Temple resident Robert Kimber receives a 2003 Environmental Award.
By Samantha C. DePoy
Staff Writer

TEMPLE – People say Robert Kimber sees farther than most because he is always perched high up in the hills, looking out over the wilderness as he rests after a steady climb.

Perhaps.

But the ever-humble Kimber shrugs it off and sums it up by saying he simply does what he knows and loves what he does.

With his wife, Rita, by his side, Kimber has had a love affair with the environment for most of his life, reveling in the soulful cry of the wind, the graceful flight of a hawk or the sublime vastness seen from the apex of a tall mountain.

The relationship between himself or other humans and the earth has been the subject of many writings penned by Kimber including op-ed pieces, magazine articles, poems and books.

On Wednesday night the Temple resident was honored with the 2003 Environmental Award by the Natural Resources Council of Maine for being a constant voice and a strong presence in the ongoing fight to protect wilderness in the state.

The council is a nonprofit that works to protect, conserve and restore Maine’s environment.

Only one other individual, Daniel Amory, a former NRCM board member and a Portland attorney who donated 1,500 hours of pro-bono legal help to the council, received the 2003 award.

Kennebec Valley Trout Unlimited and the Bangor Area Citizens Organized for Responsible Development also received nods.

“He’s really put his heart and soul as well as his time and energy into protecting our environment for the long haul,” said Brownie Carson, director of the council, who has known Kimber since the 1980s and presented the award Wednesday night at a reception in Bath.

“He has just shown unfailing dedication over the long term. He cares very deeply, and he acts on that passion and he lives his beliefs,” Carson said of Kimber. “He and Rita live in a simple farmhouse and tread lightly on the land and practice what he writes in his books. Bob has inspired others.”

Carson said the award is similar to one for lifetime achievement. Kimber prefers to think of it as a mid-career achievement award and says he was more than flattered.

As a member since the 1960s, he was attracted to the council because it focused its money, attention and efforts here in Maine. Starting in the mid-1980s, Kimber served as a member of the council’s board.

Walks the walk

Over the years, he has been one of the more effective advocates for the wilderness, whether on the pages of his books or on the floor of the Legislature.

Locally, Kimber is involved to the hilt in the Western Maine Audubon and the Tumbledown Conservation Alliance. He even drives a hybrid car.

In an era where it seems the cards are stacked against wilderness preservation, Kimber hasn’t given up hope in his fight. “You keep on doing what you know how to do, no matter what the odds are,” he said. “You win some, you lose home. Persistence is the key.”

Despite the Environmental setbacks at the national level, Kimber is optimistic about the future of Maine’s back country. He cited Sens. Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins as politicians who “buck the tide” and fight to protect the state’s resources.

When asked why he chose the wilderness as his cause, Kimber gives a chortle and gazes out the kitchen window across the brown field dotted with hay bales, surrounded by bare trees and hugged on the far side by icy Temple Stream.

“For myself, beauty is a major category. It always gets short-shifted because it’s impossible to quantify,” said Kimber, who enjoys Maine by canoe, cross-county skis, snowshoes or by foot. “There aren’t many landscapes in the lower 48 where you can get lost. I believe that within anybody’s reasonable reach, there should be large landscapes.”

He cites Temple as an example, saying you can look outside and nature is first, the trace of humans second.

“I count my blessings and am grateful for what I’ve got. Out the window, in Rita’s garden, it’s all pretty darn good.”

sdepoy@sunjournal.com

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