Mission Statement
The Holloway Foundation for Renewable Energy and Natural Resources is an educational non-profit organization dedicated to connecting children and adults to nature while fostering life-long conservation values.
Long History
Dr. Holloway’s father, Rufus Holloway Sr. purchased the property in 1952 to run a cattle operation. The land later became Holloway Tree Farm and operated until 2017.
Through the years, the Holloway family spent countless hours on the farm, riding horses, fishing, and hiking the secluded trails.
The family formed the Holloway Foundation for Renewable Energy and Natural Resources in memory of Rufus Sr. Although some land was sold, the family retained 80 acres for preservation by the Holloway Foundation, as it is now known.
This unique slice of wild Florida features multiple habitats on one property. There are woods with 300- year-old live oaks, grass and wildflower fields, sandy uplands, and three different wetlands. In addition to an abundance of native plants and trees, the property is home to a great variety of birds and wildlife, including bobcats, foxes, squirrels, armadillos, possums, and raccoons. The foundation farm is under constant restoration with the goal of returning the land as it was before any type of development.
Situated in the center of the property is a 40-year-old two story barn made of heart pine that was harvested in Georgia in 1880. Initially the wood was used to build a whiskey warehouse in Kentucky’s bourbon country. When the structure was set to be demolished, Dr. Holloway stepped in purchasing and shipping the lumber to Leesburg and gained a second life as the family used it for constructing the barn in 1983. Through the years, he and his sister Ann Holloway Blackmon, hosted many class reunions there, prompting their Leesburg High School classmates to call it “The Reunion Barn”.
Today the barn holds some of the educational activities when guest come to the property in addition to restroom facilities.
