Board of Directors
J. David Bamberger and his wife, Margaret, have been joined by the following individuals to serve on the Board of Directors for the Bamberger Ranch Preserve. Having invested the better part of their lives towards the restoration of this 5,500 acre ranch in the Hill Country of Texas, the Bambergers took very seriously (and personally) their decision of who would operate this foundation after they were no longer alive. Each board member has demonstrated, either through their volunteer and work experience or through their personal lifestyle choices, a sustainable and "green" philosophy towards the environment. It is that underlying philosophy, as well as their diverse set of strengths, that make the Board of the Bamberger Ranch Preserve a well-functioning and cooperative organization.
Officers
- J.David Bamberger, President
- J. David Bamberger is the founder of the Bamberger Ranch Preserve. Not
wanting to see his 33 years of land restoration to be dissolved and turned
into
a subdivision after his death, he created the Preserve in 2001 in an effort
to keep the land and its educational contributions to society continuing
on into perpetuity. The Preserve is now in its third year of existence.
The ranch has long been recognized as the largest habitat restoration project
on private land in Texas, and it has been a model for other area landowners
to emulate. The educational stewardship message of the ranch has influenced
literally thousands of landowners and subsequently thousands of acres of
land. Every decision on the ranch begins with "what is best for Mother
Nature?"
and secondly, "how can we pass that education on to society?" J.David,
along with his wife, Margaret, has received numerous awards over the years,
such
as the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Garden Clubs of America. The
Bambergers and their work on the ranch continually receive awards from
state and national entities such as the Texas Forest Service, the Texas
Wildlife Association and the National Arbor Day Foundation. He has served
on numerous boards such as the Texas Nature Conservancy, Bat Conservation
International, and the San Antonio Area Foundation.
Selah@tstar.net - David K. Bamberger, Vice President
- David K. Bamberger brings to the Board the life-long experience of the
work at the ranch and the philosophy that accompanies it. His role is to
make
sure that the work that J. David and Margaret have envisioned for the Preserve
will materialize. He is currently a free-lance editor and writer for local
magazines.
dkb49@sbcglobal.net - Anne P. Donovan, Secretary
- Ann Donovan's academic experience has focused on zoology, having attended Wellesly College and then graduating from the University of Texas, as well as graduate course work at Stanford University. She was awarded Teacher of the Year in 1999 from St. Andrew's
Episcopal School in Austin, Texas. Her volunteer experience has been diverse,
yet environmentally-minded: Travis Audubon Society, Wild Basin Wilderness
Preserve, Texas Memorial Museum, Capital Area Master Naturalists, and the
Junior League of Austin, Texas. Anne's passion is truly environmental education.
She has not only been an active board member of the Bamberger Ranch Preserve
since 2002, but she has also volunteered additional time with the ranch's
educational programs with school children.
ajdonovan@austin.rr.com - Dodge Bamberger
- Dodge Bamberger brings to the Board of Directors a life-time of experience around Selah, and is committed to maintaining the ranch’s mission and purpose. Dodge is a mechanical engineering graduate from Texas A&M and is a Project Engineer for Lancer Corporation in San Antonio, Texas. He has been married to his sweetheart, Kate, since 1998 and they have beautiful twins, Dodge Jr. and Annabelle.
- Dr. Robert Cocke
- A long-time friend of Selah and the Bambergers, Bobby joins our board with a passionate enthusiasm for natural resource conservation in the Texas Hill Country. Bobby and his wife, Mary, are active philanthropists and own property on the renowned portion of the Blanco River known as the "Narrows".
- Helen Ballew
- Helen Ballew has been on the Bamberger Ranch Preserve Board since 2001
and has had vast experience in the environmental arena. With a Masters in
field
ecology and conservation from Yale, Helen has worked for several leading
environmental agencies and foundations in Texas, such as the Hill Country
Foundation, Texas Center for Policy Studies and the Texas Nature Conservancy.
She is well-published, having had articles printed in Orion Nature Quarterly,
as well as newspapers and newsletters.
helenba@sbcglobal.net - Margaret Bamberger
- Margaret Bamberger has been an active part of the land restoration and
environmental education efforts at the Bamberger Ranch since the 1990's.
She has long been
an environmental activist in Texas, and she is a very knowledgeable naturalist
and educator. She currently serves on the boards of the Roger Tory Peterson
Institute and the Informal Science Educators Association of Texas. The work
at the Bamberger Ranch is sought-after topic for many conferences that focus
on sustainable development, green building and ecological restoration, and
Margaret and J. David Bamberger both are regularly asked to be guest speakers
at conferences and workshops that focus on the natural world and habitat
restoration.
margaret@tstar.net - Maydelle Fason
- Maydell Fason is the most recent addition to the board of directors, having
joined the board in the spring of 2005. Maydelle has an outstanding service
record, having received several awards for distinguished service with the
Austin Women's Center and the Austin City Council. Maydelle's academic background
is in chemistry, for which she has also won awards during her academic career.
