The Leelanau Conservancy staff and board is committed to protecting and preserving fragile and sensitive lands in Leelanau County.

It all began with a vision. Ed and Bobbie Collins of Leland saw the future of Leelanau County in peril from over-development and increased demand for second and third summer homes. They feared seeing the loss of critical farmland and wetlands essential to the rural character of the County.

In 1988, their vision was put to work when they hired a young, ambitious lad with a geology degree and an interest in fishing. Brian Price and wife Susan took on the positions of Executive and Finance Directors and remain in those roles today. The staff of two has grown over the years to take on the many projects we have completed.

The Leelanau Conservancy members, staff, board, and volunteers have worked tirelessly to protect the places you love and the character that makes the Leelanau Peninsula so unique. Our organization has earned a reputation as one of the premier land trusts in the country, with projects touching lives and saving land in each of Leelanau’s 11 townships. Over 8,000 acres and 22 miles of shoreline/stream and river frontage have been protected. We have created 24 natural areas and preserves, including a spectacular bluff at Whaleback, fragile wetlands at the Narrows, and the 145-acre DeYoung Farm on Cedar Lake. We have worked with over 130 landowners to protect their family lands through conservation easements.

Brian Price, Executive Director, has been the Leelanau Conservancy’s executive director since our inception in 1988. “Since the day he walked through the door when we were trying to get this off the ground, we knew he was the one who could execute our vision of protecting this beautiful peninsula” says Bobbie Collins, who founded the Conservancy with her husband, Ed, Brian sets the standard for integrity when it comes to dealing with landowners, units of government, the press, staff and all of our supporters. His primary focus these days takes in strategic planning for conservation, working with landowners in new, creative and innovative ways, guiding the land protection staff through complicated yet opportunistic bureaucratic red tape, and raising funds from major donors.
Brian attended Oberlin College from 1968 to 1972, receiving a BS degree in Geology. Prior to his work for the Leelanau Conservancy Brian spent 15 years as a commercial fisherman on Lake Michigan and Lake Superior. Brian has conducted fisheries research for Michigan Sea Grant, and worked for the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians in training tribal fishermen to use trap nets in catching whitefish.
Brian has served on Cleveland Township’s Planning Commission since 1994, and serves as a director of several other non-profit organizations including the Land Information Access Association in Traverse City and the Heart of the Lakes Center for Conservation Policy, a statewide organization composed of land conservancies. Brian also owns and manages a 160-acre tree farm and vineyard in Leelanau County with his wife, Susan. They have four children. Contact Brian at bprice@theconservancy.com.

Susan Price, Director of Finance and Administration, joined the organization soon after husband Brian came on board. She is known around the office as the one who keeps it all together. She handles all the financial reporting and forecasting and keeps everyone focused on what it will take financially to make our dreams a reality. On top of all that, Susan is our in-house, self-taught graphic designer, and produces all of our publications. Until we hired a communications director, Susan did much of that work too, and still oversees the overall message.
Prior to joining the Conservancy, Susan was an officer at Empire National Bank, serving in various positions such as Branch Manager, Accounting Supervisor and Assistant Auditor. She holds a bachelors degree from Denison University andmoved to Leelanau County in 1975. She and Brian have four grown children. Contact Susan at sprice@theconservancy.com.

Matt Heiman, Director of Land Protection, has a passion for fishing that drives his desire to see Leelanau’s most critical habitat and ecologically sensitive areas protected. His educational background in aquatic ecology (B.A. from Albion College (1994) and Masters of Science candidate at CMU) helps him convey to landowners the value of their land from more than just a financial perspective. He joined the Conservancy in 2001 as a Land Protection Specialist and since then has completed several major land protection projects. Matt also co-wrote MDEQ approved watershed management plans for the Lake Leelanau and Glen Lake/Crystal River watersheds, which has led to the Conservancy receiving over $1,546,300 in CMI funds to purchase conservation easements over wetlands and forested areas critical to maintaining high water quality.
Prior to his work at the Conservancy, Matt worked as biological consultant performing stream restoration, fisheries population analysis, salmon spawning habitat restoration analysis, stream habitat mapping and macroinvertebrate studies in Michigan waters. He lives in Traverse City with his family and enjoys observing weather, cross country skiing and undertaking piscatorial adventures on local lakes and rivers. Contact Matt at mheiman@theconservancy.com

