What an exhilarating, inspiring, informative, and just plain fun experience at this year’s Land Conservation Conference the first week of March at the I Hotel and Conference Center in Champaign.

We welcomed a whopping 62 sponsors(!) and 175 guests at our first conference at a larger venue to accommodate everyone this year as we plan these get-togethers around our beautiful state of Illinois. While not the rustic feel we’ve been used to, the I Hotel and Conference Center proved to be an excellent venue for a group of our size.

Lifetime Conservation Achievement Awards were presented to Deanna Glosser, former executive director of the Land Conservation Foundation; Kerry Leigh, former executive director of the Natural Land Institute; and Tom Clay, former executive director of the Illinois Audubon Society. 

A highlight of the evening was a moving and heartfelt tribute by Steve Barg, executive director of Jo Daviess Conservation Foundation, for Nancy Hamill Winter, who passed away a week before the conference. Nancy was one of PSCC’s original founders who was present and honored at last year’s 20^th anniversary conference, was part of a dedicated group to help raise funds for PSCC’s first executive director, and has been a passionate supporter and visionary of conservation across the country.