April 3, 2024 • 43 mins
Join us for a captivating journey into the heart of nature with Tyler Irvine, the visionary Executive Director of Fontenelle Forest. Tyler unveils the sanctuary's strategies for nurturing the land and the soul, detailing the environmental stewardship that guides over 2,100 acres. We get insights into the transformative conservation methods and discover the educational programs designed to deepen our understanding of nature's delicate web.
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Tyler Irvine (00:00):
Listen to the forest that grows rather than
the tree that falls.
Announcer (00:07):
Welcome to Agency for Change, a podcast from KidGlov
that brings you the stories ofchangemakers who are actively
working to improve ourcommunities.
In every episode, we'll meetwith people who are making a
lasting impact in the places wecall home.
Lisa Bowen (00:31):
Hello everyone, this is Lisa Bowen, Vice President/M
anaging Director at KidGlov.
Welcome to another episode ofthe Agency for Change podcast.
Today we're honored to haveTyler Irvine, the Executive
Director of Fontenelle Forest,join us.
With a mission to provide asanctuary for people to connect
with the natural world.
Fontenelle Forest has beeninstrumental in preserving over
(00:52):
2,100 acres of forest, prairiesand wetlands along the Missouri
River.
Today, we'll explore Tyler'sjourney, Fontenelle Forest's
impactful initiatives, and diveinto the broader conversation
about environmental stewardshipand community engagement.
Tyler, I'm eager to talk withyou today and learn more about
the great impact you're making.
Tyler Irvine (01:14):
Thanks so much, Lisa.
It's great to be here.
I really appreciate thisopportunity.
Lisa Bowen (01:18):
Awesome.
Well, let's dive right into thequestions.
Tyler, Can you start by justgiving us an overview of
Fontenelle Forest and itsmission?
Tyler Irvine (01:27):
Yeah, so we were founded in 1913.
There were some visionaries atthat time who saw, with the
construction of Bellevue, thatthe forest right here along the
Missouri were at risk of beingcut at the cost of forward
progress for all theconstruction that was happening
(01:48):
at that time.
And those visionaries reallysaw a plan ahead and it stays
true today.
So over the years things havecertainly developed and changed
and I'm happy to go into some ofmy thoughts on how things have
evolved over time but currentlywe manage 2,100 acres here,
(02:10):
primarily in Bellevue, but alsoup at Neale Woods, which is
northern Douglas County,southern Washington County, 24
miles of trail.
You know, historically we'vebeen a place for folks to come
and hike and have some respitefrom the urban jungle, and that
(02:32):
that remains true today.
Many of our members are hikers,many of our members are birders.
We are a premier birdinglocation, as someone who was not
a bird person myself before Icame to work at Fontenelle, I've
caught the bug.
It's wonderful, it's so muchfun.
(02:53):
That said, you know, beyond ourhiking, we do outdoor education
.
So we have hired naturalists,qualified naturalists, who do
both public as well as school-based programming, and they do a
fantastic job.
Our mission is to inspirecurrent and future generations
to care for the natural world.
(03:15):
That's really the heart of theforest and it's the reason why
we really do exist in ourcurrent form today, with a
nature center and then our other, truly our biggest piece, and
what underlies all that we do isour conservation efforts.
(03:36):
So conservation has evolvedover the years.
Originally the conservationideas were kind of like leave it
alone and just let it be withour landscape.
That is actually not not themodern understanding of the
right way to approachconservation.
So we do active management: brush piling, invasive species (03:56):
undefined
removal and really ourcornerstone in our active
management is is prescribed burn, which I can go into the pieces
of how that's important in inour landscape, if you like.
Lisa Bowen (04:17):
Great.
You know I've learned a lot ofnew things already in the first
question, Tyler, so I appreciateyou sharing that.
The urban jungle is definitelysomething that a lot of people
want to escape from from time totime, so I love that you use
that as a reference for whypeople one of the many reasons
why people visit the forest.
So, Tyler, can you tell us alittle bit about the road that
(04:39):
led you to personally toFontenelle forest?
Looking at your resume, youseem to have a special place in
your heart for nonprofits and,you know, is the love for nature
also in your blood?
Tyler Irvine (04:51):
Thanks for this question.
This is a very nice question.
When I was growing up as a kid,my mom was a very active
volunteer and I was her littlebuddy you know, the youngest of
my of my siblings and I justwent along and did stuff with my
mom and she talked so highly ofthose days still today and she
(05:12):
really exposed me to giving back.
And from a very early age Ijust felt that, I believe that
the world could be a betterplace, and that belief has
carried me through my career,which really started with with
nonprofits back in 2007/ 2008,when I started as a refugee
(05:38):
resettlement specialist withLutheran Family Services and a
sense just carried on through.
So I ran a small nonprofit outin Western Nebraska for five
years.
We loved Scottsb luff, we lovedeverything about what we were
doing, but my wife and I'sfamily is here and, as many
(06:01):
folks know and understand those,those roots are deep and so I
had an opportunity that was anincredible opportunity to come
back home and work for theSherwood Foundation and with
them I was able to invest acrossthe state at a scale that truly
I can't even comprehend.
(06:21):
You know the ripple effects ofwhat the Sherwood Foundation
does in Omaha but across thestate is, it's absolutely
awesome and I, you know, wasable to still be out there in
greater Nebraska.
I love rural communities, I lovethe people and how things work
and so, and that was lovely, butthere was this gnawing thing
(06:44):
inside of me where it was like Ilike to be in the arena, I like
to have challenges that I cangive myself to and work through
and give my energy towards.
And in philanthropy, there's abit of a feeling of sometimes
you're on the lines and yourcheerleader and you believe in
(07:04):
folks, but at the end of the day, you're tasking other people to
get this stuff done.
I, as a doer, felt, while mytime at at Sherwood was very
meaningful, there was a bit of apart of me that didn't feel
quite fulfilled because Icouldn't give myself personally
(07:26):
to a place and see tangibleprogress and improvements.
And so I sat with that feelingand I hiked Neale Woods.
I was hiking Neale Woods forabout six months to a year of
like, hey, what do I want to do?
What do I want to do?
I've loved nature my wholelife; camping, hiking, fishing,
(07:50):
everything about it.
Nature has been my church forat least since early high school
.
And then I realized, you know,so I'm out here at Neale Woods
walking around like what do wewant to do?
I was like, what aboutFontenelle Forest?
What if I thought about runningFontenelle Forest?
(08:12):
And the pieces started to cometogether and I was just
fortunate with timing andeverything that the outgoing
executive director was leaving.
There would be an opening and Ijust chose to throw my hat in
the ring and see what wouldhappen.
And here I am.
So I'm very, very grateful foreverything and to be here today.
Lisa Bowen (08:36):
That's an amazing story.
What a great response.
I did not anticipate that youknow this was all part of your
plan.
Tyler Irvine (08:43):
I didn't know it either.
You know, when I was in thatdeliberative state of kind of
thinking of leaving philanthropyand going back into running
nonprofits, there was a pointwhere I was sitting at the
dinner table with my wife and Isaid, what about Fontenelle
Forest?
It was like inside of me.
And then it was like a yearlater where I was like, no,
(09:04):
actually, what about FontenelleForest?
So there was a seed there andit really it encompasses my
whole personality, my spiritualrelationship to the land, my
skill set.
It's just a perfect fit for me.
Lisa Bowen (09:25):
Well, your passion for your work is evident, so
it's always wonderful to seesomebody in the right position
and doing the right thing forthe right reasons, and you could
tell you're that person.
Tyler Irvine (09:37):
Well, thank you, I appreciate that.
Lisa Bowen (09:40):
Awesome.
