Jason Walser, executive director of the LandTrust for Central North Carolina, has been elected to the board of directors for The Blanche & Julian Robertson Family Foundation.
His election brings the board to its full complement of 12 members and is effective with the new year.
“Jason’s election brings a fresh element to our board and its deliberations over grant applications and their funding requests in the years to come,” Executive Director David Setzer said.
“His legal background and thorough knowledge of Salisbury and Rowan County will complement the talents and insights of the board’s current members and provide our foundation with additional talent and insight.”
A native of Salisbury and raised in Statesville where his late father was an attorney, Walser was a Morehead Scholar at UNC-Chapel Hill, earning a business administration degree in 1994. After a year working for Hunter Realty, he returned to Chapel Hill and earned his law degree in 1998.
Following graduation he moved to Hendersonville, where he practiced estate and tax planning law with Linkous and Associates. After a year and a half in Hendersonville, he moved to Salisbury in 1999, joining The LandTrust for Central North Carolina as associate director. In June 2001 he succeeded Jeff Michael as executive director.
Walser is married to the former Tracy Thomas of Raleigh, and they are parents of two children, Ian, 9, and Autumn, 7. They attend First United Methodist Church in Salisbury.
Walser’s family roots in Salisbury go back to the late Sink Walser (Mid-State Oil Company) and Louise Walser; and J. Lowery Carter (Carter Music Store) and Isabell Carter. Walser’s mother, Sue Carter Walser, continues to live in Statesville.
Well-known throughout the area, Walser has served on several boards, including chairman of the statewide Land Trust Council, past treasurer of Smart Start Rowan, past board member of Historic Salisbury Foundation and past chairman of the Rowan County Strategic Planning Committee.
His community service and career work is grounded in the nonprofit world which will provide him with significant insights into the work of the foundation, Setzer said.
The LandTrust for Central North Carolina is a nonprofit land conservation organization and protects natural areas, family farms and wildlife habitat throughout south-central Piedmont North Carolina. The counties served by the LandTrust include Iredell, Rowan, Davie, Cabarrus, Randolph, Davidson, Montgomery, Anson, Stanly and Richmond.
Currently, the LandTrust has over 18,000 acres of land protected in this region with several large projects pending. In current focus are the Kannapolis Gamelands, Morrow Mountain State Park expansion, Uwharrie National Forest consolidation and several farmland and community park projects.