For Luke Vandenberg, caring about water didn’t begin with a dramatic moment on a riverbank or a lesson in a classroom. It started with growing up on the Fox River.
“As a child, we played along the riverbanks with my buddies and fished and recreated,” he said. “I got into kayaking and boating during college and continue to enjoy these activities on the river and the Winnebago waterway system.”
The river was simply part of everyday life. It was where he spent time outdoors, explored new stretches of water, and developed an appreciation for the natural world around him. Those experiences eventually led him to study environmental science, but it wasn’t until he entered the workforce that he fully understood the responsibility that comes with protecting a waterway.
For Luke, that realization came after graduating college and finding a career as an Environmental Scientist on the Fox River cleanup project.
“Really understanding how much industry damaged the river over the years and all the recent efforts that have gone into cleaning the river and ensuring a clean river and habitat for future generations,” he said, was a turning point.
For decades, industrial pollution had left PCB contamination in the river’s sediments, leading to one of the largest environmental cleanup efforts in Wisconsin history. The river Luke had grown up fishing and paddling carried a story he had never fully seen before.
Suddenly, clean water wasn’t something to take for granted.
The experience changed the way he viewed the Fox River and the work required to protect it.
“It’s very important to me,” he said. “Having an environment for our children to grow up in and be able to enjoy those waterways like I did as a child.”
Today, Luke continues that work as part of the City of Appleton’s stormwater team. His job focuses on managing the water that runs off streets, parking lots, and neighborhoods before it reaches local rivers and streams. Stormwater ponds collect pollutants. Native vegetation helps improve water quality. Infrastructure projects reduce flooding and protect communities downstream.
Most of that work happens out of sight.
“A lot of people don’t see what’s happening with their stormwater facilities and how they work,” Luke said. “There’s a lot of work that happens behind the scenes.”
But he sees the results every day: cleaner waterways, healthier habitat, and communities that are becoming more engaged in protecting the places around them.
“I feel very grateful to have this position and do the work,” he said. “To really, in my eyes, just make sure the river and watershed stays healthy for future generations to enjoy and appreciate.”
For Luke, protecting water is ultimately about preserving the experiences that first connected him to the river. The Fox River helped shape his childhood and professional career. Today, he helps ensure it can do the same for someone else.
Watershed Moments is a quarterly publication from the Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance, sharing true stories of people whose lives have been shaped by water—and the moments that sparked their care for it.
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