So can you tell us a little bitabout like I grew up in
Bellevue so I know all aboutFontenelle Forest, but I know it
has a place to hike.
Can you tell us a little bitmore about the conservation
efforts happening today?
Tyler Irvine (09:53):
Yeah, so we have a dedicated conservation team.
We have about six dedicatedbiologists and conservation
managers who oversee all of our2,100 acres.
Fontenelle Forest is in atransition ecosystem.
So you have the Easterndeciduous forest which comes out
(10:16):
of kind of the what do you callit?
The center location is reallyTennessee, Kentucky, but that
forest spreads, and you knowMissouri has it, and it comes
right up to the edge ofFontenelle Forest.
Then on the backside you nowenter into the plains, which
(10:37):
Nebraska is known for.
Interestingly enough,Scottsluff, on the other end of
the state, is a transitionecosystem from the plains to the
Rocky Mountains, and so thespecies intermingle.
You get Eastern and Westernbluebirds, for example,
co-mingling.
So when I talk about transitionecosystems, you get a little
(11:01):
bit of both.
Now, in the plains, fire is apart of how this ecosystem
continues to regenerate.
Unfortunately, you know, wehave the big fires in the
central part of the state.
Down in Texas they've had thosefires.
That is a part of how this youknow Nebraska as a whole, but
(11:26):
plains in general do continue toregenerate and thrive.
So we've got this forest thathas these ridge tops and when I
talk about a transitionecosystem, that ridge top is
more prairie-like.
It's open, the canopy opens upand we have Bur Oak, and Bur
(11:48):
Oaks are like the sentinel treespecies, so they're the species
that goes forth into new areas.
They're the first one and theyeven in their leaves, for
example, they have an oil thatis flammable.
They're fire resistant, firetolerant.
(12:10):
It helps them keep theircompetition away.
They need that open canopy tosurvive and thrive.
So on our ridge tops, havingthat open canopy is critical.
And then we have our Hollows,which has a whole set of tree
species that thrive on shade andjust the general.
(12:35):
What folks think of as a forest.
You know our hollows are, youmight walk through and feel like
you're in Appalachia, forexample.
It's unlike really anythingelse in Nebraska, so it's very
unique, you know.
And we also have wetlandsproperties.
So we've got these wetlands,this deciduous forest and this
(12:56):
oak savanna, and that oaksavanna is what really relies on
that fire to thrive.
So go back a hundred years, 1913, trees are being cut.
They want to protect thisforest.
The dominant idea at that timewas, you know, set it and forget
it, leave it be.
(13:17):
This is God's creation, manshouldn't interfere in it.
And that went on for about 50,60 years, maybe even a little
bit more.
And what happened then?
The fire went away and shadetolerant species started to
compete with the oaks on ourridge tops and then the oak
(13:38):
stopped doing as well.
So the shade trees kind of comeup and they start taking up
that canopy space that the BurOak thrives on, and so our ridge
tops became more forested, inthe sense of that canopy
coverage was thicker.
(13:58):
And as conservation grew tounderstand actually active
management, that is the key.
We are stewards of the land.
We work in tandem with the landto ensure that it is healthy
and thriving.
So starting it's been now.
In the 1980s we had a legendarygentleman here named Gary
(14:24):
Garabrant, who was ourconservation guru, and he really
brought in now this modernunderstanding of conservation,
and it continues to this day nowwhere we have a full staff.
You know we actually just burnedNeale Woods 600 acres two weeks
ago, right before these burnbans went into effect.
(14:47):
You know, folks around here knowit's been so dry and so from
that aspect too there is a wedon't typically think about it
this way, but there is a publicsafety element to it of we've
burned out that dry fuel that,if a wildfire was to crop up,
(15:19):
We have perimeters set andthings are under control and our
team is so professional aboutthis.
We, you know, work very closelywith fire departments and
neighbors around the burnsthemselves.
There's a lot, a lot that goesinto it, but that really is kind
of our keystone piece.
(15:40):
And then throughout the yearwe're continually doing invasive
species removal, species thathave come in and start to take
over the native species in ourarea.
And then our brush cutting isto help also facilitate fire, so
that there is, as you know, ifyou tried to build a fire and
(16:02):
you put too many logs on thatfire, it snuffs it out.
So we create the space for thefire to effectively move through
by brush cutting and piling.
And so if you come and you hikeour trails and you see brush
piles in different spots, that'sintentional, and then when we
(16:22):
go through and burn, those pileswill then, you know, burn up
and all of those nutrients comeback to the land.
Lisa Bowen (16:31):
Wow.
What our listeners won't knowis that you are just speaking
off the cuff and are literallythis knowledgeable, so I'm super
impressed, Tyler.
Tyler Irvine (16:40):
And this is not my background, truly, I have
professionals who have taught methis.
So this is because of the levelof expertise of my staff.
I'm more of a CEO type ofexecutive director, where I
oversee the bigger picture and Iput people and delegate people
who have that expertise, and ourdirector of operations is such
(17:06):
a pro at this that I've been solucky to be a part of it.
There's this part of me that,like I wish, is that was kind of
my job, you know, but I also Iknow where my strengths are and
what I can give to theorganization, and I'm happy to
be in more of an administrativerole because I do feel very
(17:30):
passionate about what we aredoing.
And I got the opportunity to goout on one of our prescribed
burns.
I can't tell you, Lisa, howmagical that experience is when
you're out in the land andthere's fire and smoke all
around and the sun is comingdown through these trees.
(17:51):
It is very much a spiritualexperience.
You feel the land breathing andit is alive in a way that I've
never really experienced before,and just the sun coming through
the smoke and the trees.
It's always beautiful here, nomatter what, that dappled
(18:13):
sunlight that comes through ourcanopy is so healing.
But when the fire was going onit was like on a whole another
level.
So I get very excited about itand I'm very supportive of our
conservation efforts just frommy personal experience with how
(18:35):
well they do it and how neat itreally is.
Lisa Bowen (18:38):
So cool, and I'm sure that knowledge and your
passion for the work just ismaking you such a better leader,
so I think that's great.
Tyler Irvine (18:46):
Well, thank you.
Lisa Bowen (18:48):
One thing I wanted to ask you.
So not everybody is as engagedas nature as you are and
knowledgeable about it.
What things do you atFontenelle Forest at Forest to
engage the community in yourefforts?
Tyler Irvine (18:59):
Yeah, so we have a variety of public programming
in that we continue to evolve,as all of us had COVID.
COVID was kind of there wassort of a before and after.
Previously pre-COVID days, wehad a ton of school groups
(19:19):
coming through, tons of kids andwith our qualified naturalists,
you know, doing really kind ofhigh level overview of
everything in nature.
So to me it's important that weprovide that generalist
understanding of nature insteadof very specialty focus, like
(19:41):
now there's folks who specializein frogs or folks who
specialize in snakes or folkswho specialize in raptors.
Our team is more of ageneralist team who can speak to
how all of these elements worktogether in nature to help folks
come to relearn, because I dobelieve we possess this in our
(20:04):
DNA, but come to relearn how theforces of nature actually work
and be able to read signs aroundyou in nature that you know I
think are part of our heritageas human beings.
We grew up in these kinds ofenvironments, we evolved in them
, but as we've moved to the city, some of that knowledge has
(20:28):
been lost, and so it'srekindling that inherent
knowledge within us to be ableto read and understand the world
around us.
Then with that we also we haveraptors.
We have 26 birds of prey on ourproperty that are all
non-releasable birds that youknow, we have falcons, hawks,
(20:52):
eagles, owls.
Those birds bring in a ton offolks.
