Emersons to Receive 2008 Wilderness Spirit Award

Los Olivos ~ Every year the Wildling Art Museum in Los Olivos honors an individual or organization that has made an important contribution to our appreciation of the importance of preserving America’s wilderness. This year at the Museum’s Annual Spirit Award Dinner and Benefit on September 20, the Wildling Art Museum will honor Fred and Nancy Emerson and present them with the 2008 Wilderness Spirit Award. The Award Dinner and Benefit are open to the public, and anyone wishing to join the Wildling in honoring the Emerson's is encouraged to call the Museum for an invitation.
According to the Museum’s Director Penny Knowles, “Fred and Nancy Emerson have been leaders in the Santa Ynez Valley in the fields of environmental education and habitat preservation. Countless children and adults have benefited from their knowledge about our unique natural history and from their efforts to preserve the unspoiled beauty of our Valley and our night skies. Their lives are exemplary in the way they minimize their adverse effect on the environment. They buy their food at the Farmers' Market, drive a Prius, and have a garden planted with natives only.”
The Emersons have been Valley residents since 2000 (the same year that the Museum opened its doors to the public), and in their short time here have made substantial contributions to residents’ appreciation of our unique environment.
With a Master’s degree in Child Development and Family Relationships from Cornell University, Mrs. Emerson became UCSB Sedgwick Reserve’s first Outdoor Education Coordinator and developed its docent corps and the successful “Kids in Nature” program. In 2003 she joined W.E. Watch (Women’s Environmental Watch). She is a Board member and has chaired the Save Our Skies (SOS) Committee for the past four years.  This committee works with local government on ordinances to control nighttime outdoor lighting while educating individuals and businesses in the Valley about how to retrofit existing lighting to conserve energy, protect health of humans and wildlife, and preserve the beauty of our night skies.
Since retiring from medicine in 1992, Dr. Emerson, with a Ph.D. in Wildlife Management from Cornell University and an M.D. from Vanderbilt University, has focused his efforts on teaching about the area’s ecology.  He started as a docent at the Santa Barbara Botanic Garden and the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History, then began teaching their birding and natural history courses and leading field trips for them and Santa Barbara City College’s Adult Education program.
After moving to the Santa Ynez Valley, Dr. Emerson joined his wife as a docent at UCSB’s Sedgwick Reserve and taught ecology to the docents. In the Spring of 2001, he began teaching his popular birding field course for the Wildling Art Museum which has now gone on for 21 seasons, while continuing to teach birding courses and lead field trips for institutions on the South Coast. By sharing his vast knowledge and understanding of the natural history of the area, Dr. Emerson has enriched many lives.
 Previous recipients of the Wildling Art Museum’s Wilderness Spirit Award include Ray Strong, Ansel Adams, the Land Trust of Santa Barbara County, Bob Kuhn, and Dick Smith.
The Wildling Art Museum is located in Los Olivos at 2329 Jonata Street, between Mattei’s Tavern and St. Mark’s Episcopal Church. Public hours are Wed-Sun, 11-5. For more information, call 805-688-1082, or consult the museum’s website: www.wildlingmuseum.org.