In Memoriam: Lew Valentine Adams
Written by: David Baker
| |
I first met Lew Adams about five years ago, when I was invited to visit Roy Creek Canyon by my colleague and long-time friend Christy Muse to learn about this unique natural treasure and to meet the owner and a group of conservation leaders working together with Lew and his family to conserve this extraordinary place. I was stunned by what was the most unique and beautiful canyon I had ever seen in the Texas Hill Country, and inspired by Lew’s passion and his family's long history of caring for this untouched biodiverse tributary to the Pedernales River. I met Jerry Webberman and Tom "Smitty" Smith that day, and we all committed to begin working with Lew and his family to protect this special place. What evolved was one of the great friendships of my life.
Lew was the son of Louis Taft “Red” Adams, a man who grew up in the piney woods in East Texas, a hunter, fisherman, and nationally celebrated wildlife photographer, and Marjorie Valentine Adams, one of the remarkable women of Texas letters. Marjorie’s syndicated “Bird World” column reached readers across the country. She and Red’s pioneering documentary, What Good Is a Warbler? was filmed in the canyon after nearly a decade of research and following migration routes deep into Mexico, and helped secure the Golden-Cheeked Warbler’s endangered status and changed conservation policy in Texas. The little cabin in the canyon where she worked became a gathering place for the thinkers and truth tellers of their era: Roy Bedichek, Ann Richards, Molly Ivins, Cactus Pryor, Billie Porterfield, and many others - people who understood that wild nature and the written word belonged together. Lew grew up with this knowing and walked with a deep connection to nature his whole life. The canyon was a touchstone for Austin’s legendary writers and voices that shaped the conservation movement, advocating for the region's landscapes and the precious spring-fed waters that birth our creeks and rivers.
He carried his parents’ covenant forward diligently without compromise. For more than eight decades, the Adams family kept Roy Creek Canyon precisely as it was when Red and Marjorie first descended through the limestone into that hidden, spring-fed world. Lew knew every path in his body. He had traversed those cracks in the bedrock so many times, he knew the canyon, and the canyon was written into him.
He did all of it alongside his beloved wife Louise, his devoted partner and, as he told me with quiet pride, “she is the wind beneath my wings.” Together, they built a life dedicated to film, to conservation, and to that special place in the canyon. Louise passed in September 2024, and Lew carried the loss with grace while continuing to press forward on the conservation easement work, determined to see it completed. That faithfulness, in the face of grief, speaks volumes about Lew and his heart.
In December 2025, just three months before he passed, Lew invited me to sit down with him and his daughter, Melynda Smith, to record his wishes for the canyon, so his wishes could be made part of a conservation easement to protect the land in perpetuity. He got a little way into the story, and his voice broke, and as the emotion of the moment caught him by surprise, he paused and said: “So it is.” Then, gathering himself, he spoke for another hour, because there was too much to say and he was not a man who left important things unsaid. That afternoon is among the most precious I have known in thirty years of this work.
Lew is survived by his daughter, Melynda Smith; his son-in-law, Joe Smith; and his grandchildren, Morgan Barnett, Jordan Hood, and Cameron Smith and their families. His sister, Zilla Katherine Adams, and niece Kelly Zabcik and her husband Bob, whose devotion to the family and the canyon has been extraordinary, niece Alethea Witherspoon, and nephew Adam Witherspoon and his wife Jessica and their families; and his longtime neighbor, Jody Askins, who shares the stewardship of Roy Creek Canyon with the Adams family.
I will remember Lew for his genuine heart, warmth, wit, unwavering dedication to conservation and preserving the canyon, and sincere love for his family, friends and colleagues.
To carry out Lew’s wishes and complete the conservation easement for Roy Creek Canyon is a most urgent and most personal priority. Hays County has pledged to help protect this sacred place and additional support is needed to finalize the easement. We will be steadfast in conserving this one of a kind natural treasure - in honor of Red and Marjorie, who made the first covenant to steward the land, and for the enduring legacy of Lew and Louise, and their family, who held the land with unwavering faith, deep passion, and abiding love for this special place meant to endure for generations to come.
The canyon holds. The work continues.
With love and in his memory,
David Baker
Executive Director, The Watershed Association
| Clean Rivers Program Annual Meeting
Correction & Clarification | | |
In our recent newsletter ("Milestones, Clean Rivers Program, and Earth Day Events"), the Clean Rivers Program Annual Meeting / GBRA–BCWPP Update section incorrectly stated that TCEQ representatives discussed recategorizing Cypress Creek to have lower water quality standards. That information is not accurate.
TCEQ has clarified that lowering Cypress Creek's standards was not discussed and is not under consideration. The actual conversation covered the options available when a water body does not meet state water quality standards, and in the case of Cypress Creek, a special study was recommended to determine the root cause of the biological impairment and to inform possible management strategies. No Use Attainability Analysis (UAA) has been scheduled.
We thank TCEQ for the clarification and regret the confusion. The Watershed Association welcomes the special study and looks forward to supporting the effort to identify root causes and management strategies for Cypress Creek.
| |
Clean Rivers Program Annual Meeting —
GBRA/BCWPP Update (corrected)
At the Clean Rivers Program Annual Meeting, TCEQ representatives walked through the range of options that can be considered when a water body does not meet state water quality standards. In the case of Cypress Creek, which has a documented biological impairment, TCEQ recommended a special study to identify the root cause of the impairment and to help shape possible management-strategy recommendations going forward. TCEQ has confirmed that lowering Cypress Creek's water quality standards was not part of the discussion and is not under consideration, and that no Use Attainability Analysis (UAA) has been scheduled.
The Watershed Association welcomes the special study and the opportunity it creates to better understand what is driving conditions in Cypress Creek and to inform responsive management strategies. We will keep our community updated as that work progresses.
