Our 2024 Volunteers of the Year –Melanie Hagen and Terri Watkins
the STPS Volunteer Appreciation Dinner (January 18, 2025). Photo by Sherrie Williams.
Congrats Melanie and Terri!
Last Saturday, we celebrated all our amazing volunteers at our Volunteer Appreciation Dinner at the Melbourne Yacht Club. Our extraordinary volunteers Melanie Hagen and Terri Watkins were recognized for their dedicated service during 2024 and were named STPS Volunteers of the Year.
Melanie Hagen
Melanie enjoys participating in lots of different STPS activities. She’s part of the Stranding & Salvage, Transport, STERP, Nesting Survey, and Turtle Night Walk teams. She is also on the Fundraising Committee, volunteers at the Turtle Nest, and does community events. In 2023, she was named STPS Hatchling of the Year. To learn more about Melanie, read this blog article: Volunteer Spotlight: Melanie Hagen.
Terri Watkins
Terri is also on the Stranding, Nesting Survey, Turtle Night Walks, and STERP teams. In addition to volunteering for STPS, Terri is a professional photographer – see her website at: Fluttering Shutters Photography. During our 2024 Turtle Krawl 5K Run/Walk, Terri took some amazing photos and video of the race – see links below.
2024 STPS Turtle Krawl Turtle Krawl 2024 Video
In September 2024, during a nest survey, Terri captured the emergence of rare Kemp’s ridley hatchlings on video which was featured in a local news report. Watch the FOX 35 Orlando report using this link: Threatened Sea Turtle Sets New Nesting Record.
Hedrick, Chris Diller, and Corey Mullen (April 2024). Right: Terri (center) with
Nest Survey volunteers Joel Cohen and Julie Albert (August 2024).
Congratulations Melanie and Terri!
Thank You for All Your Amazing Work!
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