How Falling Leaf Collective Began

As the companion to a lifetime of dogs, I have spent many hours following my puppies on every adventure we could come up with. With the loss of two elderly chihuahuas in 2024, my wife and I saw a picture of a recent arrival at the local Humane Society and decided to embrace a new family member named Freckles.

For much of our lives our family has treasured generations of chihuahuas with all the companionship and love that breed can muster. Freckles was something new. What appeared to be an 8 or 9 month old rat terrier full of curiosity and a thirst for exploration, the energy and prey-drive she brought into our home was almost overwhelming. To meet her needs I had to find somewhere nearby for her to explore and in so doing, reconnect with the part of my own childhood I had begun to miss.

For most of my childhood, I spent almost every day of the week in hours-long walks through the seemingly endless woods that surrounded our rural home. Before it was over I knew every tree, creek, swamp and animal path within miles of my home and was never bored.

Hoping to recreate this magic for myself and Freckles, I discovered a nearby greenway here in Thomasville called Magnolia Park. Covering only a few acres it offered a broad range of trails and creeks to explore all the while following the upright white tail of dog breed perfectly at home wandering down a path or splashing through a creek.

Recognizing the sheer variety of trees and their uniqueness, I and many others would like to see this area become an educational resource for the community, protected and recognized for the almost magical place it is. To this end I have begun an ad-hoc group called The Falling Leaf Collective.

Freckles

fearless explorer