Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy announces new board members

Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy has announced the appointment of three new board members: Jay Frankenfield, Scott Harris, and Pat Whittle. This brings the number of board members to 14. Our board members determine and support the mission and purpose of Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy.

Frankenfield is a 20-year Loudoun resident originally from Bucks County, Pennsylvania. He has been with Loudoun Soil and Water Conservation District for 15 years as a Conservation Specialist focusing on implementing the Virginia Agricultural Buffer-Maintenance Practice program. 

He serves on the Agricultural and Forestal District Advisory Committee and the John M. Rowley Goose Creek Land Conservation Fund.  He also volunteers his time as a member of the Lucketts Ruritans.  He completed studies at the University of Richmond, Penn State, and Virginia Tech.

Harris graduated with two degrees from Georgia Tech and, in 2009, along with his wife, Becky, founded Catoctin Creek Distilling Company—the first legal distillery in Loudoun County since before Prohibition. 

Today they sell their award-winning Virginia rye whisky in over 40 states and 8 countries. In his spare time, he has embraced the role of citizen scientist, immersing himself fully in birding.  A frequent participant in local bird walks and advocacy for wild spaces, Harris endeavors to spend time birding every single day.  There is no kingfisher, kingbird, or kinglet that is safe from his checklist.

Whittle has lived most of her life in the Washington, DC area, moving with her family to Loudoun in 1997. She has always had an interest in nature. She had an organic garden in high school, led the creation of a bluebird trail on the golf course at her college, and spent several years monitoring the trail on the golf course at Algonkian Regional Park.

Degreed in both biology and computer science, she has worked as a high school biology teacher, a software engineer, a homeschool mom, a Latin teacher, and an artist. Studying birds and learning more about the importance of native plants are her current pursuits. She is working on converting a steep slope on her property from a giant swath of Johnsongrass to a wildflower meadow.

Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy is a non-profit organization whose vision is to make Loudoun a place where people and wildlife thrive together. Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy’s board members embody their mission and inspire, motivate, and engage people to protect, preserve, and restore wildlife habitat.

For more information go to https://loudounwildlife.org/.