Our raptor educationprogramming is very, very
popular and we actually, we takecalls from across the state and
our team is happy to jump inthe car and bring a few birds
and go out to schools in St Paul, Nebraska, you know West Point,
(21:16):
Nebraska.
We're out there trying toprovide a unique and rich
engaged experience for folks whomight not be able to make the
trip to us.
And then kind of our one of ourcurrent fun little program,
evolution things.
So as COVID, you know, reallyimpacted the level of school
(21:39):
groups that have come in.
We've switched over to more ofa public program so anybody can
come.
You know we give discounts toour members and a lot of those
programmings are like birding101, trails less traveled, full
moon hike, so we'll have aprogram when we have a full moon
.
The forest closes at sunset sowe offer this program for folks
(22:04):
to come in at night and thoseare insanely popular.
The forest is wild at night.
Anybody who's been in the woodsat night knows it's a whole
other game, and so that'ssomething we love doing.
Equinox celebrations, markingseasons, those are other pieces
(22:25):
that we do.
And, lastly, kind of one of ourcurrent areas that we're
looking more into is that healthand wellness.
So bringing yoga to the forest,Tai Chi to the forest.
We had Reiki at the forest.
One of our naturalists is aqualified Reiki practitioner and
she had a a random fantasticprogram that was so well
(22:47):
received around this health andwellness and that's an area that
I feel passionate about becauseof all my personal experience
being in the woods and howhealing it is.
In conversations with many folks, the forest has been a place of
healing and in society today,we are more stressed than seems
(23:10):
like ever.
You know, we're locked intothese devices here.
It's amazing that you and I areable to talk like this through
through the screen, but it doeshave an impact on our well being
.
We sit in this place wheresociety feels more divided and
(23:31):
politics get put into everything.
Everything is politicized.
Here we are, we are the woods,and let's all set those things
aside and come together aroundour shared love of this place.
And yeah, you want to talkclimate change.
Let's talk about it because itis happening here.
(23:53):
You know, all of us haveexperienced it, and some of the
politics does start to come inThat is the mission impact piece
(24:14):
that why I believe FontenelleForest is more important now
than ever before.
Our kids need it, all of us, weall need to reconnect to this
creation that we find ourselvesin and instead of, oh, let's
(24:35):
take a week trip out to Coloradoand go see these awesome
mountains, well, you can comedown here and hike for four
hours and get lost and go backhome.
It doesn't have to be a whole,hey, we got to go find this
somewhere else.
We are here, we're here for itand it's right in your backyard.
Lisa Bowen (24:58):
Yes, the more you talk about how important the
work is that you're doing atFontenelle Forest, the bigger
your job gets.
What are some of the challengesthat come along with leading an
organization that has such asignificant impact on the
community?
Tyler Irvine (25:15):
You know there are many.
Really, at the end of the daythere can be competing interests
.
So, from a recreation aspectwanting to keep trails open and
available well, from aconservation aspect, we're doing
a prescribed burn.
We have to close down trails todo so for folks' safety.
(25:37):
Folks who are here to come andhike might be upset by that, and
so there's tension in betweenand sometimes you just have to
get everybody back to the samepage of why we're doing what we
do and help folks to see thebigger picture outside of their
(25:59):
specific interest in engagingwith the forest.
Because we have a variety ofstakeholders, you know.
We have our birding population.
They want things a certain way.
We have our outdoor educators.
They want things a certain way.
We have our conservation team.
They might say I wish nobodywas here you know, and they
(26:21):
don't, mind you.
But I think working through thevariety of interests,
compromising as folks know, inthis world politics is a lot of
compromise.
You just it's a give and take,so long as the mission is never
(26:42):
sacrificed.
And I think that's my, that'smine is to ensure that
everything we do is aligned withour mission, and if it's not,
we have a problem that we needto talk about or reassess
potentially our mission orwhatever it is that's running up
against it.
And then you know we have 2,100acres that we manage.
(27:05):
We have a nature center, wehave 37 staff, making payroll is
always, you know we're in agreat financial position, but
those are certainly things thatyou know, we want to make sure
we can continue to sustain ourteam, our nature center, our you
(27:26):
know the acres that we restore,because it costs money for all
of that and how do we build amodel that is balanced in terms
of grant revenue, earned revenue.
One of the things that made meso excited about the force is we
(27:46):
are blessed to have amembership based model so that
we are able to have significantearned revenue that comes in,
you know, and we have folks whothey come in and they think
maybe we're a state park orsomething and why are you
charging this money?
We are not a state park.
We are a 501C3 nonprofitorganization that receives no
(28:11):
state tax assistance, so we relyon our membership to fund our
conservation work, for example.
You know that is the why of it,and sometimes folks would come
in and be like well, it'sawfully expensive to breathe the
air here, ha ha.
And it's like we take that stepback and say this is what it
(28:34):
takes to breathe that air, andyou know it's a process for
folks.
And again, people have their ownexperience and that's very
valid.
When you sit in a seat likemine, you see the variety of
experiences and those aren'talways in total agreement with
(28:57):
one another.
You have to work to communicatethe why and what we are
offering.
You know, as it relates to aquestion like well, it's awfully
expensive to breathe your air.
What we are providing for the,for our members, in terms of the
value.
We have the programming aspects.
(29:18):
We have the unparalleled naturethat we provide that's
maintained to an excellentquality.
And we have exhibits.
We have an art exhibit that'son our trading post history.
I could go on and on, Lisa,about the history of this place.
We have 74 earth lodge siteswithin Fontenelle's property and
(29:42):
those date back to 1200 to 1400so there's significant
archeological importance to ourarea.
From a species perspective, weget birds that no one else gets.
It's why we are a premiernational birding location.
(30:03):
So again, these are the thingsthat your membership helps us
continue to sustain.
Lisa Bowen (30:12):
Yes, I agree.
So you perfectly led into mynext question, which is about
membership.
I know one of your goals is togrow your membership in order to
support your efforts.
Can you talk a little bit aboutwhat a membership might cost
and what that includes?
You mentioned some of thosethings, but what are the
benefits?
Tyler Irvine (30:30):
Yeah.
So our membership for a familyand this is good for a whole
year is $80.
Then we have a.
We have some different tiers,so we have like a membership
plus one where you can bring insomeone with you every time.
That's $70 a year.
And then we have an individualmembership which is $55 a year
(30:54):
and we just rolled out priceincreases this past January
Historically we've sort ofundersold, I think, what what we
can actually provide.
(31:15):
During COVID we were blessedbeing a nature center with ample
outdoor opportunities.
We actually experienced agrowth in membership during that
time.
So part of what we're tryingand then it's since has kind of
dropped back down as folks havegone back into, you know they're
(31:35):
more regular life, whateverthat might mean these days, and
so for us it's reengaging folkswho have potentially lapsed as
memberships.
You, Lisa as you know, being aBellevue native, so many folks
have history here.
Either they camped here as akid or they sent their kids here
(31:59):
for camp and then, as life goeson, folks kind of, you know,
kids grow up or whatever all thethings happen, some of those
folks just kind of forget orstop coming down, and so it's
reengaging with, with folksacross our lifespan that, hey,
(32:20):
we are still here.
We value the membership thatyou know our community gives to
us graciously.
With that value, you know wehave a an early childhood Space
space in our basement so forfamilies to bring their kids in,
come downstairs and just free,roam, explore, have a look, it's
(32:43):
, it's, fantastic Then we haveour art gallery space which
currently houses our tradingpost exhibit.
So for folks who are interested, and in the history of Bellevue
, Sarpy County, FontenelleForest, that's our current
exhibit and well, you know, overtime, well put in new stuff
(33:03):
there.
