Natural Lands - The Magazine of Natural Lands Fall/Winter 2018, Issue 153 | Page 24

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N ATUR A L L A NDS
transformation, they now take inspiration from his prop-
erty and ask Brian advice on choosing plants for their
own yards. “I’ve won them over,” Brian says with a grin.
One of the trees on his property is a box elder. Though
a native species, this member of the maple family gets
a bad rap for its shaggy growth habit, weak wood, and
prolific—and often messy—seeding. But Brian recalls
the one that grew in the backyard of his childhood home.
“One day—I guess I was about six years old—I found a
huge moth in that tree. I was totally fascinated. I even
bugged my parents to take me to the library so we could
look up the moth species. I guess I’ve been fascinated
with nature ever since.” W
Natural Lands is delighted to welcome
Drew VandenBrul to our Board of Trustees.
Drew is managing director with Grant Thorton LLP, an independent audit, tax,
and advisory firm. He specializes in providing state and local tax consulting,
compliance, and transaction planning across a variety of industries. He also
serves as an adjunct professor in the Villanova Graduate Tax program.
“Drew’s expertise and business acumen—paired with his enthusiasm for
nature and spending time outdoors—are strong complements to our Board
of Trustees,” said Natural Lands president Oliver Bass. “We are delighted to
welcome him.”
Drew’s community and non-profit involvement includes various roles with
the Garnet Valley High School Performing Arts Association; serving as Chair-
man of the Garnet Valley School District Tax Study Commission; undertaking
fundraising activities at the Nicholas Newlin Foundation; and being a Little
Free Library Steward.
“I’m excited to join Natural Lands at this time of tremendous growth and
activity, and look forward to connecting more people with nature across both
the urban and rural parts of our region,” he shared.
Drew received his B.S. in Accounting and Finance from Lehigh University
and his M.A. in Taxation from Villanova University. He lives with his wife and
two teenaged children in Glen Mills, Delaware County, PA. W
Brian Bernero spends his work days 45 feet under
JFK Boulevard. By trade, Brian is a millright, a railroad
mechanic, but his passion is the verdant natural world
he never sees on the job. This love is what drew him to
Natural Lands nearly 10 years ago.
“I heard that volunteers were needed for a tree plant-
ing day at Hildacy,” Brian recalled. “Soon after that, the
Force of Nature® volunteer program was launched, and I
signed up. I was hooked.”
Brian went on to graduate with the Force of Nature
class of 2013 and, since then, has donated nearly 400
hours of his time to Natural Lands, more than any other
volunteer. Most of it is spent at Hildacy Preserve where
he mows trails, pulls invasives, plants trees and native
perennials, and even flexes his carpentry skills building
nest boxes and Adirondack-style chairs.
“I come to Hildacy to recharge my batteries. It’s not
work to me.”
Last year, Brian became a member of our staff—albeit
on a very part-time schedule, working four hours a week
on the Stewardship team. “I’m still keeping my job with
the railroad,” he says.
It’s hard to imagine Brian can find time outside of
these two careers to do more “work,” but he’s poured
what he’s learned about land management from Natural
Lands into his quarter-acre, suburban yard in Brookhav-
en, Delaware County. What was once lawn is now a lush
enclave of native trees and shrubs, a huge bed filled with
pollinator plants, and a vegetable garden. Though a few
of his neighbors raised eyebrows when Brian began the
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welcome.
recharging batteries.
naturally.
. WI NT ER 2 018 –2 019
Willisbrook Preserve
Malvern, PA | 126 acres