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Steve Maurer Trades a Flower Show for a Garden; Sara Hertz Takes Zoo Post
posted 9/18/2007
Job changes around the gardens: Steve Maurer of PHS goes to Nemours; Sara Hertz joins Zoo as new Director of Development.
After 10 years as the media “go to” person at the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society (PHS) in Philadelphia, Steve Maurer has packed up his garden satchel and headed off to Nemours, the Alfred I. duPont Mansion & Garden in Wilmington, Delaware, where he is the newly appointed Manager of Marketing and Public Relations.
The estate is part of the renowned Nemours Foundation, nationally known for its children’s hospitals.
“This is wonderful,” says Steve, who acquired a car so he could commute to his new position from the home in Center City that he shares with his wife, Roxanne. “I’ve worked with the largest indoor flower show in the world for a decade, and now I will be part of the restoration of the grandest French garden in the United States. This is our own Versailles.”
Steve is currently a Regional Director of the Garden Writers Association of North America. He’d only been at his new job for a couple of weeks when he invited local GWA members for a casual walk and “Hard Hat Tour” of the grounds. This jaunt through 222 acres gave attendees a chance to see a garden jewel that was started in 1910 and is based on the Gardens at Versailles. Currently under renovation, the estate will re-open to the public in May 2008.
Before joining PHS, Steve was the owner of the How-To-Do-It Bookshop, which was a booklovers’ destination on Sansom Street in Philadelphia for many years, and also taught estimating as an adjunct professor at Drexel University in West Philadelphia.
He participates in the annual Philadelphia Fringe Festival as a member of the Late Laureates of Laurel Hill, who are billed as Philadelphia’s only known collective of dearly departed artists, and "have accomplished a mighty feat by organizing a show from beyond the grave." (See photo of Steve in performance with the Laureates, above right.) On Sept. 15, the group, including Steve, presented “A Twilight Performance of Spoon River Anthology” at Laurel Hill Cemetery: The Underground Museum, on Ridge Avenue in Philadelphia.
At home in Center City, he is proud of his orchids, keeps a battered bonsai, and has a pet turtle that he claims is 35 years old.
Sara Hertz named to major position at Zoo
Sara Hertz, whose extensive background leading major development initiatives includes highly successful campaigns for the University of Pennsylvania and most recently for the Pennsylvania chapter of The Nature Conservancy, is the new Director of Development for the Philadelphia Zoo.
“Sara Hertz is the right person at the right time for the Philadelphia Zoo, and we are indeed fortunate to have her join our senior management team,” said Vikram H. Dewan, Zoo President & CEO, when he made the announcement on Sept. 12. He noted that she has a keen understanding of the Zoo’s robust conservation and education missions.
“It is a great benefit to the Zoo and the donor community that Sara already has a thorough understanding of the connections between the Zoo, our various stakeholders, and the natural environment here and globally that we are working so hard to promote, preserve and protect through our diverse daily operations and our core capital initiatives. She is passionate about our program and anxious to play a key role in helping us meet our critical development objectives.”
Hertz served nearly four years as Director of Philanthropy for The Nature Conservancy, Pennsylvania Chapter (www.nature.org). She is credited with obtaining the largest single individual gift in the chapter’s 30-year history, as well as creating and sustaining a highly effective major gifts program to help advance the non-profit’s far-reaching conservation agenda.
Her experience also includes five years with the World Wildlife Fund in the United Kingdom.
“It is an honor to join the Zoo team and to direct its development program,” said Hertz. “I am so excited about every existing development initiative – from the McNeil Aviary to the Hamilton Children’s Zoo - and those just taking shape at America’s first zoo. The Zoo has such a rich past and an even brighter future.”
America’s first zoo and one of the region’s foremost conservation organizations, the Philadelphia Zoo is home to nearly 1,300 animals, many of which are rare and endangered.
The Zoo, fulfilling its mission of conservation, science, education and recreation, supports and engages in conservation efforts to protect endangered species around the world. The Philadelphia Zoo is accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. For more information, visit www.philadelphiazoo.org.