Gordon Natural Area

The Gordon's 50th Anniversary Planning Committee would like to thank Christopher Fiorentino, Chief KillsCrow and Mr. Jeremy Johnson of the Delaware Tribe of Indians, participating WCU faculty, local environmental groups, our research partners, WCU student organizations, the President's Office staff, Erica Thompson(photographs), Mill Race Collective, WCUR staff, and the staff of Sykes Student Union for making the celebration a success! We are so grateful to all of you for making such an effort to be a part of the event.

Read the 50th Anniversary GNA Brochure here!

Below are a sampling of photos from the event (all photographs by WCU photographer Erica Thompson).

The Forest Festival as things begin to get busy

The beginning of the Malàxkwsitkan (Bean Dance). Jeremy Johnson of the Delaware Tribe of Indians leads the dancers

The Malàxkwsitkan (Bean Dance) continues and becomes more sinuous (like a bean plant)

Christopher Fiorentino welcome attendees to the event

Representatives of the Delaware Tribe of Indians, Mr. Jeremy Johnson (left) and Chief KillsCrow (center) exchange gifts with Christopher Fiorentino

Dr. Jennifer Chandler (Department of Biology) discusses the finer points of tree rings with a Forest Festival participant

Dr. Megan Fork (Department of Biology) and festival participants examine stream invertebrates at the Goose Creek Alliance exhibit

Dr. Martin Helmke (Earth and Spaces Sciences Department) discussing the regions geology with John Thomas, a Delaware Tribe of Indians elder

The Mill Race Collective string quartet

Chief KillsCrow (left) and Mr. Jeremy Johnson (right) of the Delaware Tribe of Indians examining one of the signs that will be installed in the Gordon, in which the stewardship of the land by the Lenape is acknowledged and extolled

 McKenna Kovatch, president of the Oceanography Club, at the club's exhibit

Event participants make Seed Balls at the Food Recovery Network's exhibit

GNA Student Interns Maryteresa Ohara (left) and Jessica Greulich (right) talking about the Gordon with visitors to the festival (and hopefully selling a T-shirt, or two)

Dr. Manuela Ramalho Sanchez and her students with their immensely popular exhibit: Bugs: The Little Things That Run the Gordon Natural Area 

Noah Long (Davey Trees, and a former GNA Student Intern) discusses Tree Identification with the next generation of scientists/nature lovers

The Students for Sustainable Action exhibit

The Malàxkwsitkan (Bean Dance) moves through the ballroom while the ongoing 'Life in the Gordon' slideshow is projected behind them

GNA Staff: Past and Present. From left-right: Maryteresa Ohara (Student Intern), Miranda Davies (former Student Intern), Noah Long (former Student Intern), Jessica Greulich (Student Intern), Ariana Rivellini (former Student Intern), Jared Kline (former Student Intern), Kathryn Krueger (former Student Intern), Nur Ritter (Stewardship Manager), Kendra McMillin (former Student Intern and Interim Stewardship Manager, and Gerry Hertel (former Stewardship Manager)