Land trust board gathers at annual celebration, awards local for protection work

STROUDSBURG — Pocono Heritage Land Trust has honored Edward Cramer with the “This Land is Your Land” Award.
More than 50 trust supporters gathered on May 4 at Water Gap Country Club to hold their annual meeting and celebrate recent organizational achievements, including the groundbreaking of the Brodhead Creek Heritage Center at the former Penn Hills golf course, now Stroud Township’s ForEvergreen Nature Preserve.
Pocono Heritage Land Trust Board member Don Miller wrote a heartfelt narrative of why the trust board voted unanimously to present Cramer with the recognition award:
“Ed’s accomplishments are scattered widely across not only his home waters of the Brodhead and Stroud Township, but Monroe County. Like emerald gems strung on ribbons of blue, a map of the Brodhead, McMichael and Cherry Creeks reveals the labors of both his land protection work and his desire to provide public recreational access to the beautiful landscapes of our stream valleys and ridgeline landscape. We all owe a great debt of gratitude to Ed.”
Cramer has been dedicated to supporting Pocono Heritage Land Trust’s mission since its earliest days. He is a former board member as well as current Stroud Township Supervisor.
Cramer has been involved with numerous other conservation organizations including Friends of Cherry Valley, Brodhead Watershed Association and the Brodhead Chapter of Trout Unlimited.
He resides in Cherry Valley.
State Representative Maureen Madden presented the award, saying, “We honor Ed this May evening in Cherry Valley, a landscape near and dear to his heart. We honor him for his dedication and persistence in both preserving and making accessible significant pieces of Pocono paradise in the landscape we love, for his years of service on the Board and continuing support of Pocono Heritage Land Trust, and for his Herculean effort at “natural places and open spaces” protection. Thank you, Ed.” Madden also presented Cramer with a framed print by artist and trust board member Don Baylor.
Baylor’s painting is of a pool on the Brodhead Creek, which will be named “Ed and Mary’s Pool” in honor of Cramer and his late wife Mary.
“It’s an honor to receive this prestigious award, but it really is an award to be shared by everyone in this room.” Cramer said. “It’s a group effort.”
The evening’s speakers demonstrated how conservation really is a group effort: Debra Shuler from Friends of Cherry Valley, Todd Burns from Brodhead Trout Unlimited, and keynote speaker Mike Horne from U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service.
All three focused on the partnerships necessary for successful land protection using the new USFWS headquarters in Cherry Valley as an example.
The trust was founded 34 years ago as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization in the Poconos, dedicated to protecting the natural heritage of our Pocono Mountains region by conserving land and providing educational and recreational activities to inspire people to care for, enjoy, and explore their natural world.
Visit Pocono Heritage Land Trust at www.phlt.org
Text the word “POCONOS” to 42828 to signup for the newsletters to get monthly notifications of hikes and other outdoor events offered at nature preserves in Monroe County.
For information, call 570-730-7202.