Volunteer goes above and beyond for wetland conservation

Using what she learned, and working with DUC, she and her husband Neil created a wetland pond on their property which she’s proud to say, “now has two sets of wood ducks calling it home.”

Friends volunteering on DUC’s Sarnia Committee encouraged Jardine to join them and take part in their event. “They (the committee) were small, and we were excited to help. Neil and I have been volunteering ever since,” Jardine says, noting that she and her husband became DUC members eight years ago.

It was in 2022-23 that Jardine helped pull off the extraordinary feat of hosting three successful fundraising initiatives in just eight months. “We started with an August fundraising banquet, something that is sometimes tricky but we thought we would try and, thankfully, it was a sellout crowd. Then we put up a booth (which had never been done before) at our local Farmers & Friends Big Buck Day held in Oil Springs in March to promote Ducks Unlimited and ended up selling out the April banquet!”

After that came another first for the Sarnia-Lambton committee, their inaugural Annual Sporting Clay Shoot at Twin Creek Shooting Preserve. “We hoped to get 50 to 75 shooters,” Jardine says. “Instead, we sold out with 100 registered shooters.”

Aside from bringing both awareness and funding to wetland conservation, for Jardine, it all comes down to one thing: community. “I am truly blessed to have developed a great group of friends and volunteers within the Sarnia-Lambton committee and beyond. It’s an honour to be recognized for doing what I enjoy, spending time with people who also enjoy being involved with Ducks Unlimited and supporting wetland stewardship.” Jardine says she’s thankful for the help of everyone who gets involved.

Irene Jardine’s dedication inspires us all at DUC, and we are so pleased to recognize her as our Ontario Volunteer of the Year. There are approximately 714 DUC volunteers in Ontario and 3,500 across Canada. DUC is proud to recognize each of them—including outstanding leaders like Irene Jardine—as volunteer champions and conservationists who make every moment matter by serving with generosity, passion and dedication.