2024 Conservation Hero Ralph Keating was recently recognized at Saratoga PLAN’s annual PLAN for the Future fundraiser dinner.
Ralph’s passion and dedication as the Volunteer Trail Steward of Woodcock Preserve has been instrumental in maintaining the beauty and accessibility of this 72-acre woodland in the Town of Clifton Park.
As a site steward, Ralph helps clear the trail, cuts back vegetation, monitors the boundaries, implements trail reroutes, manages the letterbox and maintains structures like the kiosk and bog bridges. He has also been the lead on many corduroy bridging projects.
Below are his remarks on being honored:
A Tribute to Teamwork
Thank you for this recognition -it’s much appreciated. It was 8 years ago that I started with Saratoga PLAN’s trail crew. I had retired from my State job at the DEC in August 2015 and spent a lot of time with a move from the town of Bethlehem to Halfmoon in Saratoga County that year. After getting settled, I looked for some additional volunteer opportunities locally and the trail crew seemed like a good fit for me. After filling out an application with PLAN, I was told to go to the Anchor Diamond preserve which had not been opened yet. Locations for trails were marked with flagging on trees so our job was to build new trails. What fun this was, I thought as I could be part of creating a new recreational area. Since then, I’ve been back to Anchor Diamond many times as we improved and rerouted some of the trails and placed many bog bridges.
So, after 8 years and
- working on lots of muddy trials;
- removing many, many fallen trees;
- installing bog bridges or corduroys;
- putting up 100’s of markers;
- walking the boundary lines of Preserves; and
- saw the opening of three other PLAN preserves,
I’m still happy get out and do this volunteer work.
As I accept this recognition, I am acutely aware that no achievement is an island. This is not just my success, but a shared victory for everyone who has been part of this incredible journey. The trail crew team is made up of many people who are dedicated to giving back in order to create opportunities for preserving open space while getting their hands dirty. The backbone of every Monday trail work project is all about giving back. The spirit behind everyone’s motivation for coming out is not just about preserving open space and recreation for their own benefit but for the benefit of future generations.
I’m reminded of a quote that is very fitting for PLAN and its volunteers. It goes like this…
“A society grows great when old men (and women) plant trees in whose shade they know they shall never sit” – an ancient Greek proverb
Thank you very much for this recognition.