Volunteer of the Year

If you’ve encountered a Nature Conservancy booth at a fair or festival, chances are you’ve met Susie Saalwaechter. A devoted volunteer and lead for our Conservation Ambassador team, Susie is this year’s Volunteer of the Year.

Susie has been volunteering with The Nature Conservancy for 3 years, and has taken on increasing responsibility and new challenges each year. In 2014 she made impressive contributions to our work donating over 400 hours of her time, often giving up Saturdays and weekends to spread awareness of conservation as our Conservation Ambassador team Lead! Always cheerful and eager to talk about The Nature Conservancy’s projects, Susie has been the perfect representative for us in the community.

The Conservation Ambassador team is a group that is getting out into the local community and broadening support for conservation by reaching out to new people and giving them an introduction to our work, inviting them to sign up for our email newsletter or get involved as a volunteer. As team Lead Susie was responsible for planning and staffing these events, and because of her efforts we had a presence at several Farmer’s Markets, and events like the Sustainable Ballard Festival, the Seattle Cherry Blossom Festival, and even PRIDE Fest! Susie’s knowledge of our work is commendable, and her dedication is inspirational. Thank you Susie!

At The Nature Conservancy in Washington volunteers are active as stewards of our preserves and join us for restoration work parties, and also take on a wide variety of office projects. We are so impressed by the commitment of Susie, and all of our volunteers – including other nominees for Volunteer of the Year: Diana Post, Greta Nintzel, Bob Branberg and Malcolm Leytham, and Sherry Wilhelm. If you would like to get involved as a volunteer with us, please email wavolunteer@tnc.org

The Nature Conservancy in Washington is sincerely grateful for the hard work and dedication of all our volunteers, and we would especially like to thank and congratulate this year’s Volunteer of the Year, Susie Saalwaechter!