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WHO
WE ARE
Staff
Matt Heim - Executive Director
Matt Heim joined the Lower Shore Land Trust as the Executive Director in January, 2024. His career in the environmental field started in 2006 as a seasonal ranger at Assateague Island National Seashore. During the offseason, Matt earned his Masters degree in History from Salisbury University and his academic research focused on the Environmental History of the Lower Shore region. After graduating, Matt spent several years in Memphis, TN managing a network of community gardens and urban farms. In 2013, Matt and his wife Sara returned home to the Eastern Shore to start a family. He quickly rose to the forefront of environmental issues as the leader of a highly successful local campaign in opposition to offshore drilling for oil and gas in the mid-Atlantic region. He then went on to serve as the first director of the One Water Partnership program at Interfaith Partners for the Chesapeake and helped expand the OWP program into multiple regions throughout the Chesapeake Bay Watershed. Prior to joining LSLT, Matt served as the Deputy General Manager of Delmarva Public Media where he helped establish partnerships with the Bay Journal and produce several special programs focusing on environmental issues pertinent to the Delmarva region.
mrheim@lslt.org I 443-234-5587
mrheim@lslt.org I 443-234-5587
Jared Parks - Director of Land Programs
Jared comes to LSLT from the Eastern Shore Land Conservancy (ESLC) located in Easton, MD. He spent nearly 11 years with ESLC where he successfully completed nearly 70 conservation projects preserving over 12,000 acres of land. Prior to working at ESLC, Jared held multiple field-based wildlife research positions largely focusing on avian ecology and habitat management in Colorado, Maryland, Missouri, and Wisconsin. He has a B.A. in Anthropology from Lawrence University in Wisconsin and a Master of Environmental Studies from the Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington. Jared serves as a Board member for the Maryland Bird Conservation Partnership and is an avid birder and gardener.
jparks@lslt.org | 443-234-5587
jparks@lslt.org | 443-234-5587
Frank Deuter - Stewardship Coordinator
Frank has been volunteering with LSLT since high school and participated in Chesapeake Bay Trust's Chesapeake Conservation Corp. program with LSLT during the 2020-2021 cohort. Frank earned his Bachelor's of Science in Environmental Science with minors in Forensic Chemistry and Political Science from Eastern University. Frank works with many programs at LST including GIS projects, easement monitoring, volunteer programming and invasive species removal.
fdeuter@lslt.org | 443-234-5587
fdeuter@lslt.org | 443-234-5587
Beth Sheppard - Agricultural Outreach Specialist
Beth Mariner Sheppard, Agricultural Outreach Specialist with Lower Shore Land Trust is working with a team of energetic mission driven staff.
She's rapidly connecting with the LSLT's Working Lands grant project and digging into outreach opportunities across Worcester, Wicomico and Somerset counties. Beth transitioned from a 25-year career as the owner of a landscape gardening business in Wilmington NC.
With a MA in Environmental Studies, she is returning to her hometown and expanding pollinator habitat on her family farm.
bsheppard@lslt.org | 443-234-5587
She's rapidly connecting with the LSLT's Working Lands grant project and digging into outreach opportunities across Worcester, Wicomico and Somerset counties. Beth transitioned from a 25-year career as the owner of a landscape gardening business in Wilmington NC.
With a MA in Environmental Studies, she is returning to her hometown and expanding pollinator habitat on her family farm.
bsheppard@lslt.org | 443-234-5587
Margot Resto - Executive Administrator
Margot Resto started as Lower Shore Land Trust’s Executive Administrator in November 2022. After graduating from Salisbury University with a B.A. in Communication Arts, Margot worked in the non-profit arts world as Office Manager of the Salisbury Wicomico Arts Council for 12 years. She then went into the corporate food service sector as Personnel Coordinator for Baxter Enterprises for 7 years, and now comes to the Land Trust after three years in her last position as Deputy Town Manager for the Town of Snow Hill. Margot and her bands have performed for several of the LSLT Flannel Formal fundraisers, and she has volunteered for the Lower Shore Land Trust over the last three years, helping with maintenance of area Pollinator Gardens as well as for their Annual Native Plant Sale.
mresto@lslt.org| 443-234-5587
mresto@lslt.org| 443-234-5587
Brooke Orr - Program Specialist, Americorps
Brooke Orr is a program specialist at LSLT under Americorps. She earned a bachelor's degree in Environmental Studies and a minor in Urban and Regional Planning from Salisbury University in 2024. She dedicated most of her time in University to meshing her passions of conservation, planning, and interpretation through research, leading, collaborating, and conducting. When Brooke isn’t working with the LSLT to advocate for the environment, she likes paddle boarding, painting, and cuddling up with her dog (Bailey)! She is elated to begin gaining experience and working in the environmental field.
borr@lslt.org | 443-234-5587
borr@lslt.org | 443-234-5587
Kate Patton - Director Emeritus
Kate Patton was Executive Director of LSLT from 2006-January, 2024. She continues to serve the Land Trust and its partnering organizations in a consulting role and on various boards and committees. Prior to coming on as ED of LSLT, she owned and operated the Globe Theater, in Berlin, MD, for 17 years. Her experiences in the business community include serving as President of the Berlin Chamber of Commerce, Chair of the Worcester County Arts Council and she was instrumental in developing longstanding Berlin events, including the monthly Arts Night and the successful application for Berlin’s designation as an Arts and Entertainment District. In 2002 she received the Governor’s Award of Excellence for Small Business in the Arts. Kate’s environmental background includes working with the citizen’s group Clean Water Action after graduating from the University of Richmond in 1986.
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