Hidden Oaks volunteer honored by Park Board

Hidden Oaks Nature Center, where volunteers make all the difference.

Hidden Oaks Nature Center volunteer Marilyn Schroeder, a volunteer at Hidden Oaks Nature Center in Annandale, is one of three recipients of a 2018 Elly Doyle Park Service Award.

Elly Doyle Awards are presented by the Fairfax County Park Authority Board to individuals or organizations who exemplify outstanding volunteer service.

Schroeder has been a role model for staff and volunteers at Hidden Oaks Nature Center for 12 years, serving as a program leader, working with the Invasive Management Area program, and serving as the park board’s liaison for Fairfax Master Naturalists.

She educates students about watersheds, takes part in other school outreach programs, represented Hidden Oaks at programs at the Smithsonian’s Udvar-Hazy Museum, and has given presentations on natural history stewardship for Hispanics Against Child Abuse and Neglect, Rec-PAC summer camp programs, and Earth Day events at a senior center.

The park board also announced Elly Doyle Awards for Michael Applegate, a volunteer who puts in long hours maintaining the grounds at Laurel Hill Park in Lorton, and Turner Farm Events, a nonprofit that supports equestrian events at Turner Farm Park in Great Falls.

Five individuals received Elly Doyle Special Recognition Awards, including William Tuceling, a volunteer at Green Spring Gardens.

The awards will be presented at an evening ceremony in November.