The Friends of Warner Parks’ Spring Luncheon Celebrates a Return to the Trails

Sun shone on the fifth annual Friends of Warner Parks Spring Luncheon, as co-chairs Cathy Grier, Jodie Lawton, Aleigh Sanchez and Caroline Tompkins welcomed guests back to the Nature Center, like so many wildflowers returning to the surrounding woods and meadows of Percy and Edwin Warner Parks. 

The perennial event supports the preservation, stewardship and protection of the nearly 3,200 acres of fields and forests in the Warner Parks system, a natural asset dear to this group.

During the reception, guests mingled while browsing raffle items, including coveted prizes like a suite of Yeti products and a luxury shelter dinner in the park. As always on a beautiful spring afternoon, convincing attendees to leave the sunny setting and make their way into the luncheon tent proved difficult. Friends of Warner Parks president Jenny Hannon handled the task with her usual grace and warmth.

Once guests settled into their seats, Jenny reminded them that during last year’s luncheon, she asked everyone to close their eyes and imagine life without the parks. “Sadly, this year we learned we didn’t have to close our eyes,” she said.

Jenny shared that the organization had received overwhelming support when winter storm Fern destroyed more than 5,000 trees — some 2,000 of which fell across roads and trails — forcing the parks to close for two months. 

She then recounted a conversation she’d had the weekend before the luncheon, when she’d encountered a fellow hiker happy to be back on the park’s trails. Pointing to the nature surrounding them, he told Jenny, “You can’t buy this.”

“And he is exactly right,” Jenny told the group. “That is why I think this is such a special place for all of us. It’s truly a gift.”