Each year, the Land Trust’s Top 5 Volunteers and the Volunteer of the Year are recognized in various ways for the hundreds of hours they donate to the organization and for their dedication and service to our mission. One of the most popular ways that they are honored is by joining members of our team on an educational trip, typically to another Georgia barrier island or wildlife management area. These trips give volunteers the opportunity to learn more about conservation efforts led by coastal partners, as well as receiving a deeper understanding of how their volunteer hours greatly improve the ongoing work of the Land Trust. Previous excursions have included trips to Altama Wildlife Management Area, Jekyll Island, Little St. Simons Island, and other conservation areas.
This year, our Top Volunteers for 2025 spent a morning with the Nature Team on Sea Island. During their visit, they saw firsthand the 80-acre southern portion of the island that is protected in perpetuity by a Conservation Easement that is held and monitored annually by the Land Trust. They enjoyed beautiful, windswept vistas from horseback and golfcarts, learning from both Sea Island and Land Trust staffs about the dynamic shorelines on Georgia’s coast and the significance of protecting these dynamic places.
Additionally, the volunteers visited the Sea Island Nature Center, where they saw more examples of important wildlife found on Georgia’s barrier islands, before returning to the Land Trust office where they joined the SSLT staff for lunch.
A special thank you to the naturalists at Sea Island for welcoming our volunteers so warmly and for providing them with the opportunity to experience a rarely seen part of Georgia’s coastline and to learn more about this remarkable landscape.
