Our Prairie People: Rewilding A Legacy
Brice stands proudly next to a thriving clump of Eastern gamagrass that he has been growing in a test plot. His dedication to restoring prairie on his property shows.
Brice Moczygemba
A man with a great retirement plan involving prairie restoration. He says he loves what he is doing!
NPAT Member since 2021
By Jody Cross
Getting to chat with Brice about his family project was delightful and informative. Brice has always been interested in nature and he grew up spending summers at his grandparent’s farm where he was free to roam for hours exploring nature. As an adult he worked as a professional civil engineer who focused on protecting environmental features. Following his retirement, Brice joined the Native Plant Society of Texas in 2017. Then in 2021, he watched a presentation given by Don Kirchoff that changed his life forever. Shortly afterwards, he became a member of Native Prairie Association of Texas.
Next, Brice dove right in to his own project with the help of people like Gary Kocurek, and Robert and Melinda Creech, along with resources provided by NPAT. He also received a grant for Pastures for Upland Birds from Texas Parks and Wildlife in October 2021.
In the aerial photo above, we can see Brice’s family property inside the blue boundary line. The areas just to the left and above the blue are also Moczygemba Family properties.
With the help of two gentleman and their farm equipment, Brice is currently working on getting the invasive plants out using various methods like root plowing, disking, and spraying. Future plans are to pass this property on to his children and teach them how to continue working the restoration project. Brice also documents his work by taking videos and photos from certain points in order to see the progress over time. Brice’s goal is to leave a legacy behind for his own family and the future of others.
Brice also spends his time researching his family genealogy and history, traveling the country with his wife, gardening, and hiking the greenway trails in San Antonio. He joined NPAT in order to meet, interact, and be mentored by like-minded individuals who are interested in rewilding areas of Texas. Brice states that NPAT also provides him with many resources and contacts to aid him in the long-term success of his project.
“I was convinced that my retirement goal would be to restore our property to a native prairie. I decided that I couldn’t change the world, but I could at least do my small part restoring and re-wilding fifty acres of our family’s property in Karnes and Wilson Counties.” -Brice Moczygemba
Thank you, Brice, for bringing your talents and enthusiasm for native prairies to Texas! We are grateful to you and all of our members. If you are not yet an NPAT member, learn more about it HERE.
