Protect the Adirondacks! will honor John Collins of Blue Mountain Lake for his roles in wilderness protection and public education at its annual Forever Wild Dinner on Saturday, Nov. 14, at the Queensbury Hotel in Glens Falls.

Collins is a former chairman of the Adirondack Park Agency and has had a long-time involvement with the Adirondack Museum in Blue Mountain Lake.

Collins will receive the Howard Zahniser Award, named for the author of the National Wilderness Protection Act and awarded annually.

Collins spent a decade on the APA board, and also served on the board and as staff director of the Adirondack Museum. He was also a trustee of the Adirondack Lakes Center for the Arts, and was chairman of the town of Indian Lake Planning Board. He taught fifth grade in the Long Lake school system for 26 years.

In 1990, he was one of the organizers of the Residents Committee to Protect the Adirondacks, which earlier this year merged with the Association for Protection of the Adirondacks to form Protect the Adirondacks!

"By his own actions, John has taught many generations of his students and many of us who live here to recognize that the Adirondack environment and economy are inextricably intertwined and cannot be considered in isolation from each other," said Lorraine Duvall, vice-chairwoman of Protect the Adirondacks!

People interested in attending the dinner may contact Karmel DeStefano at 377-1452 or kdestefano@protectadks.org.