Conservation Florida Welcomes Two New Members to its Board of Directors
Adding again to our growing team, we are excited to welcome two new members to our board of directors — Ellery Badcock Linder and Will Hollis
Ellery Badcock Linder
Ellery Linder is the Co-Founder and Co-CEO of Wherewithal, a women’s apparel company introducing an entirely new bra design that allows women to create their own unique and personal fit. After starting her career in publishing at Food Network Magazine in NYC, she transitioned into retail joining the Home Shopping Network’s culinary e-commerce team in St. Petersburg, Florida. At HSN, Ellery was the brand marketing lead for the culinary division, overseeing the development of category and brand strategies that drove incremental sales, customer growth and brand engagement. She managed external partnerships like Food & Wine, as well as cross-functional teams that created comprehensive, omni-channel marketing plans to establish customer advocacy, awareness and brand loyalty.
Retail is in her DNA, as her family has owned their furniture company, Badcock & More, for 116 years, operating over 370 stores across the Southeast. As a fifth generation Floridian, Ellery is passionate about preserving the history and environment of her home state for future generations.
Will Hollis
Will Hollis is a fifth generation Floridian born in Lakeland, Florida who grew up on Crooked Lake in Babson Park. Volunteering started in middle school for Will, and it has become an integral part of his life ever since. In 2009, he enrolled in Stetson University, where his grandfather and many other family members attended before him. After graduating from Stetson, Will started a marketing and public relations firm, Hill and Hollis Enterprises, where he implemented many successful local and regional PR campaigns focusing on real estate developments.
After selling Hill and Hollis and moving to Colorado for a little over a year, Will and his wife, Emily, moved back to DeLand, Florida to start Hollis House Woodworking and Design making custom furniture together, as well as Silloh Development, a land clearing company that would allow Will to deploy his resources for disaster relief after hurricanes. Today, Will also serves on the board of directors for the Rotary Club of DeLand, the Neighborhood Center of West Volusia, a non-profit organization that feeds the hungry, houses the homeless, and prevents homelessness, and has previously served as a board member for Discover DeLand, a group of professionals working together to promote and market the city of DeLand.
Will is looking forward to becoming actively involved and volunteering his time for Conservation Florida. Will and his wife Emily enjoy hiking and camping all over the United States but feel especially close to Florida’s local state parks, water management areas, and National Forests.
These new board members add to the bench strength of our team. As Conservation Florida continues to grow, we are expanding our work to protect Florida’s natural and agricultural landscapes for future generations. Our organization relies on volunteers, such as these passionate board members, to support our work throughout the state. We invite you to donate, volunteer, or join our efforts to protect more of Florida’s special places. Email info@conserveflorida.org to get involved.
About Conservation Florida
Conservation Florida is an accredited land trust with a mission to save Florida’s natural and agricultural landscapes for future generations. Our conservation projects support Florida’s native plants and wildlife, fresh water, conservation corridors, family farms and ranches, the economy and nature-based recreation. Since our founding in 1999, Conservation Florida has led the way in strategic and evidence-based land protection and has saved over 30,000 acres of critical habitat through acquisition, facilitation and incubation of conservation projects.
We save land by developing conservation strategies, exploring funding sources, and purchasing or accepting donations of land and conservation easements. Our other services include providing expertise to guide landowners through the land protection process, serving as a trusted community partner to support statewide land conservation and promoting land conservation through effective education and advocacy. Our vision is large-scale, and we are 100% committed to conservation in the state of Florida – for nature, for people, forever!