Redwood Forest Foundation

Fall 2011 Newsletter

North Coast Loses Three Forest Champions

Matt Coleman

This past August saw the tragic murders of two well known and highly respected individuals, both of whom were killed while on the job in the woods.

Matt Coleman (45) worked for the Mendocino Land Trust organizing volunteers to remove invasive plants and educating them on forest ecology.

Jere Melo

Jere Melo (68) was a longtime city councilman and former mayor of Fort Bragg who also worked on the security staff of Campbell Timberland Management Company.

Bud Harwood

A third forest champion, Bud Harwood, passed away at his home in Branscomb on September 1, just one week shy of his 85th birthday. Bud had been a giant in the Mendocino timber industry since the 1940s and at its peak his family business, Harwood Products, was one of the largest private employers in Mendocino County. Bud believed in community service and is well known for his extensive civic involvement and generous financial support of many community causes. He was an advocate of sustainable forestry and a critical early supporter of RFFI.

We sorely miss these three friends and honor their legacies of dedicated community involvement.

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