Group honors Chamber’s Henderson

Wildlands Conservancy, the premier nonprofit land trust of the Lehigh Valley and Lehigh River watershed, awarded the 2019 Friend of the Lehigh River Award to Kathy Henderson, director of economic development for the Carbon Chamber & Economic Development Corporation, and Zettlemoyer Auction Co. The Friend of the Lehigh River Award recognizes a commitment to preserving, protecting, restoring and enhancing the Lehigh River and its watershed.

“Hundreds of thousands of people rely upon the precious natural resource that is our Lehigh River. Sustaining it as a source of clean, healthy water, as well as a sought-after destination for recreation and respite takes a world of time, talent and support from committed individuals and groups like this year’s recipients,” says Christopher Kocher, president of Wildlands. “It is an honor to recognize the award winners’ legacy of proactively acting and speaking on behalf of the river to inspire its protection for future generations.”

Henderson is a leading advocate for Lehigh River as both a critical natural resource and a contributor to Carbon County’s economic vitality. Through her capacity with CCEDC, she was integral to the development the Carbon County Return on Environment report that was released last year. The report puts a dollar value on the services rendered by nature at no cost to Carbon County and is meant to guide future decision making at the municipal level. Henderson is truly the local face of the report, and has been making it come alive for the County’s decision makers.

Henderson was actively engaged in the realization of the Lehighton Outdoor Center last spring, a rafting, biking and kayaking business situated along the Delaware & Lehigh Trail in Lehighton, and she supported the designation of the borough of Lehighton as a Trail Town.

To help support the outdoor recreation industry in connection with the Lehigh River, Henderson is championing river access and recreational development through the revitalization of Packerton Yards, an approximately 80-acre riverfront property outside of Lehighton.

Zettlemoyer Auction Co. has lead the live auction portion of Wildlands’ Green Gala for all 36 years of the event, first with the company’s founder — Ralph Zettlemoyer — all the way to Ralph’s grandson, Eric.

Along with raising hundreds of thousands of dollars for Wildlands’ conservation and education mission, the auction company donates their time and talent to many local conservation groups, including National Wildlife Turkey Federation and Ducks Unlimited. Within Ralph’s tenure as auctioneer, Zettlemoyer Auction Co. generously donated its time and talent to effectively raise more than $1 million in funds for conservation organizations right within the Lehigh Valley and Lehigh River watershed.