Founder shifts to science role as organization welcomes new director
By Zachary Matson
During a paddle with her husband from Church Pond to Osgood Pond, Dorothy Waldt heard the distinctive call of a loon. But there was no bird in sight. As they emerged from a narrow canal, the loon showed itself, a sentinel of Adirondack wilderness.
“There’s something romantic and mysterious about it,” Waldt said in a recent interview. “I don’t know that there is another bird call that gives you that feeling.”
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Starting next month, Waldt, who spent her career helping large companies fill executive leadership positions, will be working full time on behalf of Adirondack loons when she takes over as executive director of the Adirondack Center for Loon Conservation.
The center’s founder and longtime leader Nina Schoch will take on a new position as the center’s director of science and conservation, freeing her from the administrative duties of managing a nonprofit.
“I will have more time to contribute to our research studies, management efforts, development of our educational exhibits and outreach programs,” Schoch said. “Dorothy has an excellent background in leadership, business, program and financial management, and familiarity with the Adirondacks.”
A new direction
After spending most of their lives in New Jersey, Waldt and her husband purchased a home in Saranac Lake in late 2020 and relocated full time a couple of years later. She worked as an executive recruiter in the retail sector for over 20 years, running her own consultancy and helping large businesses fill important leadership vacancies. She said she learned about different business and leadership strategies working with her clients.
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“You learn so much about different aspects of business,” Waldt said. “I get to use that experience in an organization with a beautiful foundation that is beloved in the community and throughout the Adirondacks.”
Giving back in other ways
Waldt said she has always been committed to volunteering and community service. Her husband was in the mezzanine level of the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001, heading in for a job interview. He was able to flee safely.
After hearing from a friend who lived near Ground Zero, Waldt worked to ensure relief organizations would increase payments to displaced renters, many who were not insured.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Waldt helped organize the deliveries of 7,000 care kits to workers at a pair of nearby hospitals.
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Thinking about the world her two children will inherit, Waldt said, she grew more interested in supporting environmental and wildlife causes.
Waldt has never worked in the conservation field, but she plans to bring her mix of professional and volunteer experience to the loon center, working to bolster administrative efficiency, fundraising and expand awareness of the organization throughout the Adirondack Park and even more broadly. The loon center had about $520,000 in total revenue in 2023, according to federal nonprofit records.
Plans for the loon center
Waldt said she wants to increase the loon center’s engagement with students and schools, expand research into what loons can teach us about the health of the larger ecosystem and reach audiences in more corners of the Adirondack Park.
“The loon center has such wonderful scientific knowledge, a strong foundation,” Waldt said. “I can now say how do we take that to the next level? How do you expand on it?”
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Schoch said the leadership change is part of a long-term succession plan to prepare the organization for her eventual retirement and ensure its continued work.
Schoch will be monitoring and rescuing loons and expanding on research efforts in the meantime. She is also working to establish an Adirondack Wildlife Health Institute in partnership with SUNY ESF’s Adirondack Ecological Center in Newcomb.
The proposed facility would be a place to care for injured wildlife, while expanding training and education for rehabilitators, students and veterinarians. Starting with loons, it could grow to support other species in the Adirondacks, according to a proposal summary.
“I hope the loon center will become a valuable resource for the public and policymakers to understand the importance of continuing to protect the environment, through the lives of Adirondack loons,” Schoch said.
The nonprofit’s new chapter got off to a good start the Tuesday after Thanksgiving. As nonprofits solicited donors on “Giving Tuesday,” the loon center raised over $30,000.
“I don’t know anyone who doesn’t love loons,” Waldt said.
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