And then something we'reextremely excited about coming
here this year will be our acornacres, which is a half acre
outdoor playscape that will havea very cool custom two-story
treehouse and a variety ofinteractive ways for folks who
are maybe on the newer side tothe outdoors to get familiar
(33:27):
with how it is to explore.
And you know we will bethoughtful with our signage so
that it feels like a trail youknow for to again it comes back
to we want to increase people'sconfidence in being able to go
out and explore and discover newthings and find their way.
(33:48):
So this whole area, designedwith that in mind and that's
gonna be a huge draw for us.
We have a mile-long boardwalk,you know, for folks who have
accessibility issues or kids,you know, we got a mile-long
boardwalk where you can view allthese amazing birds.
You know, I was talking withthe guy this morning who was
(34:10):
walking the boardwalk and hewent a little bit further down
some other trails.
He saw 35 deer today, turkeys,coyotes, so the wildlife.
It's in an accessible way.
And then it leads you out overto overlook the Missouri River.
You see downtown Omaha, you seethe Desert Dome and Henry Dorley
(34:30):
Zoo.
It's just a, it's a reminder ofwhere we are in the community
that exists along this MissouriRiver Corridor.
And then, you know, with yourmembership, you get access to
these programs at reduced prices, access to discounts in our
gift shop.
Our gift shop does amazing,plus just the community being a
(34:53):
part of a place that is reallyactively conserving precious
land.
You know, we feel that that is,that is an important thing.
But let's say, if you're just ahiker, we have the best hiking
around, you know, yes, you cango over to Hitchcock Nature
Center north of Crescent Iowa.
(35:13):
That's a longer drive.
They've got good hiking too I'mnot gonna say they don't, but
we have more of it right hereand so I think that there's
something for everybody here, nomatter the age, no matter the
experience level, and with themost meaningful aspect to me at
(35:35):
the end of the day are thepeople and the relationships we
have folks who come here andwalk that boardwalk every single
day.
I've had folks come and tell meI'm alive because of Fontenelle
forest, and I believe itbecause it it does it.
It's that connection andphysical activity and wellness
(35:56):
of being outdoors that sustainsus through dark times in our
lives and we all have those andfor folks who are needing to
find some comfort and healing intheir lives, I believe the
forest is here for you.
Lisa Bowen (36:11):
Wow, I think your rates are very reasonable and I
gladly pay that much to breatheyour air and see your beautiful
land.
So I think you just gotyourself a new member.
Tyler Irvine (36:20):
Awesome.
Thank you.
Well, let me know when you comedown, we'll take a walk.
Lisa Bowen (36:24):
I will.
So what other ways can peoplesupport your efforts in addition
to becoming a member?
Do you rely heavily onvolunteers?
I know donations, you're anonprofit.
What ways can people help?
Tyler Irvine (36:37):
Volunteer.
So we've got a fantasticprofessional staff, but we rely
on volunteers to scale ourimpact.
So we have volunteers and landstewardship.
Those are conservation efforts.
We have a Tuesday and Thursdayteam.
That's every Tuesday andThursday.
So for those folks who maybeare, you know, recently retired
(37:01):
or have some more time to giveyou, you get to get dirty with
our team and actually be, youknow from my see your, your
unpaid staff and you have allthose same rights and
responsibilities accordingly.
Then we have our monthlySaturday work days.
So for folks who, just you know, want to be able to have a
(37:25):
consistent engagement but maybedon't have, you know, if you
work a nine to five every, youknow, Monday through Friday or
whatever, we have a Saturdaymorning option once a month.
Now we're also in the processof re-vamping our whole
volunteer effort.
So if that is something thatyou are interested in, we're
gonna have some new thingsrolling out on our website
(37:59):
You know, we event coordination,those kinds of things that, I
know that there's event plannersout there in the world who are
the precious folks that like weall need, and those folks who
have those kinds of skill setsare absolutely w e love that and
we need that.
(38:19):
We appreciate those kinds ofhelp.
You know, then we have someeven back-end volunteers.
So for folks who just want to,maybe they have some mobility
issues or something along thoselines or they can't necessarily
meet the physical requirementsof some of the the work that we
do will have them help us, youknow, clean out our databases,
(38:42):
do some mailers, you know someof the office work, and we have
dedicated folks who who show upand do that monthly with us as
well.
And that's a huge lift for us,because sometimes those are the
things for us who are kind of atour max capacity, it will be
great if we could just do this.
We have a lot of those thingson our, on our desk that if we
(39:06):
found the right volunteer now wecould actually like we can do
that.
We can start just rolling andfeeling really, really good
about all of our progress.
So we have over 300 activevolunteers on an annual basis,
just to give you an idea of thisscale.
Volunteers our our lifeblood,you know, and they're the ones
(39:30):
who champion us out in thecommunity.
And one of the most meaningfuldays I've had here was a a
volunteer appreciation breakfastwhere I got to sit back and see
staff who work with volunteerson a regular basis prepare
breakfast for them, give themgifts and see the volunteers
(39:51):
shower that love right back onthe staff and say, hey, you're
the reason why we keep showingup here.
That, to me, is what it's allabout.
Lisa Bowen (40:00):
That's amazing.
So you mentioned your website.
Is that the best way for ourlisteners who want to learn more
about you to reach out?
Yes, can you tell us where yourwebsite, what your URL is?
Tyler Irvine (40:12):
Yeah, fontenelleforest.
org, I think are we .
org.
You know, Lisa, I've only beenhere five months.
Lisa Bowen (40:21):
You would not know that by listening to you today,
Tyler.
Tyler Irvine (40:25):
Yep, fontenelleforest.
org.
I just want to plug somethingon that website, you'll see on
the top on Nature Search.
This is a volunteer effort fromsome of our longstanding folks
where we now have just rolledout a new Nature Search platform
where it's kind of like acrowdsource.
You take pictures of what yousee here at the forest.
(40:48):
Now we've got the wholetaxonomy of plants, animals,
fungi.
All of that is there, withpictures from folks who upload
them and locations for otherfolks that they want to go try
and find things.
So that's a cool new thing thatI just wanted to talk about.
Lisa Bowen (41:08):
Well, Tyler, we love quotes here at KidGlov and I'm
sure you have a few that inspireyou in your daily routine.
Do you have any favorite quotesyou can share with us today?
Tyler Irvine (41:20):
I have many.
I guess one that it doesn'tnecessarily provide answers but
provokes thinking and itdovetails nicely into our
conversation today is listen tothe forest that grows rather
than the tree that falls.
Lisa Bowen (41:40):
I love that, love that.
So, Tyler, as we wrap up heretoday, you've shared so much
wonderful information.
What's the one thing you wouldwant our listeners to remember
about Fontenelle Forest as weclose our conversation today?
Tyler Irvine (41:57):
Again.
if you are in a place where youfeel you need some comfort and
healing in your life, we welcomeyou here.
The sunlight through the treeswill provide many blessings for
you, and so if you feel trapped,if you feel like the world is
too technological, or if youfeel like you just need space to
(42:21):
think and breathe and move, weare here and we welcome everyone
.
Lisa Bowen (42:28):
That's wonderful.
Well, thank you so much forsharing your time with us today
and all of your knowledge andgiving us a sneak peek at all of
the great things thatFontenelle Forest does.
Tyler Irvine (42:40):
It's my pleasure.
Thank you so much, and thanksto everybody who's listening to
me ramble a little bit today.
Lisa Bowen (42:46):
Thank you, Tyler.
Announcer (42:49):
We hope you enjoyed today's Agency for Change
podcast To hear all ourinterviews with those who are
making a positive change in ourcommunities or to nominate a
changemaker you'd love to hearfrom visit kidglov.
com at k-i-d-g-l-o-v dot com toget in touch, as always.
