Bill Pitts was born and raised in rural Michigan, and was educated at Harvard College and MIT’s Sloan School. He has had a life-long marriage to Dana Fisk Pitts and they have two married sons and five grandchildren.

Bill joined Morgan Guaranty Trust Co. in 1968, and worked for four different banks in four countries over his 48-year career in banking, including Citibank: 18 years in Paris, Istanbul, and Hong Kong and 4 years in New York; Indosuez: 4 years in New York; Coutts: 4 years in New York; and JPMorgan Chase: 18 years in New York. HIs career included Corporate Banking, Country Head (Turkey), Ship Finance (Hong Kong), and Private Banking. He retired in 2016.

Bill says, “I have a life-long interest in nature and conservation. My father had a life-time career in soil conservation. To me, the preservation of nature and its living creatures in their natural habitat is essential to our humanity.”

Dana Pitts was born and raised in Aruba, after which her family moved to Europe. She received her B.A. from Wellesley College and a degree in museology from the Ecole de Louvre. She and her husband Bill spent 18 years living in Paris, Istanbul, and Hong Kong, before settling in Chappaqua, where their two sons finished their secondary education. A banker by profession, for 36 years, initially with Citibank then JP Morgan Chase, Dana also taught art history in Paris and Istanbul. Today, she serves on the boards of two affiliated banks. A dedicated gardener, Dana has always enjoyed the outdoors and has grown to be an ardent supporter of Teatown Lake Reservation and its mission.

Emmy Award-winning and Academy Award-nominated filmmakers Susan Todd and Andrew Young are the co-founders of Archipelago Films, a production company dedicated to crafting powerful documentaries that illuminate the vital connections between people and the natural world. For over three decades, their films have brought urgent environmental and social stories to global audiences—through Netflix, 3D IMAX, PBS, National Geographic, and immersive museum installations. Through their nonprofit Arise Media, they create transformative media that inspires awareness, empathy, and action on the world’s most pressing environmental challenges. As lifelong supporters of Teatown Lake Reservation, Susan and Andrew have drawn deep inspiration from its landscapes and mission—reflected in their latest documentary, Inner Nature, which follows individuals in crisis and explores the healing power of nature, alongside extraordinary new science revealing how profoundly the natural world shapes our brains, bodies, and well-being.

We’re thrilled to honor Sarah Gardner as the first-ever recipient of the Teatown Trailblazer Award — recognizing young environmental leaders who got their start at Teatown and are blazing new trails out in the world.

Sarah began as a camper in 2010 and grew into a counselor, educator, and devoted steward of nature. Now a chemical engineering student at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, she’s working on sustainable plastics research and has traveled to Ecuador with Engineers Without Borders to help implement a clean water system.