It’s with gratitude that the board of directors acknowledges the service of two longtime directors, Chuck Perry and Cliff Hagen, who have recently stepped down.
Chuck has been very active in our legislative committee where he traveled to Albany during the legislative session to meet with then Assemblyman Michael Cusack to work on getting the Willowbrook Parkway demapped and transferred to Parks as part of the Greenbelt. While we were not able to realize that goal, Chuck nonetheless worked tirelessly lobbying the Assemblyman to at least move it to committee.
We were fortunate to have Cliff Hagen’s leadership as President of the board of directors for 9 years. During his tenure, Cliff helped Protectors solidify our relationship with elected officials as we continue to advocate for enhanced environmental protection and stewardship of Staten Island’s existing parkland, bluebelt corridors and nature preserves.
Even though the period of big land preservation on Staten Island is past, with the addition of hundreds of acres of natural areas protected, it is critical to maintain a vibrant, relevant role in shoring up support for continued enhancements to our fragile natural areas. Now, Protectors has reached another milestone, as we welcome former second vice president Jose Ramirez-Garofalo as head of the board of directors. Protectors advocates for your interests in land conservation and stewardship of our precious natural areas, and we are confident that Jose, like Cliff, will work with the board to ensure that you have a voice and a place at the table to amplify those concerns whenever necessary.
We also welcome Madeline Paladino to our board. Madeline was a teacher and service program coordinator at St. Joseph Hill Academy High School for many years and brings organizational skills and experience working with youth to our board. We are so grateful for her commitment.