Members of the Hoosier Chapter celebrated the life of Andy Mahler with folks from around the country over three days at the Lazy Black Bear in Paoli, Indiana. At the Heartwood Reunion they helped plant four dogwood trees in the names of the Chapter, Winding Waters Group, Heartlands Group, and Uplands Network. The trees will grow to encompass the circle of communication where Andy led many problem-solving and community building discussions to unite the many groups of Heartwood. These opportunities will continue for future generations as we continue the grassroots movement to protect our forests.
The trees came from Kurt Kemp and the Woodland Farm Nursery in Spencer, IN. We would like to thank Kurt for securing and delivering the trees for the Hoosier Chapter to plant at the Lazy Black Bear. The Hoosier Chapter also presented Andy’s wife Linda Lee, a plaque to thank her for sharing Andy with us for all of these years.
As Steven Higgs said in his book Andy Mahler and the Hoosier National Forest, Andy Mahler was a "folk hero in the forest movement", not only in Indiana, but across the region as well. Andy was the founder of several environmental organizations including Heartwood; which is a regional group working on issues in forests in the eastern and Midwest areas and started with National Forest Protections across the region: Protect Our Woods; which is a locally based group centered around protecting the area of the Hoosier National around Andy's home, in the Buffalo Springs Area: and the Indiana Forest Alliance; working to protect Urban forests, state forests, and national forests here in Indiana (IFA just won the court case against the USFS to protect the Houston South Area of the Hoosier National and the drinking water supply for the city of Bloomington). Sierra Club Hoosier Chapter has partnered with these organizations to strengthen the forest movement in Indiana for several years now.
The Circle of Corydon Governor's award was received posthumously and awarded to Andy's wife, Linda Lee, by Senate Minority Leader Shelli Yoder on October 3 as the weekend began. The Hoosier Chapter dedicated funding to sponsor the weekend and to support the Heartbeat, the biannual newspaper of Heartwood, in the spirit of free speech and education.
"It was a very special visit to the Lazy Black Bear and I enjoyed time with my Heartwood friends, the food, the festivities and the spirit of Andy that I will always carry in my heart" - Julie Lowe, Executive Committee Chair, Winding Waters Group
Lora Kemp, Vice Chair, Sierra Club Hoosier Chapter
Marilyn Bauchat, Chair, Uplands Network
Julie Lowe, Chair, Winding Waters Group