janet, for making a REAL difference in land conservation. May you have a wonderful retirement full of all the adventures and relaxation your heart desires. I am excited to welcome Chris Radford to NCCT as our new Executive Director. I will certainly pass all the kindness and support shown to me by Janet onto him as he settles into his new role.
During the past week, I have observed while he has impressively absorbed a mass of knowledge on policies, procedures, and everything NCCT! It was not difficult to recognize quickly that Chris is a motivated and hard-working individual. I am confident he will excel in his new position and help NCCT continue to grow and succeed. He has hit the ground running with new ideas and a fresh outlook on how we can continue to improve NCCT! I look forward to working with him to advance our mission further. Welcome to the NCCT family, Chris! I hope you have the most fulfilling working experience with our organization. I wish you the best of luck.
A farewell note from former Executive Director, Janet Smith:
Ever since I can remember, I’ve loved the natural world especially birds and other wildlife. The older I got and the more I learned about our wonderful blue planet on which all life depends, the more my focus turned to conservation as the most critical work I could do.
I’ve been fortunate to make my career in the environmental and natural resources field with conservation at the top of the list – and at the culmination of my professional life. I’m grateful for the opportunity I have had to serve as NCCT’s Executive Director over the past 4 years. It has been a fulfilling role in which I’ve learned a lot and met many interesting people who understand Leopold’s Land Ethic and wholeheartedly practice it.
I am most proud that I leave NCCT better positioned for our conservation mission: we now own a home office, we own our first public preserve – the Mumford Three Rolls Preserve, we increased our capacity by hiring a second staff member, Emily Weber, to broaden our outreach capability, we are well-positioned for accreditation with the Land Trust Alliance, and we have protected nearly 600 additional acres under conservation easements.
I want to thank NCCT’s easement landowners for the legacy they’ve left future generations, NCCT’s members, supporters and volunteers who keep us strong and moving forward, and NCCT’s Board and committee members who work so hard to further our mission. Thank you for your support, guidance, and passion.
I leave NCCT in great hands: Emily, our fabulous Outreach Coordinator, whom I call a friend, has been a wonderful asset to our organization. I have confidence that our new E.D. Chris will competently lead NCCT into our next chapter as we continue to conserve the natural heritage of Central Wisconsin through the protection of land.
Yours in Conservation,
Janet
An introduction from Executive Director, Christopher C. Radford:
I would like to start off by congratulating Janet Smith on an incredible list of accomplishments and achievements while serving as the NCCT Executive Director. The legacy she has created at NCCT is truly reflective of her passion for the protection of natural resources and the ecological integrity of public and private lands throughout central Wisconsin. I am very fortunate to have been able to work closely with Janet during her last two weeks with NCCT. Her wealth of knowledge is an invaluable resource for NCCT and any conservation-oriented organization in Wisconsin.
While growing up in Stevens Point, I spent most of my time exploring our local parks and surrounding natural areas with family and friends. Like many of you, we spent a lot of time kayaking, canoeing, rock climbing, biking, hiking, sledding, and skiing. My interest in exploring these special places created a desire in me to want to understand more about ecological processes and concepts, so I pursued a professional career in natural resource management. I earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Biology and a Master of Science degree in Environmental Science. After working for several conservation organizations in Maui, Hawaii for about 15 years, my wife and I decided to return to central Wisconsin to be closer to family and to raise our two young children here. We wanted to surround our kids with the natural beauty, culture, and heritage of central Wisconsin, while instilling in them the strong Midwest values we all strive to uphold. I am honored and humbled to be joining the NCCT team and I will do my best to carry out the NCCT mission to the best of my ability. I am very excited to have the opportunity to help protect the natural areas that I fell in love with while growing up here, and to do something that benefits all of the people of Wisconsin. I look forward to getting to know you and working together to preserve and protect these special places!
Christopher C. Radford
Executive Director