By Alexis Puchek
Chris was born in San Marcos, Texas and moved to Austin when he was just six months old; he’s lived in our capital city his entire life – 67 years strong. Chris worked as a practicing attorney for 40 years before retiring two years ago. He has many interests, including, of course, birding, as well as reading, hunting, fishing, and spending time with his family.
Chris bought his first set of binoculars in 1982 and has been birding ever since. He branched out from backyard birding after he read Stephen Harrigan’s Jacob’s Well which sparked a strong interest in Chris to pay closer attention to the natural surroundings in and around Austin. While he’s been outdoors most of his life, Chris really started to get more serious about birding in the last 10-15 years, taking classes and connecting with Travis Audubon.
Tell us about how you got connected with Travis Audubon.
Although Chris has been a member of Travis Audubon for over 30 years, his volunteering began at Wild Basin about 20 years ago when an opportunity came up to become a trail guide. He went through the Wild Basin training program and started leading walks out there. Chris became a regular volunteer and was leading walks every month until the program faded out. After his time at Wild Basin, Chris began spending time at Commons Ford Ranch Park, including participating in Travis Audubon walks.
One day, one of the Commons Ford committee members, Shelia Hargis, asked Chris if he would be interested in joining the committee and leading field trips there. Thus began his volunteer work with Travis Audubon. He is also part of Travis Audubon’s speaker’s bureau and enjoys giving talks to different community groups about birds.
Chris became a Master Naturalist in 2013 and went through the Master Birder program at Travis Audubon in 2017 to build a bit more of a formal education in ecology. While not a requirement, it was a great way for him to build stronger ties to an organization he had been so closely connected to. The Master Birder program helped introduce Chris to the broader Travis Audubon community.
Why is volunteering important to you?
Chris just loves being around other people. Whether he’s leading a field trip or not, he loves walking with other people, being outside, and the fact that he learns something new every single time he goes out. Volunteering for Chris is very gratifying – when somebody sees a bird they’ve never seen before and gets excited about it, it’s so fulfilling for him.
He’s so very proud to work with Travis Audubon and the wonderful crew of field trip leaders that volunteer with the organization.
You have an important role with Travis Audubon, Board President, can you tell us about it?
In 2019, Vice President of the Travis Audubon Board Karen Bartoletti asked Chris if he would be interested in serving on the Board. At this time, Chris had retired from his law practice and had really fallen in love with the mission of Travis Audubon. Not only would being on the Board give him an opportunity to give back at a leadership level, it would also present more volunteer opportunities for him to engage with. Chris became President of the Board this year.
Travis Audubon has an incredible staff, including an Executive Director and five full-time employees, a community of volunteers, and four sanctuaries. Two of the Board’s primary priorities are to 1) leverage their expertise to keep moving Travis Audubon forward; and 2) trust the staff and stay out of the way so they can do the things they do so, so well. As with any organization, especially a non-profit, complex considerations come up on a regular basis. The Board meets every two months to provide any needed help or guidance to the Executive Director and staff. They help maintain oversight of the budget and talk through policy decisions. When the Covid-19 pandemic first started to surface, for instance, the Board and the staff of Travis Audubon used their collective thinking to put into practice safety protocols, measures, and changes to programming.
Chris truly does just appreciate being a part of this driven organization. As Board President, he helps keep meetings on track through facilitation, but he really uses his role as an opportunity to bring everyone’s voices to the table to build a shared understanding and directional guidance in the best ways to support the staff of Travis Audubon.
Whether you’re just getting started or if you’re interested in the Master Birder program, Chris encourages you to come out and spend some time with Travis Audubon, in any capacity. It’s an organization full of dedicated and passionate people that want to build a caring community. There’s no need to feel like you need to meet some sort of ‘requirement’. In fact, the majority of Travis Audubon members don’t have a background in ecology – they’re there for the love of the birds, for the interest in the environment, and for the opportunities to get connected and give back.