Tom Nelson, Director of Farm Programs, focuses on conserving farmland, in addition to working to protect other important landscapes. He understands that farmland preservation is an extraordinary tool for farm families today and to protect Leelanau County’s agricultural resource for future generations of farmers and all of us who will depend upon them. Tom spent his early childhood growing up in farm country in northern Ohio. The complete loss of agriculture in his hometown resulting from poorly planned development underscores his belief that a strong community connection with agriculture is integral to our economic health, retaining our heritage and quality of life, and living sustainably. He finds a great deal of satisfaction in forging partnerships with farmers who wish to keep their land in farming.
Tom acquired his law degree in 1987 and graduated magna cum laude with a Master of Laws in environmental law and policy from Vermont Law School in 2003. His career has taken him to from Ohio to Washington D.C. to Lansing and finally to Leelanau County. He lives in the heart of the County between Cedar and Leland with his wife Stephanie and daughters Kira, Sophie & Ellie. Tom enjoys spending time outdoors hiking, canoeing, sea kayaking, snowshoeing and cross country skiing with his family and their hounds, Ellie, Lucy and Boomer. Contact Tom at tnelson@theconservancy.com

Anne Shoup joined our staff as the Director of Charitable Giving in March 2006. In this role, she will help steward the Conservancy's many friendships and work to expand the organization's ability to conserve the land, water and scenic character of Leelanau County.
Anne grew up in Alaska, flying around the Last Frontier with her bush pilot father and commercial fishing in the waters around Kodiak Island. The many years spent surrounded by pristine wilderness - mountains, ocean, bears and all! – cultivated her deep love of the outdoors and strong belief in conservation.
After studying English at Princeton University, Anne worked in operations management outside of New York and Cleveland for several years. Six years ago, she and her husband, Dan, returned to his hometown of Traverse City for a vacation which prompted a thrilling move northward. Anne worked at Interlochen Center for the Arts for five years, managing the volunteer corps, building relationships with alumni and friends, and raising scholarship and operational funds. She is thrilled to be a member of this talented staff and committed Conservancy community. Contact Anne at ashoup@theconservancy.com 

Jenée Rowe, Stewardship Director, joined our staff to grow and nurture the Volunteer Stewardship Network, manage Conservancy properties and assist Land Protection efforts. She worked for two years at Columbia University’s Biosphere 2 Center as an earth system science teaching assistant before returning to the Great Lakes bioregion to work with Inland Seas Education Association, NMC’s Water Studies Institute and the Benzie Conservation District. Jenée has a B.A. in Geology from Wisconsin’s Lawrence University and a passion for fieldwork. “I enjoy creating innovative avenues to involve youth outdoors,” says Jenee. She leads training sessions on low impact recreation techniques through discussion, hiking and practicing remediation. As a young mother, she is soaking up her sons Niles’ and Kai's wonder in the quaking leaves, crunching pebbles and the blowing wind, which renews her own awe in her home, Leelanau County. Through Jenée’s stewardship work, she wants to give back to the land and community where she was raised. Her parents were long-time fiber artists who actively involved their children in the family business and community. Their weavings drew inspiration from the changing view of Lake Leelanau out their window and Leelanau’s landscapes. Growing up in a creative and environmentally conscious household gave Jenée the space to explore her artistic passions through pottery and watercolor painting. You may find her any given day sitting alongside the trail or amidst a beautiful view painting in her field notebook or digging her hands into the soil to test it for clay content. Contact Jenee at jrowe@theconservancy.com

Fields Ratliff, Biotechnician, I grew up in Antrim County on the south end of beautiful Torch Lake, and have been enjoying camping and hiking in Leelanau since grade school. In 2008, I graduated with a B.S. in Environmental Studies from Western Michigan University. Since then, I have had the opportunity to work abroad and apply my education to preserving natural resources and teaching others about conservation.
Every time I return from a trip abroad, I am always amazed by the beauty and truly unique landscape of northern Michigan. As the biological technician, I will be surveying areas throughout Leelanau County for invasive plants and managing the removal of the problem species. This requires a strong relationship with volunteers, contractors, and youth programs in order to effectively control the spread of invasive plants in some of our most ecological valuable coastlines and natural areas.
I feel lucky to live in this area and am very excited to be working at the Conservancy. For the next 18 months, I have the opportunity to help protect an area I truly admire while gaining important skills that are essential for continuing my career in conservation. fratliff@theconservancy.com

