When Mary Ann Tous was asked to speak about Ila Loetscher and the Turtle Lady Legacy as a presentation
for the Rio Grande Chapter of the Texas Master Naturalists in October of 2010, she knew that she wanted it to be extra special in honor of Ila's birth month. So in addition to setting up a visual display and sharing Ila's story through an informative slide show, she also brought a birthday cake and held a mini-raffle.

Moreover, Dr. Donna Shaver and Lucy Guillen Tudor of
the Sea Turtle Science and Recovery of the Padre Island National Seashore for the National Park Service graciously provided video footage of nesting sea turtles which Mary Ann included in the presentation.

During the presentation, Mary Ann held everyone's
attention with stories of Ila's life, captivating the group
with descriptions of Ila's days in early aviation, of her association with Amelia Earhart, of her adventurous trip down the Pan American Highway in the 1950s and, of course, of her rise to fame as The Turtle Lady when she pioneered sea turtle conservation with her unusual yet effective publicity methods.

Indeed, Frank Wiseman, past president of the Rio Grande Valley Chapter of the Texas Master Naturalists wrote to Mary Ann afterward that "...almost everyone sat with their mouths dropped when you described her history."

Among those who attended the presentation was
Ruth Hoyt, a well-known nature photographer whose
work has been on exhibit at the Smithsonian Institution,
the Missouri Botanical Garden, and the Shaw Nature Reserve. Interestingly enough, Ruth shares Ila's birthday
of October 30th.

After the presentation, everyone had a chance to talk with Mary Ann and to ask her any questions while they enjoyed the cake and congratulated Dick Roesler for winning the Turtle Lady Legacy exclusive sea turtle angel pin which sparkles brightly with its Swarovski crystals in Ila's favorite color of red.

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The Turtle Lady Legacy would like to thank Ann Arendarczyk for providing the photos used on this web page. We are also indebted to John Thaxter for his technical help with the presentation and to Patti Pitcock for everything that she does in so many ways to support The Turtle Lady Legacy.