Remembering Board Member Helge Heen

To speak with Helge Heen about land conservation, you first had to get past his accent.

Helge was born in Hen, Norway. He made his way to the Genesee Valley via Switzerland where he earned a mechanical engineering degree, followed by a doctorate at MIT, and then arriving at Eastman Kodak where he worked in research and design.

He worked on the development of surveillance cameras for airplanes and satellites which were used by the United States military as well as the lunar orbiter in preparation for the Apollo landings.

In his time here, Helge devoted 14 years to the Conservancy’s Board of Directors (1996-2010) during a period of major growth.

During his time, staff expanded from one to three and protected acres expanded from 3,600 to 12,000.

He personally protected four properties in Avon over the years; 332 acres of land in and around the Nations Road Grasslands Important Bird Area.

We thank his wife of 47 years, Leslie, for directing memorial gifts to the Conservancy so we can continue Helge’s conservation efforts.