Yarrow Wolfe, Land Protection Specialist, is a native of Menominee and joined our land protection staff in July 2008. She worked previously in the Black Hills of Wyoming, where she managed a conservation district office for two years. She worked there with ranchers on conservation options to help preserve water quality. Yarrow is a graduate of Antioch College with a degree in Environmental Science, and attended Antioch New England for graduate work in Conservation Biology. Her background also includes environmental education, rare-plant monitoring and identification, GIS mapping and grant writing. Yarrow is passionate about stewardship of the land and working towards responsible development. She says that the land conservation movement in the United States has renewed her faith in humanity in many ways and showed her that there are many generous, adventurous and passionate people out there willing to volunteer time and money to conserve land. Yarrow is excited about working with landowners in Leelanau County to help preserve the rural character of this area and protect important plant and wildlife habitat.Yarrow lives near Cedar and enjoys hiking and mountain/road biking with her golden retriever, cross-country skiing, exploring the outdoors, cooking, gardening, reading, knitting and sewing. Contact Yarrow at YWolfe@theconservancy.com

Carolyn Faught, Communications Director, lives in Omena with her husband, Dave, and two sons. In addition to working four days a week at the Conservancy, she also owns and runs Omena Cut Flowers, a U-Pick flower farm. Prior to joining the Conservancy in 2002, Carolyn spent 10 years at Traverse, Northern Michigan's Magazine, where she served as Managing Editor. In 1997, Carolyn won the prestigious Ben East prize for environmental journalism for a piece on the DNR, and authored many other comprehensive environmental issue pieces. She also spent five years at the magazine in marketing and circulation, and is a 1979 graduate of M.S.U. with a B.A. in English. She is responsible for all the printed materials of the Conservancy, press releases and working with the Outreach Committee on events such as the annual Picnic and Auction. She also is responsible for the development and maintenance of the web site. Contact Carolyn at cfaught@theconservancy.com.

Gayle Egeler has been a part of our staff since 1990. As our Membership and Outreach Coordinator, Gayle’s range of duties is extensive. As a Leelanau native, and a veteran of our staff, her knowledge is vast. She is the keeper of our database, the point person for membership questions, and the one who sees to getting the newsletter and all mailings out the door. She is also the person who processes all of our Leelanau Preserver gifts and her personal touch and great customer service has helped to make this program so successful.Contact Gayle at gayle@theconservancy.com.

Nancy Thomas joined the Conservancy as Accounting and Administrative Assistant in 2007. Nancy lives in Northport with her husband, Jim. She and her family have been coming to Leelanau County for years on vacation from Minnesota, and moved permanently to the area in 2007. They have two grown children who still reside in Minneapolis. Nancy brings a wealth of know-how to our front office with more than 25 years' experience in law office management and legal support. Contact Nancy at nthomas@theconservancy.com.

Sara Michael joined the Conservancy in 2010 as Charitable Giving Assistant and is very excited to share her love of the area with Conservancy members. She grew up in Traverse City and developed her love of Leelanau County by fishing with her father and exploring with her grandparents who live near Suttons Bay.
Sara attended the University of Michigan where she earned a BS in Environmental Policy and Behavior and worked in the development office of a local environmental organization. After graduating, she moved to Boston and worked for an animal shelter for 7 years. While in Boston, Sara also earned her Master’s of Public Administration with a concentration in Nonprofit Management from Suffolk University.
After years of enjoying city life, Sara realized her heart is in Northern Michigan and decided to move back to be closer to her family and the natural beauty of the area. In the winter Sara is an avid sewer and knitter and in the warmer months she can be found hiking and trying to fish. Contact Sara at smichael@theconservancy.com

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Brian Price

Susan Price

Matt Heiman

Tom Nelson

Anne Shoup

Jenee Rowe

Yarrow Wolfe

Carolyn Faught

Gayle Egeler

Nancy Thomas

Sara Michael