Donor Spotlights

In the breakfast room of Sean Couch’s grandfather’s house hung a photograph of a black bear. Sean remembers seeing it every day while growing up. His grandfather, Jesse Couch, who raised him, would tell Sean stories about that black bear, whose name was...

A first trip to Grandfather Mountain in 1985 forever changed the course of Valerie Brehmer’s life. While living in California she came east to visit friends in Burnsville, N.C., and they brought her to Grandfather. She was “amazed at the vast amount of...

There are many special animals who have been a part of the Grandfather Mountain family, starting with the beloved Mildred the Bear who arrived in 1968 and extending to the animals who call Grandfather Mountain home today. In addition to those living in the Mildred the...

When planning the TRAIL (Teaching Responsibility and Inspiring Leadership) Blazers program for local middle school children, Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation (GMSF) staff immediately thought about John and Faye Cooper and their company, Mast General Store,...

Grandfather Mountain has always been a big part of the lives of Gail and Snyder Garrison and their family. One of the couple’s first dates was hiking the Profile Trail through rain and hail to go camping on a weekend away from college at UNC-Chapel Hill. Snyder’s...

“It’s our job to foster a child’s curiosity of nature and science, and help them to understand the world around them.” – Stewart Gray Stewart and Martha Gray have taken their two grandchildren across North Carolina exploring science museums. For them, an...

Lory and Ray Lockwood have been coming to Linville in the summers since the 1970s with their parents Peggy and Bill Lockwood. Grandfather Mountain was their playground, and it loomed large over their family’s mountain getaway. “It was just where we went to relax and...

Munroe and Becky Cobey wake up to a view of Grandfather from their home near the base of the mountain. This sight is one that they do not take for granted, as it was a top priority for them when they selected their homesite. “Grandfather Mountain is a gift that keeps...

What is the story and inspiration behind the vibrant new bear portrait hung prominently in the Wilson Center for Nature Discovery? The project had been in the works since 2019, when artist Kent Paulette first proposed the idea of creating and then donating an original...