In Georgetown, Delaware, 94-year-old Austin Okie has been donating forests and farmlands to conservation groups for years, ensuring that at least some of them are preserved from being acquired by corporations. In fact, some of the most environmentally sensitive areas are protected because of Okie's efforts, per Delaware Online.

"It's hard to imagine what Delaware would look like without Austin Okie's decades of generosity and passion for our natural spaces," said Lori Brennan, executive director of The Nature Conservancy in Delaware and Pennsylvania.

"He and his family have protected and preserved thousands of acres of important forests and open space in Delaware, safeguarding an irreplaceable mosaic of plant life and wildlife habitat."

According to Delaware Center for the Inland Bays Executive Director Christophe Tulou, Okie has a deep connection to the area and knows that future generations will appreciate the land being saved. Okie has also expressed his dedication to conservation.

"It almost seemed like fate or something like that," Okie said. "I knew somehow it should not be sold to developers. It should be used for protecting the environment, and I was right."

Okie was a mechanic and a self-proclaimed late bloomer, but he's not one to brag. Ryan Faucett, Okie's first cousin twice removed, said his respect for the natural world inspires him. By taking steps to conserve Sussex County's ecologically valuable areas, Okie is showing respect to the native Americans who once lived on the land.

Okie's grandfather, Linford P. Faucett, was a major landowner in southern Delaware, and his daughter Isabel ended up leaving behind much of the land for Okie.

"I started looking into who I was and I was so damn surprised," Okie said. "I didn't have a clue."

In 1997, Okie and his family first donated land to The Nature Conservancy, a global environmental nonprofit. The 400-acre Bullseye-Ferry Landing Preserve is located on the Indian River in Millsboro and houses rare flora, fauna, and more than 65 species of migratory birds. Okie's family farm is also part of the preserved land, making it that much more special.

Okie made sure to commemorate the native Americans who once occupied the land, with a historical marker located on the conservancy that reads: "Before Dutch control of what is now Sussex County, Native American Iwatama Socuum held 'Long Reach,' now Bullseye-Ferry Landing Preserve."

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To keep the land untouched, Bullseye-Ferry Landing is closed to the public.

In 2007, Okie and The Nature Conservancy set aside an additional 118 acres at Poplar Thicket in Long Neck. The Marian R. Okie Memorial Wildlife Preserve, now managed by the state, is one of the few undeveloped properties along Long Neck Road.

Okie said that it's a popular spot with birders and amateur photographers, because it's one of the only pieces of untouched wilderness left in Delaware. The beautiful property contains tidal salt marsh, forests, fields, wetlands, and an isolated beach on the Indian River Bay.

He's also donated two forested properties to the town of Fenwick Island, which will be named the Faucett Okie Family Preserve. The town plans to open the preserve to the public before Memorial Day, with a formal ceremony scheduled for the fall.

The nonprofit Delaware Center for the Inland Bays' Austin F. Okie Watershed Society was created last year to honor Okie's contributions. Society members have given more than $50,000 to the Center and will likely continue to donate to help protect such a sacred landscape.

"This is a very special place we call home, and I feel a strong responsibility to protect our unique bays and wildlife," Okie told Center representatives, per Delaware Online.

"My hope for the future is that many, many more people will support the Center for the Inland Bays' efforts to protect and restore them."

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