The slippers' keeper

the long version

"After stumbling as a child upon a cluster of Showy Lady's Slippers in bloom, Joe dedicated his life to protecting these rare orchids. In this picture book ... Ian Wallace depicts how [he] became a steward of a fragile piece of land in Eastern Ontario. Thanks to his passion, diligence, and generosity, the Purdon Conservation Area (now the Mississippi Valley Conservation Area) was established in 1982. It is home to one of the largest colonies of Showy Lady's Slippers in North America"--