About us
A Family Preserve
Pine Street Basin Preserve is first and foremost the home of the Leroy Family. We have lived here in Pierson for just over ten years and absolutely love this land. We plan on being here for a very long time and doing our best to preserve and protect the forest that extends from our home.
My name is Rebecca; preserve manager here at PSBP. I have been married for 21 years to my high school sweetheart Kevin, and we have four fabulous children: Chase, Cody, Lucy, and Jamason.
Kevin has worked in veterinary medicine for over 35 years and is a veterinary dental specialist. I began my working career in personal fitness and nutrition, then continued on in business management. After the birth of our fourth child, I switched my focus and have spent the last decade dedicated to raising and educating our children here in this amazing place. The land here has been our classroom, and nature was my trusted teaching assistant.
As the children grew and gained their independence, I turned some of my attention to the land, the water, the plants, and the animals living here. And I dedicated myself to protecting and preserving the environment that nurtured the growth of my family.
My Story
I am a proud native Floridian, born in Hollywood, FL. I had the honor of growing up in the Everglades of South Florida. My upbringing was unique to say the least. My grandfather purchased many acres of land out in the swamp and created a remarkable neighborhood for my family, extended relatives, and close family friends. We helped one another build our homes and formed a community where I felt very protected and surrounded by love.
As a child, I adventured amongst the pine trees and tromped through the swamps. My sisters and I fished with the gators and played with the snakes and frogs. We explored along the paths of the panthers and the bobcats and caught crawdads with our friends & cousins to eat for lunch. The whole neighborhood would join together for pig roasts where we'd play under the stars around bonfires and dance with the fireflies.
My childhood was the Everglades, and it was amazing!
A Fight to Save Our Homes
My childhood memories are so great, but one stands out that changed my respect for the wetlands of Florida. Growing up, I remember family meetings that were pretty stressful. My Grandparents, my mother & father, my aunts & uncles and other family leaders had to battle the government against Eminent Domain. The state wanted to take our land and build a road right through our neighborhood! We fought long and hard to stop them! We didn't want compensation; we wanted to keep our land and save our community!
The photo to the left shows the oldest arial photo I could find of my childhood home. We were surrounded by the forest and wetlands.
Victory was Sweet, but Short Lived.
Persistence paid off and the road construction was halted just a few hundred feet south of our homes. A substation now marks the end of the road that was planned to run through our neighborhood. Their fight had saved our homes, but the victory was short lived. Urban development quickly made its way through the forest that surrounded our neighborhood and huge retention ponds were dug to drain the wetlands. Peace and security were forever lost. One by one, our families relocated. The homes where I grew up still remain there today, but the community I loved and the forest I felt so protected in, quickly disappeared.
Continuing the Fight
So, brings me to who I am today and why I'm doing what I'm doing here at Pine Street Basin Preserve. I'm all grown up and fighting to save the forest that surrounds my current home. Urban development is moving towards us very rapidly! Forests are being cleared so that roads can be widened, housing complexes are being built, and fast-food restaurants are popping up where trees and animals used to live. It's frightening, because I know how quickly everything can be lost.
Creating the preserve is my first step in raising awareness of this important forest basin. I'm using my skills to manage the preserve and learning everything I can about conservation. I recently completed a Natural Resource Management Internship with the Alachua Conservation Trust and became certified as a Wildland Firefighter. I will continue to seek knowledge and apply the best management practices available to protect this land and all that inhabit it.
I'm looking forward to sharing this land with my community, with local schools and with all who love nature! The future looks bright and full of green tress, clear waters, and protected wildlife.