Don Philpott
Don Philpott is the recipient of the 2022 Adult Volunteer of the Year Award for Resource Management.
Don serves as the president of the Wekiva Wilderness Trust, a citizen support organization that supports Wekiwa Springs State Park, Lower Wekiva River Preserve State Park and Rock Springs Run State Reserve. He also served recently as a board member and past president of the Florida State Parks Foundation and the National Association of State Park Foundations.
For the last 27 years, he has developed his magical ability to inspire others and build relationships that have netted millions of dollars in donations to support state park goals.
One of his latest projects is documenting the township of Ethel at Rock Springs Run Reserve. Ethel once flourished a hundred years ago. All that remains is the small fenced-off cemetery, but we now know so much about Ethel that we can locate where the school was, as well as the railway station, store and almost all of the homestead cabins. Eventually, interpretive panels will tell the full story of Ethel, and historic markers will be placed at sites of special interest.
Thank you, Don. Your support of Florida’s state parks is appreciated.
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