She brings diverse board member experience to the Bamberger Ranch, having
served on numerous boards such as Junior League of Austin, Austin Area Career
Counselors, Recording for the Blind and Dyslexic, to name just a few.
mfason@sbcglogal.net - Jack Nokes
- Jack Nokes has been an active board member since 2001. He is currently the Executive
Director of the Texas Association of Museums, where his 15 years of museum
management, strategic planning and budget development are utilized. He has
a degree in English, with honors, and has been a licensed attorney since
1975.
jack@texasmuseums.org - Jill Nokes
- Jill Nokes earned her master's degree in Horticulture from Teas A&M
University. In 1986, she published a book on the propagation and cultivation
of native
Texas plants entitled How to Grow Native Plants of Texas and the Southwest,
and it is now in its revised second edition publication. It was one of the
first books in this region to promote the use and production of native plants
and naturalistic landscape design, and is now locally regarded as the defining
work on literature in that field . She is a frequent lecturer at workshops
and conferences around the state, and also regularly appears on radio and
television. Jill has been on the Board of the Bamberger Ranch Preserve since
2001.
jill@nokeslandscapedesign.com - Jim Rhoades
- Jim Rhoades has had a very long relationship with J. David Bamberger and his land
restoration efforts at the Bamberger Ranch for more than 20 years. Jim has
worked for 20
years with the City of Austin, Texas' environmental planning department as
an urban forester. It is his undying love of trees that makes Jim an advocate
of environmentally sensitive construction and sustainable living. He has been
an environmental activist for many years, and he has actively brought that
philosophy to the board of Bamberger Ranch since 2001.
jim.rhoades@sbcglobal.com - Mary G. Wallace
- Mary Wallace has served on the Bamberger Ranch Preserve's board since 2002.
She is an environmental and civic leader in her community and in the State
of Texas.
She is board member and past-chairman of the environmental Defense/Texas and
Currently serves on the Board of San Antonio Trees, The San Antonio Parks Foundation
and the League of Conservation Voters. She was the first Directory of Citizens
for Hike and Bike in Houston, an organization founded in the early 70's to
develop green spaces and bike trails in a densely urban area. She has also
had international experience: while living in Mexico, she worked with the United
State Embassy on recycling issues and helped develop an environmental education
program in the American School.
mary@wallace-texas.com - Jeff Francell
- Although young in years, his work experience in the conservation arena is impressive. Jeff currently is Director of Real Estate for the Texas Nature Conservancy. He has worked extensively both for and with the Texas Nature Conservancy and the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. His formal education includes a Bachelor of Arts in Government from University of Texas at Austin and a Master of Public Affairs from the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Affairs of UT. Jeff actively serves on the City of Austin Parks Board as well as being a director of the Hill Country Conservancy. He and his wife, Marni, have two beautiful children who will never suffer from "nature deficit disorder" !
- Max Scoular
- Max Scoular joins our board as a young and passionate enthusiast of the Texas Hill Country. He is the founder and CEO of XG2,Inc., and has extensive consulting experience with large technology companies. A graduate of Stanford University with a BA in International Relations, Max served as a trade official with the US Department of Commerce as as a commercial officer with the US Embassy in Mexico. He currently resides on a ranch west of Austin, managing both cattle and wildlife programs. He also serves as a director of the West Cave Preserve.
Scientific Advisors
- Dr. Louis Jacobs, President
- Dr. Jacobs serves in an advisory role to the Board of Directors. Dr. Jacobs
is an internationally renowned paleontologist and is the President of the Institute
for the Study of Earth and Man at Southern Methodist University. The Bamberger
Ranch is rich with Cretaceous period fossils and dinosaur tracks, and thus
geology is a major component to educational activities. Dr. Jacobs is a frequent
educator
and interpreter at the ranch.
Jacobs@post.cis.smu.edu - Dr. Fred Smeins, Professor
- Dr. Fred Smeins is the Department Chair of the Rangeland Ecology Department
at Texas A&M University. He advises both the Board and the staff on rangeland
management issues. He is well-published and recognized in his field, and is
considered by many to be one of the state's experts in regards to rangeland
ecology and biodiversity.
f-smeins@tamu.edu - Dr. Gary McCracken, Professor
- Dr. McCracken is a nationally recognized bat biologist from the University
of Tennessee. Dr. McCracken assisted with the construction of the Bamberger
Ranch's
man-made bat cave, the"Chiroptorium", which was completed in 1998.
Dr. McCracken now leads scientific research on the Chiroptorium every summer,
and he assists
with educational programs and interpretation on bats and their ecological significance.
gmccrack@utk.edu - Susan Sander
- Susan Sander has been invaluable to the educational activities on the Bamberger
Ranch for more than 10 years. She brings to the Board of Directors knowledge
of starting and managing a nature preserve, as she founded and operated a
community-based nature preserve in Kerrville, Texas, the Riverside Nature
Center. She is currently the Director of the Headwaters Groundwater Conservation
District in Kerrville, and she brings intimate knowledge of the natural
world of the Texas Hill Country to the staff and Board. Her academic background
includes a masters in environmental land use planning and an undergraduate
degree in philosophy.
rainlily@omniglobal.net