If you like what you've heardtoday, be sure to rate, review,
subscribe and share.
(43:09):
Thanks for listening and we'llsee you next time.
Listen to the forest that grows rather than
the tree that falls.
Announcer (00:07):
Welcome to Agency for Change, a podcast from KidGlov
that brings you the stories ofchangemakers who are actively
working to improve ourcommunities.
In every episode, we'll meetwith people who are making a
lasting impact in the places wecall home.
Lisa Bowen (00:31):
Hello everyone, this is Lisa Bowen, Vice President/M
anaging Director at KidGlov.
Welcome to another episode ofthe Agency for Change podcast.
Today we're honored to haveTyler Irvine, the Executive
Director of Fontenelle Forest,join us.
With a mission to provide asanctuary for people to connect
with the natural world.
Fontenelle Forest has beeninstrumental in preserving over
(00:52):
2,100 acres of forest, prairiesand wetlands along the Missouri
River.
Today, we'll explore Tyler'sjourney, Fontenelle Forest's
impactful initiatives, and diveinto the broader conversation
about environmental stewardshipand community engagement.
Tyler, I'm eager to talk withyou today and learn more about
the great impact you're making.
Tyler Irvine (01:14):
Thanks so much, Lisa.
It's great to be here.
I really appreciate thisopportunity.
Lisa Bowen (01:18):
Awesome.
Well, let's dive right into thequestions.
Tyler, Can you start by justgiving us an overview of
Fontenelle Forest and itsmission?
Tyler Irvine (01:27):
Yeah, so we were founded in 1913.
There were some visionaries atthat time who saw, with the
construction of Bellevue, thatthe forest right here along the
Missouri were at risk of beingcut at the cost of forward
progress for all theconstruction that was happening
(01:48):
at that time.
And those visionaries reallysaw a plan ahead and it stays
true today.
So over the years things havecertainly developed and changed
and I'm happy to go into some ofmy thoughts on how things have
evolved over time but currentlywe manage 2,100 acres here,
(02:10):
primarily in Bellevue, but alsoup at Neale Woods, which is
northern Douglas County,southern Washington County, 24
miles of trail.
You know, historically we'vebeen a place for folks to come
and hike and have some respitefrom the urban jungle, and that
(02:32):
that remains true today.
Many of our members are hikers,many of our members are birders.
We are a premier birdinglocation, as someone who was not
a bird person myself before Icame to work at Fontenelle, I've
caught the bug.
It's wonderful, it's so muchfun.
(02:53):
That said, you know, beyond ourhiking, we do outdoor education
.
So we have hired naturalists,qualified naturalists, who do
both public as well as school-based programming, and they do a
fantastic job.
Our mission is to inspirecurrent and future generations
to care for the natural world.
(03:15):
That's really the heart of theforest and it's the reason why
we really do exist in ourcurrent form today, with a
nature center and then our other, truly our biggest piece, and
what underlies all that we do isour conservation efforts.
(03:36):
So conservation has evolvedover the years.
Originally the conservationideas were kind of like leave it
alone and just let it be withour landscape.
That is actually not not themodern understanding of the
right way to approachconservation.
So we do active management: brush piling, invasive species (03:56):
undefined
removal and really ourcornerstone in our active
management is is prescribed burn, which I can go into the pieces
of how that's important in inour landscape, if you like.
Lisa Bowen (04:17):
Great.
You know I've learned a lot ofnew things already in the first
question, Tyler, so I appreciateyou sharing that.
The urban jungle is definitelysomething that a lot of people
want to escape from from time totime, so I love that you use
that as a reference for whypeople one of the many reasons
why people visit the forest.
So, Tyler, can you tell us alittle bit about the road that
(04:39):
led you to personally toFontenelle forest?
Looking at your resume, youseem to have a special place in
your heart for nonprofits and,you know, is the love for nature
also in your blood?
Tyler Irvine (04:51):
Thanks for this question.
This is a very nice question.
When I was growing up as a kid,my mom was a very active
volunteer and I was her littlebuddy you know, the youngest of
my of my siblings and I justwent along and did stuff with my
mom and she talked so highly ofthose days still today and she
(05:12):
really exposed me to giving back.
And from a very early age Ijust felt that, I believe that
the world could be a betterplace, and that belief has
carried me through my career,which really started with with
nonprofits back in 2007/ 2008,when I started as a refugee
(05:38):
resettlement specialist withLutheran Family Services and a
sense just carried on through.
So I ran a small nonprofit outin Western Nebraska for five
years.
We loved Scottsb luff, we lovedeverything about what we were
doing, but my wife and I'sfamily is here and, as many
(06:01):
folks know and understand those,those roots are deep and so I
had an opportunity that was anincredible opportunity to come
back home and work for theSherwood Foundation and with
them I was able to invest acrossthe state at a scale that truly
I can't even comprehend.
(06:21):
You know the ripple effects ofwhat the Sherwood Foundation
does in Omaha but across thestate is, it's absolutely
awesome and I, you know, wasable to still be out there in
greater Nebraska.
I love rural communities, I lovethe people and how things work
and so, and that was lovely, butthere was this gnawing thing
(06:44):
inside of me where it was like Ilike to be in the arena, I like
to have challenges that I cangive myself to and work through
and give my energy towards.
And in philanthropy, there's abit of a feeling of sometimes
you're on the lines and yourcheerleader and you believe in
(07:04):
folks, but at the end of the day, you're tasking other people to
get this stuff done.
I, as a doer, felt, while mytime at at Sherwood was very
meaningful, there was a bit of apart of me that didn't feel
quite fulfilled because Icouldn't give myself personally
(07:26):
to a place and see tangibleprogress and improvements.
And so I sat with that feelingand I hiked Neale Woods.
I was hiking Neale Woods forabout six months to a year of
like, hey, what do I want to do?
What do I want to do?
I've loved nature my wholelife; camping, hiking, fishing,
(07:50):
everything about it.
Nature has been my church forat least since early high school
.
And then I realized, you know,so I'm out here at Neale Woods
walking around like what do wewant to do?
I was like, what aboutFontenelle Forest?
What if I thought about runningFontenelle Forest?
(08:12):
And the pieces started to cometogether and I was just
fortunate with timing andeverything that the outgoing
executive director was leaving.
There would be an opening and Ijust chose to throw my hat in
the ring and see what wouldhappen.
And here I am.
So I'm very, very grateful foreverything and to be here today.
Lisa Bowen (08:36):
That's an amazing story.
What a great response.
I did not anticipate that youknow this was all part of your
plan.
Tyler Irvine (08:43):
I didn't know it either.
You know, when I was in thatdeliberative state of kind of
thinking of leaving philanthropyand going back into running
nonprofits, there was a pointwhere I was sitting at the
dinner table with my wife and Isaid, what about Fontenelle
Forest?
It was like inside of me.
And then it was like a yearlater where I was like, no,
(09:04):
actually, what about FontenelleForest?
So there was a seed there andit really it encompasses my
whole personality, my spiritualrelationship to the land, my
skill set.
It's just a perfect fit for me.
Lisa Bowen (09:25):
Well, your passion for your work is evident, so
it's always wonderful to seesomebody in the right position
and doing the right thing forthe right reasons, and you could
tell you're that person.
Tyler Irvine (09:37):
Well, thank you, I appreciate that.
Lisa Bowen (09:40):
Awesome.
So can you tell us a little bitabout like I grew up in
Bellevue so I know all aboutFontenelle Forest, but I know it
has a place to hike.
Can you tell us a little bitmore about the conservation
efforts happening today?
