Nancy Dawson was a founding member of the Bedfordshire and Huntingdonshire Wildlife Trust, our first member of staff, and raised close to £100,000 for our work in her time here. She held many plant sales to do so, often raising up to £3,000 - serious money at that time, and hugely appreciated. She was a leading light in Beds Natural History Society, had a PhD in fenland beetles, and was the author of what was the only guide to dragonflies for about a decade in the 1970s. A guide which was photocopied and hand-coloured by her several children, and which some of our staff members had a copy of as students.
In memory of two of our long-standing supporters
We were saddened by the recent loss of two of our long-standing supporters.
Peter Walker
We have also lost Peter Walker, a member for 48 years, voluntary warden of a series of reserves – most recently Gamlingay Wood – and an active wildlife recorder. He was an inspiration to many others: as a great speaker on fungi and other topics, and an active member of Hunts Fauna and Flora Society and two local gardening groups. He was also the lead author of Orchids of Huntingdonshire and the force behind the book Brampton Wood, A Natural History, and as such his influence will continue to have a long reach.
They will both be missed.