About Us
Board of Directors : Meet Our Staff
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Mission
To keep nature nearby, the Land Conservancy of West Michigan permanently protects natural and scenic lands. To date, the Land Conservancy has permanently protected nearly 7,000 acres of West Michigan's forests, fields, wetlands and dunes in a service area that includes all or parts of Allegan, Kent, Ottawa, Newaygo, Muskegon, Oceana, Mason and Lake Counties.
Board of Directors
Mary Hollinrake, Secretary
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Dwight Baker
Jan Deur
John Fox
Susan Hoekema
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Mark Iverson
Timothy Lundgren
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LCWM staff (left to right): Diane Sampson, April Scholtz, Peter Homeyer, Melanie Good, Pete DeBoer, Danielle Fogel, Michelle Collins
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 The Land Conservancy of West Michigan, formerly the Natural Areas Conservancy of West Michigan, was founded in 1976 by a dedicated group of volunteers who sought to protect West Michigan's natural landscape. Today, with a professional staff and office in Grand Rapids, the Land Conservancy is an independent, non-profit land trust and the only land trust solely dedicated to the permanent protection of important natural lands and open space in West Michigan. A broad coalition of local foundations, friends, neighbors and business people invest their time, talents and money to support our efforts to keep nature nearby. Volunteers continue to be a critical part of our organization. Please visit the Support Us page to learn how you can help by becoming a volunteer or a member. |
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Meet Our Staff
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Peter Homeyer, Executive Director
Peter began working for the Land Conservancy of West Michigan in 2005 and has been a member since 2000. He earned bachelor degrees in both history and mathematics from Aquinas College and a Masters of Public Administration from Grand Valley State University.
A 30 year resident of Grand Rapids, Peter has fond memories of summers spent canoeing, camping, and hiking the region’s rivers, fields, and forests. He and his wife, Lynne, spend as much time as they can in the woods near Lake Michigan.
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April Scholtz, Land Protection Director
April has been working for the Land Conservancy since 1993 – back when it was known as “NACOWMI” (Natural Areas Conservancy of West Michigan).
Her work in land protection began even earlier, though, when in 1985 she began working with the State of Michigan’s Wilderness and Natural Areas Program for the Michigan Chapter of The Nature Conservancy. One of her first projects was to coordinate the natural areas designation of the Saugatuck Dunes Natural Area. April soon added experience and skills in private land protection throughout Michigan – from snake habitats in southern Hillsdale County to rocky outcroppings on the Keweenaw Peninsula.
She has a master’s degree from the University of Michigan, with graduate studies in both biology and natural resource management and policy, advanced training in land protection techniques and their tax implications, and a (never activated) realtor’s license. Twenty years after she began her career in land protection, April is still working, happily, on the preservation of dunes around Saugatuck and other important natural areas throughout West Michigan.
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Pete DeBoer, Land Protection Specialist
Pete was born and grew up in Spring Lake with the lakeshore in his backyard. He realized at an early age that he would seek a career that combined his love of the outdoors with his interest in environmental issues. He received a B.S. in 2002 from Western Michigan University, completing a double major in Biology and Environmental Studies.
During his schooling at WMU, he began volunteering for the Southwest Michigan Land Conservancy to “learn the business”. He then worked with the stewardship crew in the summers trying to eradicate invasive species from the landscapes of southwest Michigan. In the fall of 2004 he was hired as a land protection specialist for Southwest to assist landowners in protecting their own landscapes. In the summer of 2007 he was hired to help landowners in West Michigan protect the lands he grew up with.
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Melanie Manion, Stewardship Coordinator
Melanie began working at the Land Conservancy of West Michigan in September of 2006. Prior to that she worked as Volunteer Coordinator, then Naturalist and Community Program Coordinator at Blandford Nature Center in Grand Rapids. Before coming to Grand Rapids, Melanie worked at Chippewa Nature Center in Midland in a variety of positions including environmental education and exotic species removal.
She earned her Masters of Science in Conservation Biology from Central Michigan University, where she also earned her Bachelors of Science in Biology and Environmental Science. Her masters work involved GIS mapping autumn olive infestations at Chippewa Nature Center.
Melanie is passionate over protecting the natural areas of West Michigan and strives to help others foster an appreciation.
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Michelle Collins, Communications Coordinator
Michelle is the newest Land Conservancy of West Michigan staff member. She began as and intern but is now on board as our Communications Coordinator. Michelle has utilized her public relations and creative strengths to help not-for-profit organizations develop logos and marketing campaigns. Her love for working with others to benefit the community is perhaps what she loves most about working for the Land Conservancy of West Michigan.
Originally from the east side of Michigan, Michelle’s college studies are what first brought her to Grand Rapids. Michelle earned her BS in Advertising & Public Relations as well as her master’s degree in Public & Nonprofit Administration from Grand Valley State University. She loves to visit West Michigan’s many parks and beaches, and in her spare time Michelle teaches dance and does freelance design work. She admits that her time with LCWM is continually helping her to better understand the importance of preserving natural lands and appreciate West Michigan’s landscape even more!
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Diane Sampson, Membership Coordinator
Diane has been working for the Land Conservancy since January 2007. However, she has been volunteering for the LCWM since 2003 both in the office and in the field. She also participated in the seasonal work crew in 2004 and 2005 battling buckthorn in the Lamberton Lake fen.
She has a master’s degree in hydrogeology from Washington State University. Work in the environmental consulting field brought her back to Michigan in 1993. She worked on and managed environmental cleanup projects at various gas stations and car repair facilities around the midwest. After staying home with two children for a few years and volunteering, she realized her interests had turned from cleaning up after development to preserving land from being developed!
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