Texas volunteers are featured in NWTF's Waterways for Wildlife Initative

Volunteers are the lifeblood of the NWTF's Waterways for Wildlife Initiative.

From building local partnerships and securing funds to helping advance conservation projects on the ground, their dedication to restoring vital riparian areas in the Great Plains is leaving the land better for wild turkeys and the overall ecosystem.

Launched in 2022, the 10-year Waterways for Wildlife Initiative aims to improve the health and vigor of riparian areas on at least 75,000 acres. This ambitious plan will enhance 1,500 linear miles of rivers and streams in the American Great Plains, stretching from North Dakota to South Texas.

For the NWTF’s 2026 Conservation Week, we are putting a spotlight on a few outstanding individuals who go above and beyond to move the effort forward.

Dillon Taylor, Texas - Dillon Taylor's journey with the NWTF began in 2021, but his passion for wild turkeys stretches back much further. Raised near Tulsa, Oklahoma, Taylor harvested his first turkey with his father in 2002, an experience that "lit a fire" in him and sparked a lifelong obsession with the bird.

After years of attending local NWTF banquets, Taylor reached a point where he felt called to do more. He volunteered with his local Athens, Texas, chapter and quickly became deeply involved.

"I just finally felt like I could do more and wanted to do more," he said.

Within a year, he stepped into the role of chapter president and was invited to join the Texas NWTF State Chapter, where he now helps guide conservation investments, oversees scholarships, coordinates state calling contests and supports mission delivery across the state.

Jennifer Barrow, Texas - Barrow has spent nearly three decades blending her passion for wildlife conservation, education and wild turkey management through both her career with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and her volunteer service with the NWTF.

Barrow first became involved with the NWTF in the mid-1990s while working as a wildlife technician in East Texas. A local NWTF JAKES event sparked her interest, combining two things she loves most: conservation and teaching people about the outdoors. Since then, she has remained deeply involved, eventually helping establish a chapter in Decatur, Texas, where she has served as chapter president ever since.

Professionally, Barrow serves as a wildlife biologist with Texas Parks and Wildlife, conducting game surveys, working with landowners on habitat management, managing research projects and trapping wild turkeys. Throughout her career, she's had the unique opportunity to see the NWTF mission from both sides. She helps raise conservation dollars through chapter events and then watches those same funds support habitat projects, research efforts and turkey management programs she helps implement on the ground.

Lee Zimmerman, Texas - For Zimmerman, volunteering with the NWTF is about far more than hosting successful banquets. It's about building a stronger future for conservation, supporting youth programs and creating sustainable ways to grow the organization's impact.

"There's just so many aspects that benefit the public in general, and that's why I enjoy it," he said. "I'm more in it for the conservation and getting more people involved and the kids, because I know that when you improve land for turkeys, you're also improving it for other wildlife."

Zimmerman and his wife Cathy began attending NWTF banquets around 2006 and became deeply involved in volunteer leadership when they helped establish a chapter in Montgomery County, Texas, in 2017. Drawing on his background in sales and business development, Zimmerman approached chapter leadership with a strategic mindset, setting ambitious goals centered on membership growth and fundraising for conservation. Those efforts quickly paid off, earning national recognition and establishing a pattern of success that has continued through multiple chapters and communities.

Read the whole story here.