It is with great sadness that we note the passing of Martin Winch. Martin was a long-time Land Trust volunteer and advisor who devoted more than 2,000 hours to the Land Trust over more than a decade.

Martin first got involved with the Land Trust in the late 1990s, shortly after our founding. He threw himself into early efforts to conserve and care for Camp Polk Meadow Preserve, acting as our first volunteer land steward and establishing a stewardship ethic that has endured and inspired. Martin pulled weeds, built split rail fences, thinned juniper, planted native plants, and helped maintain the Hindman Springs trail. All told he donated hundreds of hours to Camp Polk Meadow alone, helping jumpstart the recovery of the meadow.

His interest in Camp Polk led to another massive project: to document the cultural history of the Preserve. His deep dive into our collective past led him to eventually write and publish Biography of a Place: Passages though a Central Oregon Meadow. This book would not only become an amazing resource to help understand the historical context of our region and the meadow, but it also provided the foundation for interpretive materials at the Preserve. The current signs that guide visitors through the Hindman Springs portion of the Preserve were based on his amazing research and storytelling in the book. The Land Trust was also fortunate to have Martin lead tours of Camp Polk Meadow Preserve that shared the meadow’s unique cultural and natural history.

Many thanks to Martin for his dedication and commitment to the Land Trust. We will miss him tremendously!

 

Learn more:

• Biography of Place (Martin's book about Camp Polk Meadow)
• The Story of Camp Polk Meadow Preserve (more about Martin's connection to the meadow)
• Return to Camp Polk (Nugget News story about Martin)