Bernie Lemon (1936-2019) and his wife, Mary, are honored as Conservation Heroes by friends who have witnessed their decades-long commitment to wildlife conservation in Wisconsin, most notably their role in the reintroduction of elk in the state. 

According to outdoor journalist Paul Smith, Bernie “was Wisconsin's No. 1 elk fan, a car salesman by day but wildlife supporter by night who had a larger-than-life persona and a gift for poetry and storytelling.”  Born and raised in West Allis, he apparently learned at an early age to dream big, claiming his first big game hunt occurred as a child at the Milwaukee County Public Zoo where he “stalked” the zoo’s moose. 

Mary was Bernie’s life partner of 62 years. They both were instrumental in the first Wisconsin chapter of the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation and, in the early 1990s began working with friends and fellow conservationists to form the Elk Wisconsin group to raise money for supporting the state’s elk reintroduction efforts. Based at Bernie’s legendary Whisky Jack Camp – a cabin on Moose Lake near Hayward that Bernie built and maintained with friends for more than five decades – the group raised about $870,000 over the course of the decade.  The funding went mostly to UW-Stevens Point, which led the elk research study after 25 Michigan elk were released in 1995 near Clam Lake. The researchers, led by professor Ray Anderson, needed vehicles, satellite transmitters, lodging and more.  The university conducted the elk study from 1995 to 1999 when the management of the elk was formally transferred to the Wisconsin DNR. 

“Bernie Lemon was a national conservation treasure,” said Christine Thomas, dean of the College of Natural Resources at UW-Stevens Point.  “His work on the elk project will have long-term positive influences on our state.” 

Smith wrote that Lemon’s life “served as an example of how a humble volunteer, mostly working behind the scenes, can form a team and provide wind beneath the wings of significant wildlife projects.  In so doing, he not only helped bring a native species back to Wisconsin, but he established a legacy of volunteerism that should inspire others.”

Curly Milfred grew up on the family farm in Cazenovia, Wisconsin. A prolific reader as a youngster, a passion that never left him, he enjoyed books and read pretty much anything he could get his hand on. He graduated from Cazenovia High School in 1947. After serving in the Army artillery corps in Germany, he came back to Wisconsin to attend the University of Wisconsin – Madison. Though he was drawn to science, his farming roots led him to study a discipline that would be applicable to the farmers of Wisconsin.  He received his bachelor of science (1960), master of science (1962), and a doctorate in soil science (1966) from the University of Wisconsin – Madison. Following the completion of his degree, he worked as a soil scientist for the Wisconsin Geological and Natural History Survey.

Dr. Milfred was a professor at UWSP from 1970 until his retirement in 1997. He came to UW-Stevens Point in the Geography department before earning tenure in the College of Natural Resources. Courses he taught included soil science, glacial geology, remote sensing, and air photo analysis. His field work in pedology involved soil mapping in several counties in Wisconsin, as well as at the Apostle Islands for the National Park Service. He spent many summers teaching in the College of Natural Resources summer programs at Clam Lake and Treehaven. He led numerous student teams to soil judging contests and mentored several masters candidates during his tenure at UWSP. A true environmental scientist, he loved to observe nature; to be inspired by the clues the land and rock held to the past, and optimal utilization for the future. Curly supported many local and national environmental charities and was an active member of the Portage County Chapter of the Ice Age Trail. He passed away in April 2017.

Curly was a modest man who came from modest beginnings, but he never forgot the opportunities that allowed him to engage in his scientific studies. As he benefitted from the ability to pursue higher education after his tour in the Army, contribution to a scholarship to further the education of deserving future environmental scientists is a perfect legacy. He is honored as a Conservation Hero by his family; wife Ann Milfred, children Sherry (Milfred) LaForest, Janelle Milfred, and Christopher Milfred, his brother and three sisters, and six grandchildren, as well as many former students, colleagues, and friends. 

Bob and Mary Williams join the Conservation Hero Scholarship Honor Roll in recognition of their longtime advocacy for UW-Stevens Point and the College of Natural Resources.  

Active community leaders since they came to Stevens Point in 1953, Bob and Mary were both charter members of the blue-chip CNR Advisory Board created in the late 1990s to provide guidance and input for the College’s academic and outreach programs.  

