Press release from MountainTrue:
MountainTrue is proud to announce and recognize our 2020 Award Winners! Please join us at our Virtual Annual Gathering on October 21 to honor and celebrate these deserving individuals.Esther Cunningham Award Winner: Representative Chuck McGradyMountainTrue presents this award annually in the name of Esther Cunningham, a Macon County resident whose concern for our region’s environment prompted her to found the Western North Carolina Alliance (one of the organizations that merged to become MountainTrue). The award is presented to a MountainTrue member who has demonstrated outstanding community service in conserving our natural resources, and we are beyond honored to recognize a lifetime of service in environmental conservation and protection to this year’s awardee, Rep. Chuck McGrady.Rep. McGrady has just retired after serving five terms in the North Carolina House of Representatives, where he represented Henderson County. He entered the General Assembly as a strong environmental advocate after serving as the national president of the Sierra Club; on the Board of the John Muir Foundation; as chair of the Carolina Mountain Land Conservancy (now Conserving Carolina); on the board of Muddy Sneakers; as chair of North Carolina’s Clean Water Management Trust Fund; and as executive director for the Environmental & Conservation Organization (ECO) of Henderson County, which is now part of MountainTrue.
Rep. McGrady’s conservation experience and concern for clean air and water were his motivation to run for office, and they shaped his legislative agenda from the start. He helped spearhead passage of the nationally groundbreaking 2014 coal ash bill that has since resulted in the planned excavation of every coal ash basin in the state. A strong advocate for land conservation, he was always the strongest Republican voice for funding the state’s Clean Water Management Trust Fund, Farmland Preservation Trust Fund and Parks and Recreation Trust Fund. And as he quickly moved up the ranks of the House Republican leadership to become one of the chamber’s leaders on budget issues, he was in a position to make a difference. With his retirement from office, MountainTrue now looks forward to working with Rep. McGrady as a volunteer environmental advocate once again.
MountainTrue is also honored to recognize four well-deserving volunteers of the year, one from each of the subregions in our geographic footprint.High Country Volunteer of the Year: Craig WeaverCraig Weaver supports our clean water efforts by volunteering through both our Volunteer Water Information Network and our SwimGuide program. He consistently and reliably collects water samples for each of those programs to test them for the presence of harmful chemicals and bacteria. This year Craig has also been a committed advocate in our Beech Mountain Water Grab Campaign, which is fighting to prevent the town of Beech Mountain from unnecessarily diverting a significant portion of water from the Watauga River.Western Region Volunteer of the Year: Joan ParksWe are proud to recognize Joan Parks’ committed advocacy efforts and programmatic engagement. Joan is a longtime supporter of all of MountainTrue’s program areas, and this year in particular, we honor her for her leadership in connecting us with the Tuckasegee River Alliance for a meaningful partnership developing the riverside park in Bryson City.Southern Region Volunteer of the Year: Suzanne HaleSuzanne Hale is the founder and driver of the Creation Care Alliance Leadership Team in Hendersonville. Suzanne has been a dedicated and active volunteer for MountainTrue for years, serving on the Friends of the Oklawaha Greenway Committee, the Hendersonville Green Drinks Steering Committee and the Southern Region Council. She consistently supports MountainTrue and the Creation Care Alliance through event promotion, planning, on-site volunteering and fundraising.Central Region Volunteer of the Year: Maureen LinnemanWe are recognizing Maureen for her tireless work supporting the Creation Care Alliance, both this year and in years past. Maureen is a longtime steering team member of the Creation Care Alliance and a lifelong climate activist who regularly speaks out at climate rallies and protests. This year, we are especially grateful for Maureen’s leadership as a co-founder of the Creation Care Eco-Grief Circles.To celebrate and honor these individuals for all their service to our communities in real time, RSVP to MountainTrue’s virtual Annual Gathering here: https://mountaintrue.org/annual-gathering-2020/.
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