Page 8 - Tree Line - North Carolina Forestry Association - Fourth Quarter 2022

Albert Coffey, CF, RF:
GROWING
TREES ‘It’s What I Do’
BY AMANDA MURPHY, DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS, NCFA
In October, John Hatcher and I took a short, but extremely foggy drive to Bailey, NC
— about 10 miles east of Zebulon — to interview Albert Coffey. Coffey has been a
landowner member of the NCFA for more than 17 years. When we pulled up to his gated property, named Turkey Creek Tree Farm, Coffey was waiting for us with bug spray in hand. The farm is 64 acres total, with a 16-acre crop field.
“We manage the tract for multiple uses, and it’s certified under the American Tree Farm System,” Coffey said. “Land ownership is really land stewardship because we are merely custodians for our lifetimes.”
After our walking tour of the land, Coffey grabbed three waters and three
camp chairs from the back of his pickup truck, and we sat down to complete the interview. We all took time to listen to the sounds of the woods surrounding us. The sun began to break up the fog, and it was pleasant to sit outside and experience the glory of the work others do in sustainably managing North Carolina’s forests.
Q:Tell me about yourself. Our records show you’ve been an
NCFA member since 2004.
A:I am a retired forester, having spent my career with USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service. Actually, I spent the first 19 years working as a soil conservationist in five locations in North
Carolina and Virginia. In 1989, I moved
to Raleigh to work as Staff Forester for the state, and in 1995 I began work as Staff Forester for both North and South Carolina. I retired from the agency in 2003, and
have done some “lightweight” consulting since then, including a short assignment
as Circuit Rider Forester for the American Forest Foundation in a group of Piedmont counties. More recently, I have spent much of my time managing our small forests in Avery, Franklin, and Nash counties. At this point, that is about all I have the energy
to do, but it’s a lot of fun. In addition, it is rewarding to think we will be leaving some well-managed land to our children and grandchildren at some point in time.
6 ncforestry.org / FIRST QUARTER 2022