Community Spotlight: Mirren Hill, Administrative & Education Coordinator

PICTURED: Mirren Hill

As we welcome Fall, we're excited to spotlight one of our newest team members: Mirren Hill, the Administrative and Education Coordinator at Piedmont Wildlife Center!

Originally from Cary, NC, Mirren attended UNCW in Wilmington, NC, where she earned her Bachelor’s in Geosciences, and then NC State for her Master’s in Climate Change and Society. Mirren has always loved science, and her passion for environmental education led her to join PWC in January of 2024 as a Homeschool Counselor. Now, she supports our Administrative and Education teams in many ways, including but not limited to running our online and in-person Nature Store and assisting with payroll.

When asked what drew her to PWC, Mirren explained, “PWC’s mission really resonated with me. I believe people’s connection to nature is so important, not only for their well-being but also to inspire the next generation to protect the environment.”

Outside of work, you’ll find Mirren hiking, golfing, or working toward her goal of visiting every US National Park. Her favorite Ambassador Animal? Tony, the Great Horned Owl!

Mirren, we’re so glad to have you as part of the PWC family and can’t wait to see the positive impact you’ll continue to make!

Plant Magic: American Beautyberry

Left: American beautyberry photographed at PWC in mid July. Pale flowers are still present and the berries are starting to grow.

Right: American beautyberry photographed at PWC in mid August. Flowers are gone and the berries are starting to turn purple. 

Photos by Camryn Jefferson.

Join our Conservation Assistant, Camryn Jefferson, as she shares her installment in our Plant Magic series. In this installment, Camryn brings you a vibrant late summer shrub! 

As late summer approaches, one shrub you’ll start to notice more is the American beautyberry, sometimes known as French mulberry, Callicarpa americana. In Greek, Callicarpa translates to "beauty" (callos) and "fruit" (carpos). This native perennial is hard to miss, standing five to eight feet tall with vibrant purple fruits from late summer to early fall. In the spring, beautyberry comes to life with green leaves appearing on large, drooping branches. In early summer, clusters of light purple flowers bloom, and then in August, the vibrant purple fruits begin to appear, which are now in full display!

Beautyberry is a wonderful native plant, as it has a high moisture content and provides food for over 40 species of songbirds, including thrashers, cardinals, finches, and towhee. The fruits are also eaten by mammals such as foxes, opossums, racoons, and squirrels.   

While researching more about our native shrub, I learned that in the early 20th century, crushed beautyberry leaves were used by farmers to repel mosquitoes and biting bugs from themselves and their horses. The Agricultural Research Service has found that callicarpenal and intermedeol are the compounds in the leaves that act as repellent against mosquitoes, fire ants, and ticks. Inspired by this, I’ll be making my own homemade insect repellent this summer!

Adding a native shrub like beautyberry to your garden enhances biodiversity by attracting and supporting birds, pollinators, and mammals. Here’s a tip for maintenance: American beautyberry blooms on new wood in the spring, so be sure to prune the shrub in late winter. While this native bush does not necessarily require pruning, it does respond very well to it. 

If you're interested in welcoming native plants like these into your own garden, consider supporting both your local ecosystem and Piedmont Wildlife Center by buying plants from Garden for Wildlife by National Wildlife Federation! 15% of each purchase you make through our referral link will be donated directly to Piedmont Wildlife Center to help us connect more people with nature.

Blazing a New Trail: Introducing Nick DiColandrea, Our New Executive Director

As we transition from summer to fall, Piedmont Wildlife Center is also embracing its own season of change. This year has brought its own unique challenges, including a leadership transition, but we’ve also experienced a surge in participation in our camps and animal programs. It’s been a period of growth and adaptation, filled with exciting new possibilities.

We’re thrilled to announce that Nick DiColandrea will join us as our new Executive Director, starting August 26, 2024. Nick comes to us with an extensive background in nonprofit leadership, environmental program management, and financial management, along with over a decade of experience in grant writing. In his previous role as Climate Strategies Officer at the Conservation Trust for North Carolina, he directed one of the state’s largest environmental AmeriCorps programs, significantly developed program resources, and established new systems for numerous partners to implement impactful climate and environmental initiatives.

