2020 Board Officers
Board President
Senior Project Manager
Corblu Ecology Group, LLC
Hometown: Kingstree, South Carolina
Barney received both his BS and MS in Forest Resources from Clemson University and current serves as the Senior Project Manager for Lawrenceville-based Corblu Ecology Group. When he’s not out on working on a site, you’ll find Barney hunting, fishing, hiking, kayaking and playing with his Boykin Spaniel, Georgia. His favorite spot to be in nature? A blackwater cypress swamp.
Barney has a deep love of the outdoors, partly inspired by his past experience in youth environmental education programs.
Some fun facts about our board president: He spent a summer trapping alligators for research. And recently, he’s travelled to the Seychelles Islands, located in the Somail Sea a segment of the Indian Ocean, northeast of Madagascar and east of Kenya. His favorite book is the Sand County Almanac and his favorite movie is A River Runs Through It.
Treasurer
Managing Broker
Troutland & Co
Hometown: Stone Mountain, GA
Trace’s career has spanned from audio/visual and broadcast to commercial real estate. He spent 10 years living in Western North Carolina. Currently, Trace resides with his family in Johns Creek. When he’s not busy coaching Little League baseball, you’ll find him enjoying gardening and camping. No stranger to service, Trace has also volunteered with both Habitat for Humanity and Atlanta First United Methodist Church.
He’s travelled to Costa Rica and grew up exploring the large parks and areas around Stone Mountain. But his favorite place to enjoy nature? That would be Cumberland Island, where the cell service is limited and time slows down.
Fun Fact: While camping near a small lake near Lake Tahoe, Trace witnessed a helicopter crash! He jumped into the lake to help rescue the passengers – five federal inmates and one pilot. The group was tasked with fighting wildfires in the area and Trace helped them unbuckle while upside down in the lake. Everyone survived and only one had minor injuries. Wow!
Secretary
Stewardship and GIS Specialist
North American Land Trust
Hometown: Breman, Georgia
Alex has a BS in Physical Geography and GIS. Having lived in both Dubois, Wyoming and Boston, Massachusetts, Alex is now back in Georgia working for the North American Land Trust.
She enjoys kayaking, hiking and learning to identify plants and mushrooms. She’s had a love of nature since childhood.
Farthest place Alex has traveled? Peru!
At-Large Directors
At-Large Director
Regional Manager, Transportation Broker
Hometown: Boonville, Missouri
Jody is from Boonville, Missouri, a small town on the Missouri River about an hour northwest of Jefferson City. A graduate of the University of Missouri, Jody made her way down to Atlanta about 11 years ago.
She is the Regional Manager for a transportation broker for the Georgia State Medicaid Program – serving over 34 counties in north Georgia. She enjoys walking, cycling and the great outdoors. Jody also has a big heart for older adults, especially encouraging and assisting them to stay physically and mentally active. She spent several years teaching water and chair aerobics to seniors and would love to develop ways to get older adults involved with outdoor recreation (We’re definitely here for that!)
Jody has been married to her sweetheart for almost 30 years and they have two children. She and her husband enjoy Sweetwater Creek State Park, where they love to walk, take in nature and do some fishing, too!
Jody says that our founder and Executive Director, Bill Jones, really inspired her to get more involved in land conservation efforts. She shares that she joined the board because “I want to help preserve Georgia’s natural beauty.”
Welcome, Jody! We are excited to work with you and learn more about how we can welcome seniors to our parks while we continue celebrating and conserving our natural lands.
At-Large Director
At-Large Director
Founder
Engaged Educational Services, LLC
Hometown: Claxton, Georgia
Temaria lives in South Fulton, GA with her wonderful husband and 4 children. She is originally from Claxton, GA “The Fruit Cake Capital of the World.” She enjoys being outdoors, gardening, and crafting. Temaria has been an educator for 20 years and is the founder/consultant of Engaged Educational Services, which provides educational consultation and resources to the community.
Temaria joined the STPAL board of directors because she wanted to become more involved in keeping land natural and helping students understand how to care for the environment. She is an advocate of environmental education and stewardship among youth and has an appreciation for land preservation/conservation.
Fun Fact: Temaria crochets and sews life sized therapy dolls for elderly & children.
At-Large Director
Dee Harlin was raised in Nashville, Tennessee and moved to the Atlanta area 25 ago. He is a veteran sales, marketing, and communications professional in both the agency and corporate operations of the entertainment and television industries. He’s excited to have the opportunity to lend a hand in achieving STPAL’s goal to create a wide variety of parks throughout Georgia and the surrounding areas.
