Environmental Club of the Villages

The Environmental Club of the Villages will be normally meet on the second Wednesday of each month at Lake Miona Recreation Center from 3:00pm to 5:00pm.

May 13, 2026 Meeting at Lake Miona Rec Center, 3PM: Gopher Tortoises by Sue Goges and Patrick Buckley

Patrick and Sue are residents of the Villages who have researched and compiled information concerning the Gopher Tortoise population in the Preserves of the Villages. They are volunteers with the Fish and Wildlife Gopher Tortoise program and are members of the national Gopher Tortoise Council. They will have a power-point presentation, handouts and a question-and-answer session regarding the estimated Gopher Tortoises residing in the Villages, most of which reside in the Harold S. Schwartz Wildlife Preserve. The presentation will including the protected status of Gopher Tortoises in Florida, their life expectancy, what they eat, and annual “hatchlings,” This is especially timely as it is that time of year that they reproduce.

also on the Program:

Mike McSherry

H&S, Remediation Technologies

Mike will discuss some interesting projects he has been involved with

and emerging issues, with an overview of legislative and regulatory frameworks.

Beverly Winterscheid

Beverly will present a short discussion on the results of the questionnaire we

had at the last meeting. If you haven’t filled out the questionnaire, it will be available at the meeting.

The organizers of this group are Sumter County Master Gardeners and Florida Master Naturalists and we decided to create this group to fill a need.

We have established this group to encompass all aspects of the environment here in The Villages.

We hope to complement existing bird, animal, and plant groups by taking a broader, systematic approach to conservation.

We already have many exciting things planned such as guest speakers, giveaways, show and tell opportunities, recommendations for how to live better inside your house and out, hands-on activities, group discussion and much more.