Tom Merchant has lived in West Placer County with his wife, Sharon, and his two boys (until they left for college), since 1988. Growing up in the Bay Area, he grew to love oak woodlands. He first noticed the West Placer area while driving to backpack and ski in the Sierras. On one of these trips in the 1970’s he dragged some of his friends off of I80 onto Horseshoe Bar Road because it ‘looks cool’. After education in the Bay Area and Iowa, his appreciation for the area’s natural beauty combined with proximity to the Sierra drew him here to start his practice in Orthopedic Surgery and raise his family.
Since then, Tom has seen a steady loss of open space and ‘natural’ areas (particularly adjacent our cities and towns). Woodlands, forests, and other open spaces provide well-documented benefit to both the physical and mental health of adults and children. They also limit pollution and mitigate climate change. These benefits are especially important near population centers.
Tom’s affiliations include the American Orthopedic Society for Sports Medicine, American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons, Population Connection, and Sierra Club.
As a physician (retired) wishing to support the health of our community, and as an enthusiastic outdoorsman (hike, backpack, backcountry ski, mountain bike, fish, etc), it seems natural to me to support Placer Land Trust in its efforts to preserve open space and the beautiful natural areas of Placer County.