Tyler Irvine (09:53):
Yeah, so we have a dedicated conservation team.
We have about six dedicatedbiologists and conservation
managers who oversee all of our2,100 acres.
Fontenelle Forest is in atransition ecosystem.
So you have the Easterndeciduous forest which comes out
(10:16):
of kind of the what do you callit?
The center location is reallyTennessee, Kentucky, but that
forest spreads, and you knowMissouri has it, and it comes
right up to the edge ofFontenelle Forest.
Then on the backside you nowenter into the plains, which
(10:37):
Nebraska is known for.
Interestingly enough,Scottsluff, on the other end of
the state, is a transitionecosystem from the plains to the
Rocky Mountains, and so thespecies intermingle.
You get Eastern and Westernbluebirds, for example,
co-mingling.
So when I talk about transitionecosystems, you get a little
(11:01):
bit of both.
Now, in the plains, fire is apart of how this ecosystem
continues to regenerate.
Unfortunately, you know, wehave the big fires in the
central part of the state.
Down in Texas they've had thosefires.
That is a part of how this youknow Nebraska as a whole, but
(11:26):
plains in general do continue toregenerate and thrive.
So we've got this forest thathas these ridge tops and when I
talk about a transitionecosystem, that ridge top is
more prairie-like.
It's open, the canopy opens upand we have Bur Oak, and Bur
(11:48):
Oaks are like the sentinel treespecies, so they're the species
that goes forth into new areas.
They're the first one and theyeven in their leaves, for
example, they have an oil thatis flammable.
They're fire resistant, firetolerant.
(12:10):
It helps them keep theircompetition away.
They need that open canopy tosurvive and thrive.
So on our ridge tops, havingthat open canopy is critical.
And then we have our Hollows,which has a whole set of tree
species that thrive on shade andjust the general.
(12:35):
What folks think of as a forest.
You know our hollows are, youmight walk through and feel like
you're in Appalachia, forexample.
It's unlike really anythingelse in Nebraska, so it's very
unique, you know.
And we also have wetlandsproperties.
So we've got these wetlands,this deciduous forest and this
(12:56):
oak savanna, and that oaksavanna is what really relies on
that fire to thrive.
So go back a hundred years, 1913, trees are being cut.
They want to protect thisforest.
The dominant idea at that timewas, you know, set it and forget
it, leave it be.
(13:17):
This is God's creation, manshouldn't interfere in it.
And that went on for about 50,60 years, maybe even a little
bit more.
And what happened then?
The fire went away and shadetolerant species started to
compete with the oaks on ourridge tops and then the oak
(13:38):
stopped doing as well.
So the shade trees kind of comeup and they start taking up
that canopy space that the BurOak thrives on, and so our ridge
tops became more forested, inthe sense of that canopy
coverage was thicker.
(13:58):
And as conservation grew tounderstand actually active
management, that is the key.
We are stewards of the land.
We work in tandem with the landto ensure that it is healthy
and thriving.
So starting it's been now.
In the 1980s we had a legendarygentleman here named Gary
(14:24):
Garabrant, who was ourconservation guru, and he really
brought in now this modernunderstanding of conservation,
and it continues to this day nowwhere we have a full staff.
You know we actually just burnedNeale Woods 600 acres two weeks
ago, right before these burnbans went into effect.
(14:47):
You know, folks around here knowit's been so dry and so from
that aspect too there is a wedon't typically think about it
this way, but there is a publicsafety element to it of we've
burned out that dry fuel that,if a wildfire was to crop up,
(15:19):
We have perimeters set andthings are under control and our
team is so professional aboutthis.
We, you know, work very closelywith fire departments and
neighbors around the burnsthemselves.
There's a lot, a lot that goesinto it, but that really is kind
of our keystone piece.
(15:40):
And then throughout the yearwe're continually doing invasive
species removal, species thathave come in and start to take
over the native species in ourarea.
And then our brush cutting isto help also facilitate fire, so
that there is, as you know, ifyou tried to build a fire and
(16:02):
you put too many logs on thatfire, it snuffs it out.
So we create the space for thefire to effectively move through
by brush cutting and piling.
And so if you come and you hikeour trails and you see brush
piles in different spots, that'sintentional, and then when we
(16:22):
go through and burn, those pileswill then, you know, burn up
and all of those nutrients comeback to the land.
Lisa Bowen (16:31):
Wow.
What our listeners won't knowis that you are just speaking
off the cuff and are literallythis knowledgeable, so I'm super
impressed, Tyler.
Tyler Irvine (16:40):
And this is not my background, truly, I have
professionals who have taught methis.
So this is because of the levelof expertise of my staff.
I'm more of a CEO type ofexecutive director, where I
oversee the bigger picture and Iput people and delegate people
who have that expertise, and ourdirector of operations is such
(17:06):
a pro at this that I've been solucky to be a part of it.
There's this part of me that,like I wish, is that was kind of
my job, you know, but I also Iknow where my strengths are and
what I can give to theorganization, and I'm happy to
be in more of an administrativerole because I do feel very
(17:30):
passionate about what we aredoing.
And I got the opportunity to goout on one of our prescribed
burns.
I can't tell you, Lisa, howmagical that experience is when
you're out in the land andthere's fire and smoke all
around and the sun is comingdown through these trees.
(17:51):
It is very much a spiritualexperience.
You feel the land breathing andit is alive in a way that I've
never really experienced before,and just the sun coming through
the smoke and the trees.
It's always beautiful here, nomatter what, that dappled
(18:13):
sunlight that comes through ourcanopy is so healing.
But when the fire was going onit was like on a whole another
level.
So I get very excited about itand I'm very supportive of our
conservation efforts just frommy personal experience with how
(18:35):
well they do it and how neat itreally is.
Lisa Bowen (18:38):
So cool, and I'm sure that knowledge and your
passion for the work just ismaking you such a better leader,
so I think that's great.
Tyler Irvine (18:46):
Well, thank you.
Lisa Bowen (18:48):
One thing I wanted to ask you.
So not everybody is as engagedas nature as you are and
knowledgeable about it.
What things do you atFontenelle Forest at Forest to
engage the community in yourefforts?
Tyler Irvine (18:59):
Yeah, so we have a variety of public programming
in that we continue to evolve,as all of us had COVID.
COVID was kind of there wassort of a before and after.
Previously pre-COVID days, wehad a ton of school groups
(19:19):
coming through, tons of kids andwith our qualified naturalists,
you know, doing really kind ofhigh level overview of
everything in nature.
So to me it's important that weprovide that generalist
understanding of nature insteadof very specialty focus, like
(19:41):
now there's folks who specializein frogs or folks who
specialize in snakes or folkswho specialize in raptors.
Our team is more of ageneralist team who can speak to
how all of these elements worktogether in nature to help folks
come to relearn, because I dobelieve we possess this in our
(20:04):
DNA, but come to relearn how theforces of nature actually work
and be able to read signs aroundyou in nature that you know I
think are part of our heritageas human beings.
We grew up in these kinds ofenvironments, we evolved in them
, but as we've moved to the city, some of that knowledge has
(20:28):
been lost, and so it'srekindling that inherent
knowledge within us to be ableto read and understand the world
around us.
Then with that we also we haveraptors.
We have 26 birds of prey on ourproperty that are all
non-releasable birds that youknow, we have falcons, hawks,
(20:52):
eagles, owls.
Those birds bring in a ton offolks.
Our raptor educationprogramming is very, very
popular and we actually, we takecalls from across the state and
our team is happy to jump inthe car and bring a few birds
and go out to schools in St Paul, Nebraska, you know West Point,
(21:16):
Nebraska.
