Volunteer Spotlight

Mary Kay, Margy Verba, Jose Perez, John Dittli, Bill Bailey, Carol Wiley, Dave Willis, Louie Lujan, Todd Vogel, Matt Nelson

Dave Willis

Dave Willis began exploring wildlands at a young age, starting backpacking when he was 11 and mountain climbing at 17. By age 19 he was working as a guide for treks into the High Sierra in California.

During An expedition to the top of Mount McKinley at age 23, Dave suffered severe frostbite and lost over half of each foot and all his fingers. Rather than causing him to give up on rugged wildlands, this experience led him to continue his spiritual journey. Over the next several years Dave gained a master’s degree in theology and the rock-solid conviction that "God cares for all creation – people and the rest of creation, as well. And the best parts of creation left are the wild places.”

Dave began a life of activism, fighting to protect the country’s pristine wildlands. He soon founded Wild Hope, a non-profit with two complementary programs that aim to expose people to wilderness. Sierra Treks specializes in “wilderness trips for people,” leading church and school groups on challenging wilderness retreats. Littlefoot Expeditions offers “people trips for wilderness,” leading wilderness trips for policy makers.

Since 1972, Sierra Treks has been leading wilderness trips out of Bridgeport, in California’s Eastern Sierra. Many of these trips have been into proposed additions to the Hoover Wilderness, which Dave describes as some of the “most rugged, beautiful wildlands in the American West.” Through these trips, countless individuals develop a firsthand understanding of the grandeur and remoteness that will be lost if we do not act quickly to preserve our public wildlands – magnificent areas that, as Dave explains, “are wild in fact, but not wild by law.”

Dave’s great efforts have been honored with many awards. The California Wild Heritage Campaign would also like to join the chorus in thanking Dave for all of his hard work and continued support. Dave, along with all of our volunteers around the state, is making a difference.

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