FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Trish Churchill (603) 224-9945
November 16, 2004
VOLUNTEER HONORED WITH SPIRIT OF NEW HAMPSHIRE AWARD
Robinson cited for contributions to Concord-area conservation initiatives
CONCORD – The Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests congratulates Edwin (Win) Robinson for receiving the state’s highest honor for volunteerism -- the Spirit of New Hampshire Award, from Volunteer NH!, at an awards ceremony on November 4. Volunteer NH! is a non-profit group established in 2000 to promote volunteerism and community service
Robinson was recognized for his generous efforts on behalf of the environment and the community of Concord. He has been a Forest Society volunteer for 22 years as a trail crew member, fisheries biologist consultant, solar building tour guide and floodplain nature trail guide. His ability to connect and involve others in volunteer work and the example he sets for youth were also cited.
In 1997, Robinson was recognized as the New Hampshire Vibram Outstanding Volunteer of the Year, for his commitment to trail work statewide. Vibram was a charter sponsor of National Trails Day, which honored one volunteer per state each year. Robinson was also honored as a Concord “Community Good Guy,” by the Woman’s Club of Concord in 1996. He received the Forest Society Volunteer of the Year award in 1983.
A retired fisheries biologist with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Robinson contributes to the quality of Concord’s natural environment by developing and maintaining quality walking and hiking trails, and with water quality and wetlands monitoring.
Robinson serves on the city’s conservation commission, is a board member for the Statewide Program of Action to Conserve our Environment (SPACE) and for RC&D; (the Southern New Hampshire Council for Resources), and is a member/volunteer for the New Hampshire Archeological Society, Merrimack County Conservation District and the Upper Merrimack River Local Advisory Committee. He helps with the city’s annual ski and skate sale, works on local projects with 20/20 and Groundwork Concord, and is helping to draft on the city’s open space master plan – all on a volunteer basis.
Friend and fellow trail crew member Terry Frost, who is a former Appalachian Trail Club trail master, introduced Robinson to trail work on Forest Society lands. They developed and maintained trails and deepened a friendship in the process. Frost wrote of Robinson, “if you call Robinson up for volunteer help for most anything, he’ll drop what he’s doing and come. His waking hours are spent enthusiastically volunteering!”
The Forest Society is proud of Robinson as a friend and volunteer and as a responsible and caring citizen. He’s interested in a better quality of life for our generation and for generations to come. He’s helped make our city and state a better place to live.”