We're out there trying toprovide a unique and rich
engaged experience for folks whomight not be able to make the
trip to us.
And then kind of our one of ourcurrent fun little program,
evolution things.
So as COVID, you know, reallyimpacted the level of school
(21:39):
groups that have come in.
We've switched over to more ofa public program so anybody can
come.
You know we give discounts toour members and a lot of those
programmings are like birding101, trails less traveled, full
moon hike, so we'll have aprogram when we have a full moon
.
The forest closes at sunset sowe offer this program for folks
(22:04):
to come in at night and thoseare insanely popular.
The forest is wild at night.
Anybody who's been in the woodsat night knows it's a whole
other game, and so that'ssomething we love doing.
Equinox celebrations, markingseasons, those are other pieces
(22:25):
that we do.
And, lastly, kind of one of ourcurrent areas that we're
looking more into is that healthand wellness.
So bringing yoga to the forest,Tai Chi to the forest.
We had Reiki at the forest.
One of our naturalists is aqualified Reiki practitioner and
she had a a random fantasticprogram that was so well
(22:47):
received around this health andwellness and that's an area that
I feel passionate about becauseof all my personal experience
being in the woods and howhealing it is.
In conversations with many folks, the forest has been a place of
healing and in society today,we are more stressed than seems
(23:10):
like ever.
You know, we're locked intothese devices here.
It's amazing that you and I areable to talk like this through
through the screen, but it doeshave an impact on our well being
.
We sit in this place wheresociety feels more divided and
(23:31):
politics get put into everything.
Everything is politicized.
Here we are, we are the woods,and let's all set those things
aside and come together aroundour shared love of this place.
And yeah, you want to talkclimate change.
Let's talk about it because itis happening here.
(23:53):
You know, all of us haveexperienced it, and some of the
politics does start to come inThat is the mission impact piece
(24:14):
that why I believe FontenelleForest is more important now
than ever before.
Our kids need it, all of us, weall need to reconnect to this
creation that we find ourselvesin and instead of, oh, let's
(24:35):
take a week trip out to Coloradoand go see these awesome
mountains, well, you can comedown here and hike for four
hours and get lost and go backhome.
It doesn't have to be a whole,hey, we got to go find this
somewhere else.
We are here, we're here for itand it's right in your backyard.
Lisa Bowen (24:58):
Yes, the more you talk about how important the
work is that you're doing atFontenelle Forest, the bigger
your job gets.
What are some of the challengesthat come along with leading an
organization that has such asignificant impact on the
community?
Tyler Irvine (25:15):
You know there are many.
Really, at the end of the daythere can be competing interests
.
So, from a recreation aspectwanting to keep trails open and
available well, from aconservation aspect, we're doing
a prescribed burn.
We have to close down trails todo so for folks' safety.
(25:37):
Folks who are here to come andhike might be upset by that, and
so there's tension in betweenand sometimes you just have to
get everybody back to the samepage of why we're doing what we
do and help folks to see thebigger picture outside of their
(25:59):
specific interest in engagingwith the forest.
Because we have a variety ofstakeholders, you know.
We have our birding population.
They want things a certain way.
We have our outdoor educators.
They want things a certain way.
We have our conservation team.
They might say I wish nobodywas here you know, and they
(26:21):
don't, mind you.
But I think working through thevariety of interests,
compromising as folks know, inthis world politics is a lot of
compromise.
You just it's a give and take,so long as the mission is never
(26:42):
sacrificed.
And I think that's my, that'smine is to ensure that
everything we do is aligned withour mission, and if it's not,
we have a problem that we needto talk about or reassess
potentially our mission orwhatever it is that's running up
against it.
And then you know we have 2,100acres that we manage.
(27:05):
We have a nature center, wehave 37 staff, making payroll is
always, you know we're in agreat financial position, but
those are certainly things thatyou know, we want to make sure
we can continue to sustain ourteam, our nature center, our you
(27:26):
know the acres that we restore,because it costs money for all
of that and how do we build amodel that is balanced in terms
of grant revenue, earned revenue.
One of the things that made meso excited about the force is we
(27:46):
are blessed to have amembership based model so that
we are able to have significantearned revenue that comes in,
you know, and we have folks whothey come in and they think
maybe we're a state park orsomething and why are you
charging this money?
We are not a state park.
We are a 501C3 nonprofitorganization that receives no
(28:11):
state tax assistance, so we relyon our membership to fund our
conservation work, for example.
You know that is the why of it,and sometimes folks would come
in and be like well, it'sawfully expensive to breathe the
air here, ha ha.
And it's like we take that stepback and say this is what it
(28:34):
takes to breathe that air, andyou know it's a process for
folks.
And again, people have their ownexperience and that's very
valid.
When you sit in a seat likemine, you see the variety of
experiences and those aren'talways in total agreement with
(28:57):
one another.
You have to work to communicatethe why and what we are
offering.
You know, as it relates to aquestion like well, it's awfully
expensive to breathe your air.
What we are providing for the,for our members, in terms of the
value.
We have the programming aspects.
(29:18):
We have the unparalleled naturethat we provide that's
maintained to an excellentquality.
And we have exhibits.
We have an art exhibit that'son our trading post history.
I could go on and on, Lisa,about the history of this place.
We have 74 earth lodge siteswithin Fontenelle's property and
(29:42):
those date back to 1200 to 1400so there's significant
archeological importance to ourarea.
From a species perspective, weget birds that no one else gets.
It's why we are a premiernational birding location.
(30:03):
So again, these are the thingsthat your membership helps us
continue to sustain.
Lisa Bowen (30:12):
Yes, I agree.
So you perfectly led into mynext question, which is about
membership.
I know one of your goals is togrow your membership in order to
support your efforts.
Can you talk a little bit aboutwhat a membership might cost
and what that includes?
You mentioned some of thosethings, but what are the
benefits?
Tyler Irvine (30:30):
Yeah.
So our membership for a familyand this is good for a whole
year is $80.
Then we have a.
We have some different tiers,so we have like a membership
plus one where you can bring insomeone with you every time.
That's $70 a year.
And then we have an individualmembership which is $55 a year
(30:54):
and we just rolled out priceincreases this past January
Historically we've sort ofundersold, I think, what what we
can actually provide.
(31:15):
During COVID we were blessedbeing a nature center with ample
outdoor opportunities.
We actually experienced agrowth in membership during that
time.
So part of what we're tryingand then it's since has kind of
dropped back down as folks havegone back into, you know they're
(31:35):
more regular life, whateverthat might mean these days, and
so for us it's reengaging folkswho have potentially lapsed as
memberships.
You, Lisa as you know, being aBellevue native, so many folks
have history here.
Either they camped here as akid or they sent their kids here
(31:59):
for camp and then, as life goeson, folks kind of, you know,
kids grow up or whatever all thethings happen, some of those
folks just kind of forget orstop coming down, and so it's
reengaging with, with folksacross our lifespan that, hey,
(32:20):
we are still here.
We value the membership thatyou know our community gives to
us graciously.
With that value, you know wehave a an early childhood Space
space in our basement so forfamilies to bring their kids in,
come downstairs and just free,roam, explore, have a look, it's
(32:43):
, it's, fantastic Then we haveour art gallery space which
currently houses our tradingpost exhibit.
So for folks who are interested, and in the history of Bellevue
, Sarpy County, FontenelleForest, that's our current
exhibit and well, you know, overtime, well put in new stuff
(33:03):
there.
And then something we'reextremely excited about coming
here this year will be our acornacres, which is a half acre
outdoor playscape that will havea very cool custom two-story
treehouse and a variety ofinteractive ways for folks who
are maybe on the newer side tothe outdoors to get familiar
(33:27):
with how it is to explore.
