History of Sequoia Riverlands Trust
Alan George speaks at the Kaweah Oaks Preserve
dedication in 1983
For two decades, dedicated citizens from our local community have committed their time, skills, energy and financial resources to conserve the scenic beauty and quality of life in our treasured foothill, river and valley floor environments. Three groups of people, in the Visalia, Three Rivers and Springville areas, worked separately, but with similar visions for conservation based on a respect for people, the economy, agricultural resources, wildlife habitat and the enjoyment of nature.
Our precursor, the Sierra Los Tulares Land Trust was established in November 2000 as the result of a consensus decision to merge those three groups: the Four Creeks, Kaweah and Tule Oaks land trusts.
Merging the three land trusts strengthened the organization to meet regional conservation challenges by combining the expertise and talents of individuals from throughout the county, with Carole Combs as the first non-paid Executive Director. In March 2002, the Board of Directors hired Sopac “Soapy” McCarthy Mulholland as the first paid Executive Director.
In 2003, the Board of Directors, staff, design experts and volunteers participated in a facilitated rebranding session regarding the “identity” of the land trust. Everyone agreed that “Sierra Los Tulares Land Trust” was a cumbersome name for the organization. After a great deal of creative input, the Board voted to rebrand us as “Sequoia Riverlands Trust”.
Oak trees at KOP
Sequoia Riverlands Trust (SRT) works in the southern Sierra Nevada and San Joaquin Valley in the Kings, Kaweah, Tule and Kern River watersheds, and into the Tulare Lake Basin of Fresno, Tulare, Kern and Kings counties. We are a private, regional non-profit organization that serves landowners who are interested in voluntarily conserving their land. SRT works to educate community members who are interested in conservation and land stewardship, while inspiring new land conservationists. Currently, SRT holds conservation easements on 19 properties, totaling 3,226 protected acres. We own and manage 6 preserves, totaling 4,069 acres, and we have collaborated on the conservation of 3,811 additional acres for a total of 11,102 protected acres in the region.
We would like to recognize the contributions and leadership of the following individuals in each of our chapters who began the conservation and land trust movement in Tulare County:
| Four Creeks Chapter | Kaweah Chapter | Tule Oaks Chapter |
|---|---|---|
|
Greg Collins Dan Dooley Dick Dooley Do Dooley Carole Frate Alan George Rob Hansen Bill Hobbs Jim Kautz Nancy Jenner Greg Kirkpatrick Irene Lindsay Mike Lozito Brian Newton Susan Silva-Treadwell John Slaven Scott Spear Ginger Strong Jose Velesco Ernie Vierra Richard Webb Jeanne Wheaton |
Gordon Bergthold Howard Blielie Carole Combs Susan Darsey Garry Kenwood Rick Kimble Caroline Loeb George Loeb Annette MacGregor Kathleen McCleary Stan Pavlou Jean Replogle Trudy Schuckert James Seligman Elizabeth Scott-Graham Bill Tidwell Bill Tweed Jim Wells Mary Becker Wells Elizabeth Wilcox |
Gary Adest Barbara Brydolf Billie Chandler Robert Krase Carol Manning Terry Manning Elli Norris Joan Stewart Gay Ver Steeg Elizabeth Wilcox |
Interested in regional land conservation history? Read about the history of Kaweah Oaks Preserve