“Every Kid Loves Mucking About. . . “
Jodi Joy
Director of Development
Profile of Naturalist, Kid Enthusiast and Monthly Donor Daphne Solecki
In the words of world-renowned naturalist Robert Bateman, “We need a few thousand more Daphne Soleckis.” Robert, we couldn’t agree more!
Daphne is an active Nature Canada member (she started giving in the 1990s), and she’s been donating monthly as a Guardian of Nature for more than a decade. She’s also a co-founder of Nature Kids BC, a key partner of Nature Canada.
Her real passion for nature was unleashed when she started birding. She remembers, “Friends of mine were enthusiastic birders, so I went out and loved it. I was the only one of us with a car, so they were keen that I got keen quickly. And it worked. First you get into birds, and then into habitat, and then into conservation. Now it’s my life’s passion.”
Early days… starting off young.
Her love for nature inspired her to get kids passionate about nature too. “I’m a mother of 4, grandmother of many more. Working with naturalist groups, we realized that we were getting older, and there weren’t younger folks or kids in our groups. So I started taking groups of kids out. First it was ponding. Every kid loves mucking about. But then you see what kids respond to. Birds. Beetles. Exploring and discovering things for themselves. Their eyes and minds widen and it’s remarkable to watch.”
She says, “We can all do something to encourage kids in our lives to grow up to value and understand nature. To prioritize it. So that it informs who they are and how they act as they grow up. And, of course, I’ll continue to support nature groups, including Nature Canada. I support Nature Canada every month because they operate on a country-wide basis and fight for conservation issues at the national level. Endangered species, protecting large areas of natural lands. That’s critical work right now.”
“We can all do something to encourage kids in our lives to grow up to value and understand nature.”
And when we asked her what she would say to others who are considering a monthly gift, she said, “If you care about conservation action in Canada, it’s your logical next step. Look, I know that my monthly gift helps with my budgeting. I know I’ve always given and that my donation is at work. And that steady budget is just as useful to Nature Canada as it is to me! They can use my gift to
plan and fund important programs.”
Thank you, so much, to Daphne for sharing her story. If you’re interested in how you can get involved, I would love to speak to you. You can learn about volunteering at events, sharing terrific nature resources with kids in your life, or how you too can make an impact as a Guardian of Nature monthly donor. You can reach me anytime at 1-800-267-4088, ext. 239 or jjoy@naturecanada.ca.