And you know we will bethoughtful with our signage so
that it feels like a trail youknow for to again it comes back
to we want to increase people'sconfidence in being able to go
out and explore and discover newthings and find their way.
(33:48):
So this whole area, designedwith that in mind and that's
gonna be a huge draw for us.
We have a mile-long boardwalk,you know, for folks who have
accessibility issues or kids,you know, we got a mile-long
boardwalk where you can view allthese amazing birds.
You know, I was talking withthe guy this morning who was
(34:10):
walking the boardwalk and hewent a little bit further down
some other trails.
He saw 35 deer today, turkeys,coyotes, so the wildlife.
It's in an accessible way.
And then it leads you out overto overlook the Missouri River.
You see downtown Omaha, you seethe Desert Dome and Henry Dorley
(34:30):
Zoo.
It's just a, it's a reminder ofwhere we are in the community
that exists along this MissouriRiver Corridor.
And then, you know, with yourmembership, you get access to
these programs at reduced prices, access to discounts in our
gift shop.
Our gift shop does amazing,plus just the community being a
(34:53):
part of a place that is reallyactively conserving precious
land.
You know, we feel that that is,that is an important thing.
But let's say, if you're just ahiker, we have the best hiking
around, you know, yes, you cango over to Hitchcock Nature
Center north of Crescent Iowa.
(35:13):
That's a longer drive.
They've got good hiking too I'mnot gonna say they don't, but
we have more of it right hereand so I think that there's
something for everybody here, nomatter the age, no matter the
experience level, and with themost meaningful aspect to me at
(35:35):
the end of the day are thepeople and the relationships we
have folks who come here andwalk that boardwalk every single
day.
I've had folks come and tell meI'm alive because of Fontenelle
forest, and I believe itbecause it it does it.
It's that connection andphysical activity and wellness
(35:56):
of being outdoors that sustainsus through dark times in our
lives and we all have those andfor folks who are needing to
find some comfort and healing intheir lives, I believe the
forest is here for you.
Lisa Bowen (36:11):
Wow, I think your rates are very reasonable and I
gladly pay that much to breatheyour air and see your beautiful
land.
So I think you just gotyourself a new member.
Tyler Irvine (36:20):
Awesome.
Thank you.
Well, let me know when you comedown, we'll take a walk.
Lisa Bowen (36:24):
I will.
So what other ways can peoplesupport your efforts in addition
to becoming a member?
Do you rely heavily onvolunteers?
I know donations, you're anonprofit.
What ways can people help?
Tyler Irvine (36:37):
Volunteer.
So we've got a fantasticprofessional staff, but we rely
on volunteers to scale ourimpact.
So we have volunteers and landstewardship.
Those are conservation efforts.
We have a Tuesday and Thursdayteam.
That's every Tuesday andThursday.
So for those folks who maybeare, you know, recently retired
(37:01):
or have some more time to giveyou, you get to get dirty with
our team and actually be, youknow from my see your, your
unpaid staff and you have allthose same rights and
responsibilities accordingly.
Then we have our monthlySaturday work days.
So for folks who, just you know, want to be able to have a
(37:25):
consistent engagement but maybedon't have, you know, if you
work a nine to five every, youknow, Monday through Friday or
whatever, we have a Saturdaymorning option once a month.
Now we're also in the processof re-vamping our whole
volunteer effort.
So if that is something thatyou are interested in, we're
gonna have some new thingsrolling out on our website
(37:59):
You know, we event coordination,those kinds of things that, I
know that there's event plannersout there in the world who are
the precious folks that like weall need, and those folks who
have those kinds of skill setsare absolutely w e love that and
we need that.
(38:19):
We appreciate those kinds ofhelp.
You know, then we have someeven back-end volunteers.
So for folks who just want to,maybe they have some mobility
issues or something along thoselines or they can't necessarily
meet the physical requirementsof some of the the work that we
do will have them help us, youknow, clean out our databases,
(38:42):
do some mailers, you know someof the office work, and we have
dedicated folks who who show upand do that monthly with us as
well.
And that's a huge lift for us,because sometimes those are the
things for us who are kind of atour max capacity, it will be
great if we could just do this.
We have a lot of those thingson our, on our desk that if we
(39:06):
found the right volunteer now wecould actually like we can do
that.
We can start just rolling andfeeling really, really good
about all of our progress.
So we have over 300 activevolunteers on an annual basis,
just to give you an idea of thisscale.
Volunteers our our lifeblood,you know, and they're the ones
(39:30):
who champion us out in thecommunity.
And one of the most meaningfuldays I've had here was a a
volunteer appreciation breakfastwhere I got to sit back and see
staff who work with volunteerson a regular basis prepare
breakfast for them, give themgifts and see the volunteers
(39:51):
shower that love right back onthe staff and say, hey, you're
the reason why we keep showingup here.
That, to me, is what it's allabout.
Lisa Bowen (40:00):
That's amazing.
So you mentioned your website.
Is that the best way for ourlisteners who want to learn more
about you to reach out?
Yes, can you tell us where yourwebsite, what your URL is?
Tyler Irvine (40:12):
Yeah, fontenelleforest.
org, I think are we .
org.
You know, Lisa, I've only beenhere five months.
Lisa Bowen (40:21):
You would not know that by listening to you today,
Tyler.
Tyler Irvine (40:25):
Yep, fontenelleforest.
org.
I just want to plug somethingon that website, you'll see on
the top on Nature Search.
This is a volunteer effort fromsome of our longstanding folks
where we now have just rolledout a new Nature Search platform
where it's kind of like acrowdsource.
You take pictures of what yousee here at the forest.
(40:48):
Now we've got the wholetaxonomy of plants, animals,
fungi.
All of that is there, withpictures from folks who upload
them and locations for otherfolks that they want to go try
and find things.
So that's a cool new thing thatI just wanted to talk about.
Lisa Bowen (41:08):
Well, Tyler, we love quotes here at KidGlov and I'm
sure you have a few that inspireyou in your daily routine.
Do you have any favorite quotesyou can share with us today?
Tyler Irvine (41:20):
I have many.
I guess one that it doesn'tnecessarily provide answers but
provokes thinking and itdovetails nicely into our
conversation today is listen tothe forest that grows rather
than the tree that falls.
Lisa Bowen (41:40):
I love that, love that.
So, Tyler, as we wrap up heretoday, you've shared so much
wonderful information.
What's the one thing you wouldwant our listeners to remember
about Fontenelle Forest as weclose our conversation today?
Tyler Irvine (41:57):
Again.
if you are in a place where youfeel you need some comfort and
healing in your life, we welcomeyou here.
The sunlight through the treeswill provide many blessings for
you, and so if you feel trapped,if you feel like the world is
too technological, or if youfeel like you just need space to
(42:21):
think and breathe and move, weare here and we welcome everyone
.
Lisa Bowen (42:28):
That's wonderful.
Well, thank you so much forsharing your time with us today
and all of your knowledge andgiving us a sneak peek at all of
the great things thatFontenelle Forest does.
Tyler Irvine (42:40):
It's my pleasure.
Thank you so much, and thanksto everybody who's listening to
me ramble a little bit today.
Lisa Bowen (42:46):
Thank you, Tyler.
Announcer (42:49):
We hope you enjoyed today's Agency for Change
podcast To hear all ourinterviews with those who are
making a positive change in ourcommunities or to nominate a
changemaker you'd love to hearfrom visit kidglov.
com at k-i-d-g-l-o-v dot com toget in touch, as always.
If you like what you've heardtoday, be sure to rate, review,
subscribe and share.
(43:09):
Thanks for listening and we'llsee you next time.
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