Correction note: An earlier version of this article stated that TCEQ was considering recategorizing Cypress Creek to have lower quality standards. That information was not stated accurately; TCEQ has clarified the discussion and the corrected framing appears above. We thank TCEQ Media Relations for the direct outreach.
| | | |
Where The Buffalo Return: The People Will Follow
A living lesson in visionary leadership and land stewardship
| | |
In March of 2025, the Watershed Association partnered with the One Village Project to bring the Emerging Visionary Incubator to Texas, convening 22 environmental leaders around a shared commitment to stewarding and protecting our natural world.
In the year since, we have continued to walk alongside the cohort through a Post Incubator Program, supporting both their leadership development and the implementation of their Visionary Projects. This March, we had the privilege of visiting the Texas Tribal Buffalo Project together. As part of this ongoing journey, we intentionally connect Visionaries with regional leaders and projects, offering a window into the broader network of people working to steward land, community, and future across Central Texas.
| | |
We learned from the Texas Tribal Buffalo Project that buffalo carry ancient wisdom, and that their presence is a living reminder of the power of keeping that story alive.
They offered us reflections of connection, resilience, strength, and community. Buffalo walk into the storm, literally, not metaphorically, teaching us not to run from it, but to move through it. There is a grounded strength to them, one that is not spoken, but felt. As if they remember something we have forgotten. As if they had walked through centuries and never needed to explain themselves.
For many Indigenous cultures, buffalo are sacred symbols of life, abundance, and reciprocity. Everything they give, meat, hide, bone, sustains life. There is a quiet generosity in their existence.
The Buffalo as Teacher
Charles Bush, Education & Curriculum Coordinator for the Texas Tribal Buffalo Project, introduced us to a concept he returns to often: the buffalo as ecological and cultural engineer.
As they move across the land, buffalo aerate soil, fertilize it, and replant native grasses, quietly sustaining entire ecosystems. A keystone species, its presence once shaped the health of this continent. When buffalo were nearly exterminated in the 19th century, it was not only a cultural loss, but an ecological one. Many of the environmental challenges we face today trace back to that absence.
The Texas Tribal Buffalo Project is rekindling a living system. Through careful land stewardship and restoration, they are reimagining what this landscape once was, and what it could be again. Their vision reaches far beyond a single place: a buffalo corridor stretching from Canada to Mexico, reconnecting Indigenous-managed lands and restoring ancient relationships.
“The buffalo faces the storm head-on,” Charles shared. “That’s what I try to remember, especially when I think about what my ancestors endured so that I could be standing here today.”
| |
The Seed That Became a Herd
Lucille Contreras, CEO and founder of the Texas Tribal Buffalo Project, is a San Antonio-born artist, educator, and Texas Indigenous descendant. She spent decades navigating identity and erasure before returning fully to both her roots and her homeland.
She grew up in a household where Apache heritage was kept secret. “Being Apache during that time was like having a target on your back,” she shared. Her father never told her, and she grew up feeling, in her words, “misplaced and displaced,” not quite knowing what was missing. It was not until later, after being asked again and again, “What tribe are you from?” that she began searching for those answers herself. When her father finally spoke, it stayed with her: “My mother told me we are Apache. But never, ever tell anyone.”
Years later, while living on the Pine Ridge Reservation, she encountered the buffalo in a new way, not just as an animal, but as a relative. That understanding became a guiding principle for her work.
"Take care of the soil.
Take care of the grass.
Take care of the four-legged.
And you are taken care of in return."
The Visionary Incubator Program exists to cultivate leaders who can see these connections, who can hold water rights, food sovereignty, land restoration, and Indigenous stewardship not as separate issues, but as expressions of a single, indivisible relationship with a living earth.
This field visit was a reminder of why that matters, and what it looks like when someone has the courage to live it fully. Thank you to the Texas Tribal Buffalo Project for sharing your ancient wisdom with us.
| |
Celebrating 30 Years of Stewardship
1996 -2026
| | |
Tickets are now on sale for the 11th Annual Water, Texas Film Festival, taking place May 12, 2026, from 6:00–9:30 PM at The Bullock Texas State History Museum. This year marks the festival’s first time at the Bullock, with films showcased on the IMAX stage.
We’re excited to share that a Watershed Association film has been nominated as part of this year’s festival lineup. It’s an honor to be part of a growing platform that highlights stories of water, land, and community from across Texas.
The festival brings together filmmakers, scientists, and advocates to elevate the importance of water in our state, something deeply aligned with our mission to protect the land and water of the Hill Country. A portion of this year’s proceeds will support relief efforts in Kerrville and surrounding communities.
| |
Land. Water. Connection Education Series:
Watershed Field Project
Saturday, May 30th
10:30 AM - 12:30 PM
Blanco, TX
| | | |
Drought-Proofing the Land with Pete Van Dyck
Join Pete Van Dyck, founder of DroughtProofTX, for a hands-on workshop exploring how the natural cycle of flood and drought can be harnessed to build healthy soils, recharge groundwater, revive springs, and help rivers flow year-round.
The workshop begins with a classroom session explaining the principles of drought-proofing land and water systems, followed by an outdoor field tour where participants will see these practices working in real time.
Location: Exact address will be shared upon completion of registration.
Carpooling is encouraged due to limited parking.
Capacity is limited to 40 participants. Please RSVP to confirm your spot!
| | | |
Shop the new collection of Watershed Merch!
Every purchase supports the protection of Texas land and water, helping sustain the springs, creeks, and rivers that define the Hill Country and nourish our communities. Your contribution fuels education, art, conservation science, and the ongoing work to safeguard the places we all love.
| | | | |
