{"id":2708,"date":"2022-06-21T05:00:21","date_gmt":"2022-06-21T05:00:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/naturestuff.net\/web\/?p=2708"},"modified":"2022-06-25T22:55:56","modified_gmt":"2022-06-25T22:55:56","slug":"tweed-naturalists-receive-ontario-nature-education-award","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/naturestuff.net\/web\/tweed-naturalists-receive-ontario-nature-education-award\/","title":{"rendered":"Tweed Naturalists Receive Ontario Nature Education Award"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Photo by and story by Luke Hendry, Belleville Intelligencer<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"

Tweed couple Elizabeth Churcher and George Thomson are the 2022 recipients of the Ontario Nature Education Award. The award was presented on June 20th<\/sup> at Potter\u2019s Creek Conservation Area. The two naturalists are involved in many community projects. Photo by Luke Hendry.<\/span><\/em><\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Conservation comes naturally to Elizabeth Churcher and George Thomson.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Tweed residents are this year\u2019s winners of the Ontario Nature Education Award for their efforts to promote conservation and share their knowledge. It was one of 10 Ontario Nature awards presented this month.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The retired teachers are very active members of the Quinte Field Naturalists, local volunteers, and fascinated by nature.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Denice Wilkins, a fellow Quinte Field Naturalist and past Ontario Nature board member, presented on Monday a framed photo to the couple in an informal ceremony at Potter\u2019s Creek Conservation Area in Belleville.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She said it was for their efforts to \u201csuccessfully help people understand the natural world,\u201d furthering conservation work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a later interview, Wilkins described both Churcher and Thomson as inspirations who are always willing to help.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cNot only are they such great teachers, committed dedicated naturalists extraordinaire, they do all kinds of citizen-science projects,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey are two of the kindest, most generous, most gentle, thoughtful people that I know.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey are so committed to the environment,\u201d said Wilkins. \u201cNature needs all the help it can get right now.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Andy White led the naturalist group\u2019s effort to nominate Thomson and Churcher.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey are the first ones I call when I have a question about a species identification or an interesting sighting,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAnd we don\u2019t know the answers,\u201d joked Thomson.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSo I call up Terry Sprague,\u201d White quipped. Sprague, a well-known Prince Edward County naturalist, was among Monday\u2019s crowd.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thomson and Churcher said their many projects and dedication to furthering conservation education are simply extensions of their great love of nature. Neither senior expected provincial recognition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s pretty overwhelming,\u201d said Thomson.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s very humbling to think what we have done is meaningful to others,\u201d added Churcher.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOur goal was to support the natural world. In doing that we have touched the lives of so many people\u201d who have developed their own appreciation for nature, she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Toronto native Thomson earned bachelor\u2019s and master\u2019s degrees in botany before teaching science in Toronto and at Belleville Collegiate Institute and Vocational School and Quinte Secondary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Churcher grew up on a farm east of Bancroft. She and Thomson donated 60 forested acres of her family farm to the Hastings Prince Edward Land Trust; it\u2019s now Churcher Woods, a nature reserve.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She earned an undergraduate degree in biology at Trent University and taught Grade 7\/8 science for 17 years. She then became a principal and administrator and earned a master\u2019s and doctorate in education. She worked in Bancroft, Belleville, Bayside and Marmora.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Immersed in nature throughout her life, Churcher said she does not view gardening as work, but as a place to enjoy learning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe garden is a place to study and experiment,\u201d she told Monday\u2019s dozen or so listeners. \u201cI see a whole ecosystem before me.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The couple are in their seventh year of writing the \u201cNaturally\u201d column for The Tweed News. George is a past president of the Field Naturalists; as corresponding secretary, Churcher has penned advocacy letters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They named their 100-acre farm outside Tweed Hepatica Hill after the flowers growing there. They grow much of their own food. They have also helped to start and tend a vegetable garden at St. Andrew\u2019s Presbyterian Church in Tweed. Food grown there is donated to a food bank; the pollinator garden feeds wildlife.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve been honoured to be part of Quinte Field Naturalists,\u201d Thomson said. \u201cAll the expertise here is incredible.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He said nature \u201cgives me perspective. \u2026 It gives me so much calm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe human world is so intertwined with the natural world,\u201d said Thomson.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s restorative. It\u2019s relaxing. It literally does give you life in many ways,\u201d Churcher said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The interview had barely begun when Churcher spotted a bird in a nearby tree. Soon, both were watching through binoculars, talking excitedly and soon identifying its species.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThere is all kinds of life around us,\u201d Thomson said, confessing they feel rude when guests visit because they can\u2019t stop watching the wildlife.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But Churcher said being in tune with the natural world means they see it everywhere, even in the city.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIn the hustle and bustle, we\u2019re still connected.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Photo by and story by Luke Hendry, Belleville Intelligencer Conservation comes naturally to Elizabeth Churcher and George Thomson. The Tweed residents are this year\u2019s winners of the Ontario Nature Education Award for their efforts to promote conservation and share their knowledge. It was one…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2708","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-natural-areas"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/naturestuff.net\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2708","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/naturestuff.net\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/naturestuff.net\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naturestuff.net\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naturestuff.net\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2708"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/naturestuff.net\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2708\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2736,"href":"https:\/\/naturestuff.net\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2708\/revisions\/2736"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/naturestuff.net\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2708"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naturestuff.net\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2708"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naturestuff.net\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2708"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}