Tom Bradbury’s roots in Maine run deep, with his first ancestor having come to the state in the early 1600s. For the past 40 years he has dedicated himself to protecting the land his family has called home. “Working with the Kennebunkport Conservation Trust has allowed me to forever preserve some of those wonderful properties around which the history, beauty, and character of our community has been formed,” he says. In Bradbury’s time at the trust, the organization has preserved 12 islands in Cape Porpoise Harbor and has protected 2,400 acres of land on which 20 miles of trails have been built. Volunteers started the trust and have driven the work. “We had a passion for wanting to save those properties on which we had played as children, but no actual knowledge about how to accomplish it,” he says. “We used our community to create a network of protected lands; now we are using those protected lands to build a stronger community.” To ensure people know how to care for and protect the lands around them, Bradbury has helped develop a nation- ally recognized education program. Being good stewards is important if people want to continue enjoying Maine’s natural beauty. “It is our responsibility to pass on the best of this state, to pass on that same gift that we have been given,” Bradbury says. “I wanted to pass that on to our children and our children’s children, so they could come to love this special place as we now do.”