Bob, who died in 2017, was a noted public relations professional.  He worked with vegetable growers, conservationists, and state government leaders to allow for sustainable groundwater irrigation.  He also helped elect former UWSP Chancellor Lee Sherman Dreyfus as governor of the state, played a significant role in creating the Wisconsin interstate highway system, worked to bring branch banking to areas outside of Milwaukee and enhance state and student funding to independent colleges and universities.  Among his many volunteer activities, Bob served as chair of the United Way Campaign, chair of the Portage County Republican Party and was a board member for the Red Cross of Portage County.  A Distinguished Alumnus of UW-Madison’s School of Journalism and Mass Information, Bob also taught crisis management communications to undergraduate and graduate students at UW-Madison and UW-Stevens Point.   

Mary taught junior high school and then joined UW-Stevens Point where she served as the special assistant to five chancellors from 1976 to 1993.  During her tenure at the university, Mary played a key role in creating Lake Joanis, built with state and federal grant money, which today attracts thousands of users each year, including students, local residents, and visitors.  In 1964 while pursuing graduate studies, Mary became the first student to be appointed to the State University Board of Regents and served during the merger of all 26 campuses.  She was also appointed to the Wisconsin Humanities Council, the Policy and Planning Committee of the Wisconsin Supreme Court and was the office manager for Governor Dreyfus’ office.  Mary also held volunteer leadership roles for many local non-profits, including the Girl Scouts, Rotary Club, United Way, Children’s Museum and the Community Foundation of Portage County.  She is a graduate of UW-Madison and received her master’s degree from UW-Stevens Point.

Retiring to Stevens Point in 1967 launched a whole new life chapter for Beatrice (Bea, 1909-1979) and Herman (1910-2004) Olson, in which they transformed a 280-acre neglected dairy farm to a diverse, productive natural area they called Steinhaugen.

The Olsons are remembered as conservation heroes not only because of their longtime stewardship of the Steinhaugen property, but in part because of their willingness to share the Steinhaugen property with friends, neighbors, and community groups while enthusiastically espousing its many unique natural features.

After graduating from the University of Minnesota, Herman worked mostly as a regional wildlife biologist staff officer in Milwaukee with the U.S. Forest Service.  He is credited with the reintroduction of the fisher into Wisconsin to provide natural control of the porcupine population.  In 1958 he was honored with the U.S. Department of Agriculture Superior Service Award for his outstanding work in the field of game management and promotion of cooperative programs. 

Bea, who discovered the Steinhaugen property during a visit while Herman attended a wildlife conference at UWSP, enjoyed searching the woods for unusual plants and for many years she recorded and sent the date of the first blooming of lilacs to the Wisconsin Phenology Society.  Herman built over 1,200 bluebird houses and his design became widely used by the Wisconsin Bluebird Restoration Association.

The Olsons were recognized and honored by numerous organizations for their conservation work over the years. They consistently supported UWSP's College of Natural Resources by allowing Steinhaugen to be utilized as an outdoor laboratory for education and research, including timber measurements, soils, forest protection, hydrology, and surveying.  In 2015, Herman and Bea's sons transferred 280 acres of the Steinhaugen land to Portage County to serve as a natural area featuring its diversity and encouraging the public to enjoy it through "silent" recreation, thus allowing the values that Bea and Herman exemplified during their lives to be shared with future generations.

Mike Linskens (1949-2015) spent most of his 30-year career using his skills and training in water chemistry to make waterways cleaner and healthier for humans and for the natural ecosystems they support. He grew up in the Milwaukee area and graduated from Washington High School in 1967, where he was an "All City" baseball pitcher.  Mike attended UW-Milwaukee and UW-Stevens Point, graduating from UWSP with a BS in Water Chemistry (1979) and a Master's Degree in Environmental Chemistry (1986). 

