“I get tremendous satisfaction by just walking through and just seeing the natural area the way it’s supposed to be,” he said. “It’s kind of a rare thing in Butler County at least in Liberty Twp. I’ve always been interested in the outdoors.”
Lintner calls himself a “plant nerd” and said he got a little miffed when he noticed the erosion of Gregory Creek. He said long time resident and parks volunteer Chuck Holliday got him interested in volunteering all those years ago and encouraged him to take matters into his own hands, which he did.
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He said the township was mowing right up to edge of the creek which was not good the riparian corridor.
“I’m not a naturalist or anything but I know any major stream should have a buffer along it with native plants that are allowed to grow and and help stabilize the soil,” he said. “I established a 200 foot buffer along the creek and obviously they don’t mow that anymore, now it’s growing native trees and shrubs which I think it the right management practice for what we call a riparian corridor.”
Lintner retired after 31 years working as an electrical and software engineer for Cincinnati Incorporated this year, so he believes his efforts at Cherokee will likely increase.
There is a little fenced area where he gets his trees and plants started growing, something the township provided and it also pays for his materials such as ingredients for his potting mix.
Susan Smith, who is also a park volunteer said Lintner’s contributions are amazing.
“As a resident of Liberty Twp. I’m just amazed that somebody is that giving and dedicated to wanting to better our parks and the ecosystem,” she said, adding she encourages more residents to get involved with the parks.
A year ago the MOMS Club of Liberty Twp. set a goal of raising $5,000 by selling personalized pickets to partially enclose the playground area at Dudley Memorial Park. They met their goal and the fence is now helping to protect tiny tots from escaping the safe area.
Trustee Christine Matacic said they are very grateful to the residents who give of their time and talents to care for parks. She was a big parks supporter before she became a trustee and is dedicated to preserving their 11 parks. She said the township tried and failed to pass a parks levy several years ago. Without that revenue source they are forced to rely on the band of volunteers.
“Parks is not one of our core requirements that we have to have but it is a very nice amenity for the quality of life that we have here in this community,” she said. “I think as time goes on we need to start taking more of a look at if we are going to continue to expand our parks and have things, yes we are going to need to take a look at how we are funding this.”
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