Beyond his professional accomplishments, Nick is deeply involved in the Triangle community. He served as Treasurer on the Board of The Museum of Life and Science and has held multiple leadership positions with the PTA at his children’s school. His community engagement reflects his commitment to making a positive impact both personally and professionally.

We’re confident that Nick's expertise, infectious enthusiasm, and passion for environmental stewardship will bring new energy to our programs and mission. We appreciate your continued support as we warmly welcome Nick DiColandrea as Executive Director and look forward to sharing opportunities for you to connect with him as he steps into his new role. With Nick’s guidance, we’re excited to continue building on our two-decade-long legacy of fostering nature connection and creating meaningful impact.

“I am so pleased that Nick DiColandrea has joined our team. We are all looking forward to the excitement he will infuse. We are excited to see Piedmont Wildlife Center grow and continue to evolve while staying true to its mission. Welcome, Nick!”

— Dr. Bobby Schopler, Founder and Board President

Onward To New Adventures: A Farewell Note from Our Executive Director, Karen McCall

Greetings and farewell, PWC community!

I write with a mix of sadness and joy, tears and smiles, as I look back at my 12 ½ years at Piedmont Wildlife Center. I think about our mission, vision, core values and how we have grown; how much our reach has expanded. Before coming here, I worked as the Assistant Director at Charlotte Nature Museum, where we also had live animal ambassadors that connected so many. When we needed an animal, I would look to PWC for non-releasables they may have back when they/we were a rehabilitation hospital. As life changed, and I wanted to move back to Chapel Hill, I applied for the Conservation Coordinator position. During my interview with Gail Abrams, a counselor with a group of camp kids found an injured bird and came to get Gail to help. Down the road we went to free it from some plastic near a pond. Just like my interview with Charlotte Nature Museum, it was filled with excitement, live animals, and a foreshadowing of how working here would be - never a dull moment and always an opportunity to learn and teach!

I remember driving down the road after the interview and getting the strongest feeling that this was where I was supposed to be. I had never felt that so strongly before. The timing for that position didn’t work out, and I felt very conflicted going against my gut. Any time I have gone against my gut, it hasn’t panned out so well. But several months later, I was able to sell my condo in Davidson, NC, took a leap of faith, and moved back to my hometown. The first thing I did was reach out to Gail and start my time with PWC as a volunteer for a few months before getting hired on as the Summer Camp Coordinator. Wow, did my life change! 

Although I had a love of nature and connected with it, the philosophy introduced through camp and adult programs here, and the hard skills I learned brought me to a much deeper connection with nature, a big a-ha moment, and the opportunity to work with fabulous, knowledgeable, creative, accepting people. Working with Gail and Sarah Haggerty restored my faith and trust in people you work with. We had a community that was welcoming, accepting, supportive and trusting. We worked well together and balanced each other. So many wonderful people joined us that I cannot begin to name them/y’all for fear of leaving someone out. Although many have moved on to continue our mission in their ways, I am honored that I was able to work with all and learn from them. Many are still in touch and part of my community. What a road we have traveled!

There are so many memories that flood my brain, bringing laughter, tears, smiles and gratitude. Thank you all for the successes, chances to learn together, challenges we grew from, and belief in what we do. I offer my sincere appreciation to all who have supported us on many levels, connect with nature, build community, and continue to do so.  I encourage each of you to continue to support PWC, our passionate staff, and the new person who takes the reins. 

Summer is for change, fire and new beginnings. I am excited to see what the next leadership brings. As I head off on my own journey and set PWC on theirs, it is appropriate to use a term derived from the Old English word faran, which means to journey, and well, meaning wish the traveler a good or safe trip…FAREWELL!

Happy Trails,

Karen McCall

Plant Magic: Carolina Wild Petunia and Southern Magnolia

Carolina Wild Petunia (Left) and Southern Magnolia (Right). Photos by Karen McCall.

