Frankfort Man Wins Preserve's June Photo Contest

Andrea Earnest
·2 min read

FRANKFORT, IL — A Frankfort man's photo of a skimmer dragonfly has won the June portion of the Preserve the Moment photo contest hosted by the Forest Preserve District of Will County. Joe Flodstrom took the photo near a pond in Hickory Creek Preserve, a release from the preserve said.

According to the preserve, Flodstrom, a retired carpenter who specialized in museum work, said he and his wife, Sussana, bike about 20 miles a day on local trails. They often rest at the picturesque pond so they can observe all of the bullfrogs, turtles, snakes and other wildlife that hang around the local watering hole.

“The frogs are huge and very vocal and I’ve never seen so many in one spot,” he told the preserve.

Flodstrom told the preserve that he was happy with his win and happy to live so close to so many beautiful natural areas. He explained that the preserve and pond are a welcome relief during a time when he and his wife are traveling less and sticking closer to home during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“It’s a beautiful place,” he said in a release. “I love it.”

Honorable mention photos chosen for June were:

  • Mark Hanna of Romeoville for a striking photo of a state-endangered osprey at Lockport Prairie.

  • Michelle Wendling of Joliet for a shot of a sea of wild geraniums at Goodenow Grove Nature Preserve.

  • Michael Daley of Lemont for a photo of a painted turtle doing the twist at Lower Rock Run Preserve.

You can view all of June's photo contest entries on the Forest Preserve District's Flickr page.
Flodstrom is the second monthly winner in the 2020 photo contest. Six more monthly winners will be chosen by a panel of judges before the contest concludes on Dec. 31. In January, all eight monthly winners will vie for top honors via public voting on the District’s Facebook page.

Monthly photo contest winners each receive a $75 gift card. Overall winners chosen in January will receive MasterCard gift cards worth $500 for first place, $250 for second place and $150 for third place. The photo contest is sponsored by The Nature Foundation of Will County.

Photos must be taken by amateur photographers age 18 or older, and they must be snapped in a Will County forest preserve after the May 1 contest start date.

This article originally appeared on the Frankfort Patch