That’s what my mom would say when I came home after a day of adventuring either “up the bush” or “down the bush”. I was lucky to grow up in a time where neighbourhood kids in a new subdivision in Burnaby, BC, would roam free. We’d get together and go up to the top of the street where there was a meadow and apple orchard, or down to the bottom where there was a forest that went on and on and on. We thought the forest was endless: we never made it to the end.
My friends and I watched frogs in ponds, climbed trees, and looked at ferns and caterpillars. My dad also fostered my love of nature, packing us into our little car for beachcombing, camping, and stargazing. He taught me to be kind to animals and to know my place in nature.
That feeling never left. Outdoors is where I feel most alive, whether I’m canoeing, exploring Haida Gwaii, or watching the northern lights in Whitehorse. Near my home in Steveston Village, I’ve spent 10 years watching eagles teach their young to fly from a stand of old cottonwoods, (that are over 100 feet tall) now proposed for development which we are fighting. Someone has to speak for the wild places and the creatures in it. The caribou can’t wave and say: hey, you can’t do that! I need this!
That’s why I give to Nature Canada…and proudly have since 2002. By joining a community of people who care, I have a stronger voice. There is power in numbers. And we know there are ways to bolster the economy and protect the environment: they are not oppositional. It’s important to me that Nature Canada partners with other environmental groups and First Nations. I also appreciate the educational work in Canadian communities: when kids see and experience nature, they value it, and when they fall in love with it, they too will want to protect it!
About 6 years ago, I used part of an inheritance to set up a donor-advised fund, invested in line with my values. To date, I’ve made contributions that I feel good about, all coming from the interest, and the principal still remains untouched. This means I can keep giving for a very long time. If you’re thinking about a gift, ask yourself whether your situation has changed and whether you can give more. We need more voices to protect our natural spaces. Now is the time.
– Sheila
