Former member/volunteer. I feel Taltree lacks leadership and professionalism. This year there has been a huge staff turnover and staff openly complain to volunteers about their unpleasant work environment. Poor event planning had a negative affect from a volunteer standpoint. It is a wonderful place for nature walks and is dog friendly, but to me it is no longer member/volunteer friendly. In the past the staff seemed more like a family with goals consistent with an arboretum. I am not sure about the direction Taltree is headed under the current Taltree president Alexis Faust. From what I read she was involved in an attempt to build a $350 million "Rainbow Bridge" during her tenure as the science director at the University of Arizona. The entire project fell through and millions of public dollars had been spent. I sincerely hope Taltree and the city of Valparaiso do not suffer the same consequences as what happened in Tucson.