The Conservancy of Southwest Florida have awarded Jeannie and Christopher Smith the organization’s highest honor, the Eagle Award, for their valued contributions and commitment to the protection of Southwest Florida’s natural resources. The award was presented to the Smiths by Rob Moher, president of the Conservancy of Southwest Florida, and Lynn Slabaugh, chair of the Board of Directors, at the organization’s Annual Meeting at the Conservancy of Southwest Florida Nature Center. The Smiths’ passion for Florida’s environment, film and philanthropy has contributed greatly to the Conservancy of Southwest Florida’s ability to carry out its mission of protecting Southwest Florida’s unique natural environment and quality of life.
Smith is a name that is seen many places throughout the Conservancy of Southwest Florida property. The Christopher B. Smith Preserve, the seven-acre preserve managed by the Conservancy of Southwest Florida, serves as a natural upland and scrub habitat that is home to more than 200 plant species, 70 gopher tortoises and hundreds of other animal species. The Smiths’ contribution ensured that the scrub habitat property would be forever preserved. The Conservancy of Southwest Florida’s Jeannie Meg Smith Theater represents another commitment that has allowed the Conservancy of Southwest Florida to utilize the power of film to showcase the Southwest Florida environment to the community.
The Smiths also enabled the Conservancy of Southwest Florida to create a new front entrance and establish its current address on Smith Preserve Way, and contributed greatly to the organization’s capital campaign, the largest conservation campaign in Florida. Jeannie Smith has also served as a board member for the Conservancy of Southwest Florida and chair of Magic Under the Mangroves™ event, and has held an active role in the renovations of the Conservancy of Southwest Florida Nature Center.
“We welcome Christopher and Jeannie Smith to our list of incredible honorees, and we thank these two for all they have done to support the Conservancy of Southwest Florida,” said Rob Moher, president and CEO of the Conservancy of Southwest Florida. “The Smiths’ love of nature and support of the Conservancy’s mission is always at the forefront of all that they do. For that, we are eternally grateful and honored to present this couple with the 2016 Eagle Award.”
About the Conservancy of Southwest Florida:
The Conservancy of Southwest Florida is a not-for-profit environmental protection organization with a 50 year history focused on the issues impacting the water, land wildlife and future of Collier, Lee, Charlotte, Hendry and Glades counties. The Conservancy accomplishes this mission through the combined efforts of its experts in the areas of environmental science, policy, education and wildlife rehabilitation. The Conservancy of Southwest Florida, world-class Nature Center and von Arx Wildlife Hospital are headquartered in Naples, Florida, 1495 Smith Preserve Way, south of the Naples Zoo off Goodlette-Frank Road. Learn more about the Conservancy’s work and how to support the quality of life in Southwest Florida www.conservancy.org.