“Protecting valuable green spaces and providing people opportunities to enjoy a wide array of activities on these lands is a great cause and one that will benefit the surrounding communities for years to come,” Harlin said. “It’s a rich investment that will become even more valuable as time passes and available resources become scarcer. I want to help Bill and the organization reach out to others that share STPAL’s vision and bring them into the fold.”
Approximately 10 years ago, Harlin helped steer the Harlin family to broker a deal with the city of Franklin, Tennessee to acquire the family horse farm and have it remained a green space for all to enjoy. The Park at Harlinsdale Farm is 200-acre public park with hiking trails, a dog park, and home to various music festivals. It has quickly become a vital part of the community and continues to add activities to serve the people of Middle Tennessee.
“Watching a park-like Talking Rock come to life and looking at the other opportunities on the table really take shape is encouraging and proof positive that the work that STPAL does is vital to so many people and organizations,” Harlin said. “The more we show the benefits and tell the story, the more we’ll be able to give back to the communities we’ll serve. It’s a wonderful opportunity.”
At-Large Director
Instructor of Biology
Reinhardt University
Hometown: Jasper, GA
Keith hold a BS in Biology from Reinhardt University and an MS in Biology from Auburn University. I study the ecology and evolution of North and South American fish.
Currently, he’s a professor at Reinhardt University where you’ll find him teaching Introductory Biology, Organismal Biology, and Field Biology. Additionally, I teach introduction to GIS.
Keith has volunteered with several organizations, including The American Chestnut Foundation and the Mountain Conservation Trust. Additionally, I have done outreach events at several local school systems in the metro Atlanta area leading nature hikes and providing hands-on demonstrations with animals to all age groups of students.
Keith loves to hike and camp, and also enjoys spending time with family and friends. He’s also a prolific reader – he reads all the time! (By the way, his favorite book is A Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson)
Keith says it was his grandmother who fostered his interest in conservation. She always appreciated how long it took trees to grow and how removing one is not something that is easily undone. Another person that influenced Keith’s career in conservation was Dr. Steve Powers, introducing Keith to working with the ecology and evolution of fish in the southeast. Through Dr. Powers, he learned that land conservation is a key component to retaining many of the rarest organism that we have. Keith has described THREE new species of fish!
At-Large Director
At-Large Director
Attorney
Tate Law Firm, LLC
Hometown: Jasper, Georgia
Will is a practicing attorney in his hometown of Jasper, Georgia. He has undergraduate and graduate degrees in civil engineering from Georgia Tech and a JD from Georgia State University College of Law. Prior to law school, Will worked as a geotechnical engineer.
When not practicing law, you’ll find Will enjoying mountain biking and hiking with his family. He’s a big fan of our property Talking Rock Nature Preserve and loves seeing so many folks from his community out enjoying the nature and trails at this site. (Check out his t-shirt! in this photos!)
Will joined the board because he truly wants to develop public land that can be used by the community around it.
Fun fact about Will: He hiked Half Dome Yosemite National Park (Y’all – that’s quite a hike!)
Will – thank you for serving on our board of directors. We’re excited to have your talent and enthusiasm for our mission!
At-Large Director
Development Director
Georgia Conservation Voters
Hometown: Atlanta, Georgia
Joe studied English and Professional Communications at Southern Polytechnic State University and has spent his career working for various conservation-minded nonprofits around Georgia.
Currently, Joe lives in Savannah and serves as the Development Director for Georgia Conservation Voters, an organization dedicated to organizing voters around climate and equity issues. Joe has previously served on the Georgia Conservancy’s Generation Green board, the Memorial Drive Greenway Steering Committee, and currently serves as a 1st District Post Seat Holder for the Chatham County Democratic Committee.
Joe enjoyes cooking, fishing, paddling, and I am an avid supporter of Atlanta and UGA sports (Go Dawgs!)
His favorite ways to explore the outdoors include paddling on Ebenezer Creek and camping in the winter on Cumberland Island.
What inspired Joe’s interest in conservation and parks? Spending time as a camper and staffer at Camp Mikell in Northeast Georgia had a profound impact on him.
Fun Fact: Joe started a petition that helped get the name of the former Confederate Avenue in Atlanta changed. The street is now United Avenue.
Staff
STPAL Founder, Executive Director
Bill has a passion for natural land and outdoor recreation. He particularly enjoys hiking with his dogs. He has been fortunate to always live very close to public parks with hiking trails. This inspired him to found SE Trust in 2012 as he thinks everyone should have a nearby park for the enjoyment of nature and outdoor recreation.
Advisory Board
Bob Williams
Charles McMillan
Chris Durkee
Daniel Jesse
David Jones
David White
Debbie Stebbins
Eric Nelson (Past Board President)
Greg Chastain
Laura McCarty
Mark Scruggs
Mike Bass
Rod Hardee
Susan Crain
Tom Adams