Mike moved to Madison, Wisconsin, where he worked at Hazelton Laboratories and eventually became Laboratory Director at Warzyn Engineering.  Then in 1991, he created Environmental Chemistry Consulting Services (ECCS), and the company flourished under his leadership and vision.  Many who were close to Mike describe him as a bit "stubborn," a trait that gave him the drive and vision to transform ECCS into a company that sought solutions for its clients by doing things faster, better, and more efficiently – a work ethic that went against the norm in those early years of environmental cleanup.  He also embodied the concept of an owner/operator, never hesitated to roll up his sleeves to work in the trenches – in this case, the lab – with his ECCS associates.  

Mike was instrumental in creating a special niche in the Agricultural Chemical cleanup program, which was the foundation of his company's early success and a core service area to this day.  The sites his company helped clean up were often located in remote locations throughout the country and, in many cases, were coincidentally located near beautiful trout streams.  With his lifelong love of the outdoors, Mike commonly "volunteered" to work at many of those sites, and relished the opportunity to bring his fly rod in tow with the mobile lab!

For his lifetime commitment to make the world a better place, Mike is honored as a Conservation Hero by his family, including his wife, Dianne, and his children, Nicole, Brett, Tricia and Michaela.

Jeanette (1929-2014) and George (1928-2013) were longtime Stevens Point residents who are remembered for their devotion to family and community, their quiet but firm commitment to the values of fairness, faith, ethics, teaching and learning, and preserving and protecting the natural environment that sustains us all. 

George, a longtime writer, editor, author, and civic leader was for decades one of the region’s premier conservation advocates.  He worked for 40 years at Stevens Point Journal as a reporter, managing editor, editor and publisher before retiring in 1988.  He continued to write an outdoors column – one of his true passions – for the Journal until 1997, then co-founded the weekly Portage County Gazette (1999), where he served as a contributing writer and outdoors columnist until his passing.  One colleague called him “the finest journalist I’ve ever met…..a smart, fair, and a gifted writer…..loved this community but wasn’t afraid to show its warts.” Another said he “could have been a journalist anywhere in the world, but he worked in Stevens Point, where he treasured nature and natural resources.” 

Jeanette shared George’s passion for nature, scenic beauty, and the environment.  She worked in banking as a young woman, then later co-owned a gift shop in Stevens Point during the 1980s.  Volunteering was very important to Jeanette. She was the Riverfront Arts Center's first volunteer and served on its board. She also gave her time to Operation Bootstrap, St. Michael's Hospital, Start Making a Reader Today (SMART) and St. Stanislaus Parish Bingo.

Growing up on a farm instilled a strong conservation work ethic, which lasted Lowell Klessig’s entire life.  After graduating from Chilton High School, he earned his bachelor, master’s and doctorate degrees from UW-Madison, and a master’s from Vanderbilt University.  Early in his career, he served as deputy director of the Sigurd Olson Institute at Northland College in Ashland, WI, and it was during this time that he purchased the “Un-Hilton,” a storied 50-acre farmstead with an original 1910 Finnish farmhouse.

Lowell’s doctoral dissertation served as the foundation for Wisconsin’s Inland Lake Management law. The first of its kind in the country, it served as a model for other lake protection programs.  Thus began Lowell's 20-plus year career with the UW-Extension as a Lake District Specialist.  He crisscrossed the state to help lake property owners and county boards develop stewardship plans and lake districts.

A UWEX branch was established in Stevens Point, marking the beginning of Lowell’s richly rewarding relationship with the College of Natural Resources (CNR) at UWSP.  His teaching career expanded to traditional college courses, in addition to outreach education.  Dr. Klessig promoted sound, scientific and citizen-based resource management strategies.  He received the 25-Year Service Award from the United States Department of Agriculture, the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Wisconsin Lakes Partnership, as well as Visionary Leadership Award from the Wisconsin Chapter of Extension Service Professionals, and the Wisconsin Idea Award.

A prolific writer during his professional career and after his retirement from UWSP in 2001, Dr. Klessig authored numerous teaching manuals and collaborated on the publication of several books, including “One Family's Forest” (2010) which he co-authored with former CNR dean Dr. Alan Haney.

Lowell was lovingly referred to by his wife as the “philosophical farmer.”  Travel was a lifelong passion for him, having visited 56 countries during his lifetime.  He was an avid outdoorsman, enjoying deer hunting, fishing, and ice-fishing.  He participated in many rugged outdoor adventure trips, and hunting and fishing trips abroad.