Join our retiring Executive Director, Karen McCall, as she shares her last installment in our Plant Magic series. The reins will be passed to Camryn Jefferson, another member of our staff who is passionate about plants. In Karen's farewell installment, she brings you two plants that remind her of summer, resilience, and childhood! 

It is with a heavy heart that I write my last piece of our Plant Magic series. I've delighted in sharing all the flora with you. It has brought lightness to my soul, smiles to my face, and deep gratitude for my senses and the beauty of our surroundings. In my last piece, I brought you white clover, Trifolium repens. Although I never referred to it as a native plant, I want to clarify that it is NOT native but does a lot to amend the soil. There are two clovers native to NC, but unfortunately, both are extremely rare. The first is Carolina Clover, Trifolium carolinanum, which looks similar to white clover but with a hint of pink. If you're lucky, you might find them by our coast in New Hanover, Onslow, and Duplin counties. The other is Buffalo Clover, Trifolium reflexum, whose red or white flower sits above the leaves. They have been found in Randolph, Stokes, Caswell, and other counties around our state. 

Now, I want to introduce you to two native plants that remind me of my time at Piedmont Wildlife Center ("PWC"). One, a common roadside and woodland plant, Carolina Wild Petunia, Ruellia caroliniensis, and two, the classic Southern Magnolia, Magnolia grandiflora. The Ruellia blooms from spring through summer and catches my eye everywhere I roam with its purple flowers. Despite the heat, humidity, dry spells, and thunderstorms of the season, the Carolina Wild Petunia continues to flash a few of its five-petalled flowers. There aren't many wildflowers blooming right now, so this one pops out. To me, this plant reflects the power of resilience. Throughout my time here, we have had some unbelievable challenges yet remained as resilient as Ruellia through them all, and I believe we will continue to do so. 

As I reflect on so many great memories and relationships that have grown in our community, I link many with smells. "Smell and memory seem to be so closely linked because of the brain's anatomy," says Harvard's Venkatesh Murthy, a Life Sciences Professor and chair of the Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology. Fires have always been an important part of our camp programs, and the aromas of cedar and oak leave me feeling happy, free, and cleansed. Their smells bring back fond memories of campers' first experiences with fire-making, and the excitement, fear, and empowerment that that activity brought. Flashes of backpacking trips, our annual solstice celebrations, and camping trips from a very young age to the present dance through my head. 

The smell of Southern Magnolia brings me visions of summer, all stemming (no pun intended) from growing up in Chapel Hill and going to the outdoor pool at UNC for swim lessons. Two big trees lined the steps leading to the pool, and I would inhale as deeply as I could when going down those steps. After spending many years in our Plant Guild classes at PWC, I am now drawn to the way this tree grows with its large gray trunk and low sweeping branches, the feel of the six-inch blossoms with 6 to 12 petals, and ovate, glossy, leathery leaves, so strong and protective. There is one near me that appears to have multiple trunks that grew from the main roots, though that is not described in any of the books I used for reference. These trees are planted in many yards as ornamentals, are native to North Carolina, and are evergreen. Traditionally, the Southern Magnolia was used to treat circulatory system disorders, and, according to NC Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox, it potentially has extracts to use in pharmaceuticals.

I close this last entry with my gratitude for all of you. Thank you for supporting Piedmont Wildlife Center, and our native environment. I hope these writings have brought happy memories to you, or inspired you to engage with plants - whether by planting them, studying them, smelling them, sitting amongst them, painting your yard with their colors, or simply savoring their presence. Please continue to support PWC and connect with nature for your well-being and our planet's. 

See you out in the wild! 

Happy Trails,

Karen McCall

If you're interested in welcoming native plants like these into your own garden, consider supporting both your local ecosystem and Piedmont Wildlife Center by buying plants from Garden for Wildlife by National Wildlife Federation! 15% of each purchase you make through our referral link will be donated directly to Piedmont Wildlife Center to help us connect more people with nature. Purchase your plants before July 21st to take advantage of their Christmas in July sale!