Podcasts

Season 7 | Community of the Sustainable Forestry and African American Land Retention Program (SFLR) | Episode 17

#116 | Trust takes a minute

June 19, 2019 | The Cooper Sisters: Eleanor C. Brown and Yvonne Knight-Carter

This episode features the Cooper sisters, Yvonne Knight-Carter and Eleanor Cooper Brown who are the owners and active forest land managers on their historic property alongside Broadaxe Branch near Moncks Corner, South Carolina. Their property goes back almost 150 years in the family, and they are proud to be connected to the family land, making it more productive, and leaving a legacy for their family. Both successful in their respective careers, Yvonne and Eleanor are taking on the task to make their land sustainable and to help educate the community about the management resources that are available to them. Not only that, they have recently become Certified Tree Farmers! One piece of their advice today is not to be afraid to go into the USDA’s office to ask for what you need. Listen now and share with others today!

Key Takeaways:

[1:40] A message from Leadership Nature.

[2:20] A quick intro about Yvonne’s and Eleanor’s background.

[6:00] Yvonne shares her journey and how she found her family land.

[13:45] Yvonne and Eleanor’s family farm was visited by the Secretary of Agriculture, Tom Vilsack!

[17:15] Eleanor shares her journey and how she found her family land.

[24:05] Yvonne shares a bit more of the history of the land.

[35:35] The sisters have an emotional tie to the land.

[37:00] When did Yvonne and Eleanor get their first forest management plan?

[38:25] Did the sisters have any challenges with transferring the title into their names?

[41:00] The Center for Heirs Property Preservation has free legal services to help landowners achieve their goals to clear title that they need and deserve.

[45:00] What advice do Yvonne and Eleanor have for other landowners?

[55:50] How has their purpose changed since taking on active management of their property?

[1:00:00] Eleanor and Yvonne are very proud to call this property home and want to pass it down to future generations.

Mentioned in This Episode:

See the Cooper Sisters featured in Minority Landowner Magazine here on page 12

Website for the U.S. Endowment for Forestry and Communities: Usendowment.org

More information on the SFLR Program: Sustainable Forestry and African American Land Retention Program (SFLR)

More information on USDA NRCS: Nrcs.usda.gov

Learn more about the American Tree Farm System here

Visit the Forestry Association of South Carolina here

Read more about the Cooper Sisters and their land  in this article from Heirs Property Matters

Get to know the Center for Heirs Property Preservation here

Sam Cook podcast interview here

Alex Singleton podcast interview here