News

2025 Annual Meeting & Board Elections

 

NICHES Land Trust members are invited to attend the 2025 Annual Meeting on Saturday, June 21.

Join NICHES from 1:00 – 3:00 p.m. at the John S. Wright Forestry Center, which is located in Martell Forest a 1007 N 725 W in West Lafayette. This year's meeting will feature the presentation the organization’s annual report and election of new and renewing board members. Members who cannot attend the meeting in person are invited to submit the absentee ballot found in the 2025 Winter edition of The Sprout.

RSVP Here >>

The meeting will be followed by a potluck reception. Everyone is invited to stick around for NICHES’ 30th Birthday Celebration from 3:00 – 5:00 p.m., featuring cake, ice cream, and activities!

2025 Board Member Elections

Current members of NICHES are invited to take part in the annual election of board members. This year, we have 6 board members up for re-election and 1 members ready to serve their first term. Note: There is room on the board for all candidates. 

Members may vote for any candidates they wish by attending the Annual Meeting on June 21 or submitting an absentee ballot to NICHES no later than June 21.

New Board Member

John Duffey
Having spent nearly 40 years as a trial lawyer with a focus on property law, I believe my experience can be valuable in supporting NICHES’ mission. As a resident of Tippecanoe County for over four decades, I’ve seen firsthand the importance of preserving our natural spaces for future generations. While retired from my role as a partner at Stuart & Branigin Law Firm in Lafayette, I continue to work part-time “Of Counsel” with Fletcher & Sippel LLC in Chicago. Outside of work, I enjoy spending time with my wife, Teresa, our three adult children, and our energetic household of one dog and four cats. I’m excited to be part of such a passionate and dedicated group and look forward to helping NICHES continue its impactful work.

Board Members for Re-Election

Vanessa Pacheco
Vanessa works as the Program Manager for RE-AMP where she facilitates encounters across the Midwest that support an equitable and just climate future. Vanessa earned her M.S.Ed. in Higher Education and Student Affairs in 2015 from Indiana University before embracing Lafayette as her home. She traditionally works with teams to set plans for working with media, running educational programs, and managing intra-group relationships. She co-founded the ACE Campus Food Pantry and the Greater Lafayette Legal Defense Fund. Vanessa currently serves as NICHES Board Vice President loves to hike the preserves with her two dogs and encounter wild mushrooms on the trails.

Kent Walters
Kent is a native Hoosier whose love of nature led him to earn his PhD in physiology, studying Alaskan beetles at the University of Notre Dame. Currently Kent, his husband, and his three sons live on a 5th-generation family farm in Warren County. Here Kent discovered his love for land management. Kent has been helping to manage the family cattle herd with an eye towards promoting native grassland biodiversity. He has become an advocate for native plant communities and has helped lead a prairie restoration project with NICHES at Cicott Park.

 

Continuing Board Members          

• Mike Bristol 
• Jarred Brooke 
• Brad Carlson 
• Jill Evans 
• John Graveel 
• Trent Hanthorn, President
• Jenna Isch 
• Krista Johnson 
• Rick Johnson-Sheehan, Secretary 
• Mike Murr 
• Brent Talcott, Treasurer 
  
  For questions, please contact niches@nicheslandtrust.org or call 765-423-1605.