The Lynn Caldwell Restoration Award

The mission of New River Conservancy, to protect the water, the woodlands, and the wildlife of the New River Watershed, is realized time after time in our longest-running program, River Builder. River Builder began in 1998 under the direction of Jeffery Scott and Eva Ingle, with funding from North Carolina Clean Water Management Trust Fund and the Mary Duke Biddle Foundation.

River Builder began with four primary objectives:

• Promote responsible local stewardship
• Develop future leaders who are sensitive to the condition of the New River
• Promote collaboration among federal, state, & local government officials, & others
• Protect the New River and tributaries, and restore degraded sections of the river

Over the years, and with several changes in leadership, the Program has not strayed from these primary objectives. The goals of the River Builder Program have been distinct and steadfast. Twenty-five years later, the River Builder Program has planted over 850,000 trees and 115 miles of river and stream bank!

The Lynn Caldwell Restoration Award is presented to those who exhibit what it means to be a vigilant steward of the New River and her tributaries through stream, habitat, or watershed restoration.

Past Recipients

• 2021: The Middle Fork Greenway
• 2020: Keith Lambert and Willie Baucom
• 2019: The Town of Pulaski
• 2018: David and Pat Jones
• 2017: Lynn Caldwell