On a cold and blustery October morning, an intrepid team of MHLC and Heldeberg Workshop volunteers assembled with one purpose: to disassemble.

The Winn Preserve, donated by the Winn family in 1997, included a picturesque one-room cabin near the northwest side of the property. The cabin features a wood stove, windows on all sides, and a cozy front porch. There have long been aspirations of using the cabin as a woodland schoolhouse, offering an outpost for the next generation of birders and naturephiles. Unfortunately, these aspirations were at odds with the ambitions of local partygoers, whose free time and determination will always outstrip even the most indomitable land trusts. The cute cabin had unfortunately, and despite all efforts, been broken into and trashed repeatedly, leading to the decision by MHLC to remove the temptation altogether before serious damage could take place.

The solution came from our partners at the Heldeberg Workshop, whose mission and commitment to conservation overlap in many ways with that of MHLC. With the blessing of the Winn family, volunteers and staff worked over three days to deconstruct the entire cabin and send it off to the Heldeberg Workshop. Here the materials will be recycled to support the outdoor educational programming for those up-and-coming birders and naturephiles, as was always the ultimate purpose of the Winn Cabin.

Next time you pass the spot on the Winn Preserve's green trail (blink and you’ll miss it), pause and give a moment of appreciation for the generosity of spirit of the Winn family and all those who strive to foster a love of nature well into the future.  

Special thanks to Al Breisch and Dave Wallingford of the Heldeberg Workshop and the ever-stellar MHLC volunteers Peter Bakal, Ken Crosby, Beth Whitney, Peter Richards, Bill Little, Dave Nelson, and Tom Schmidt.

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