Meet Trail Owner, David Brickley
Read "David Brickley: Determined Trail Builder," in the Fall 2006 issue of Rails to Trails magazine.
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After recognizing its unique history, natural beauty, and wanting to protect the corridor as a greenway for generations to come, David Brickley purchased the Dahlgren Railroad Heritage Trail in 2006.
Brickley has a long track record of advocating for trails, parks, and open space. Under his leadership as director of the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation from 1998 to 2002, the state of Virginia was awarded the national gold medal award for “Best Managed State Park System in America.” Brickley served as an elected member of the Virginia House of Delegates from 1976 to 1998. He was the legislative sponsor, co-founder and chairman of the Virginia Railway Express, Virginia’s commuter rail system, and he authored legislation creating Leesylvania State Park. In 2001, days after the September 11th attacks on the United States, Brickley was chairing a Mid-Atlantic Governors Conference on Greenways, Blueways, and Green Infrastructure. As the conference was concluding, he proposed the vision of a multi-use trail connecting the three September 11th crash sites. That vision has now become the 1,300-mile September 11th National Memorial Trail, with Brickley as its founder and president emeritus. Brickley's service on numerous conservation and trail organizations includes serving as a trustee and chair of the Virginia State Committee for the East Coast Greenway Alliance. The Rails-To-Trails Conservancy named Brickley within the top 25 "Rail-Trail Champions." A graduate of Pennsylvania State University and George Mason University School of Law, Brickley served in the United States Air Force with a tour of duty in Vietnam, where he received the Bronze Star. He later served as the desk officer for the Arabian Peninsula with the Defense Intelligence Agency. When not advocating for trails or practicing law, Brickley is an avid hiker and national speaker on trail and conservation issues. He resides in Woodbridge, Virginia, and has three children and four grandchildren. | ||