By David Quick 
[dropcap]T[/dropcap]he executive director of Audubon South Carolina calls Kathie Livingston a “one-woman conservation enterprise,” a description that she would probably be embarrassed about on many levels.
But as humble as she is, the 51-year-old’s love of nature, and especially the South Carolina Lowcountry, has been demonstrated daily, weekly and annually for years in her walks as much as in her talks.
For Livingston, creating Nature Adventure Outfitters 15 years ago was more about advancing the cause of conservation than anything else.
Kathie Livingston, the owner of Nature Adventure Outfitters, has dedicated her life to the environment and believes that connecting people with nature is a big step toward making them care about it. A David Quick photo.
“My life has never been about money,” says Livingston, whose outings from several locations in the Lowcountry took a whopping 10,000 people on mini-adventures in area creeks, rivers, swamps and refuges this year, so far.
“It’s been about giving back to the environment and doing what I can do to make a difference, especially for wildlife … I’ve long believed that one of the best ways to get people to care about the environment is to get them into it to see why it’s important.”
Giving more
Family members, including husband Steve Livingston and 21-year-old son James Tillman Bradley, say her love of nature also extends to supporting an array of local, regional and national conservation organizations.
They say she has donated tens of thousands of dollars over the years to groups such as Coastal Conservation League, The Nature Conservancy, The Birds of Prey Center, Sierra Club, East Cooper Land Trust and Keeper of the Wild, among others.
Keeper of the Wild founder and Director Janet Kinser says Livingston has been helping her organization, which helps injured and orphaned mammals, for years.
Kinser says that if Livingston’s annual paddle doesn’t raise $2,000 for her group, Livingston will make up the difference out of her own pocket.
In fact, between her donations, reinvesting money into the business and paying her staff well (including annual Christmas bonuses), Livingston didn’t actually pay herself until a year and a half ago. The only reason she did that was because she felt like she needed to start a nest egg for retirement.
Admittedly, Livingston says she was only able to not pay herself after she and husband Steve, who shares her love of nature, “kind of made a pact to live off one (his) salary” in the late 1990s. He made enough as city of Charleston’s parks director, with oversight over projects that are now landmarks, such as Charleston Waterfront Park and the S.C. Aquarium, to support the family. He retired five years ago and is enjoying retirement by practicing fiddle and restoring old tractors.
“We started a business at a time when I was working,” he says. “The business was able to grow because she put money back into it — equipment, employees and training — along with supporting the nonprofit organizations that support the same missions we do.”
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