Dear Friends,
On behalf of the Lowcountry Land Trust Board of Trustees and staff, thank you so much for your ongoing support. I think we can all agree that 2020 has been a difficult year. But your dedication to supporting your community, and ultimately, the Land Trust’s mission—to protect land and water forever, nurture relationships between people and place, and connect conservation to community—is inspiring. For this, I sincerely thank you.
As you know, Lowcountry Land Trust is in the business of perpetuity. At the end of the day, this commitment to protecting land and water forever pushes us forward. Preserving air and water quality, world-class wildlife habitats, and healthy living conditions throughout the 17 counties we serve is our end game. Now, you, too, can support these conservation values for generations to come.
October is National Estate Planning Awareness Month. By including Lowcountry Land Trust in your estate plans, you can make a lasting impact on the Land Trust’s ability to protect treasured places for generations to come.
Lowcountry Land Trust can accept gifts as a bequest through your will or trust in the form of estate gifts or bequests. As with all charitable contributions and estate planning, we recommend that you consult with appropriate legal and financial professionals.
If you are interested, I hope you will consider reaching out to discuss further. Your support has helped us sustain and enhance communities surrounded by clean waterways and healthy marshes, thriving forests and productive farmland. Thank you for taking a stand for open land, water, and fresh air. From all of us at Lowcountry Land Trust, we are so grateful for your support.
Best regards,
David Ray
Acting CEO & Chief Conservation Officer
Lowcountry Land Trust
October 12th: Nathan Moyer, Senior Stewardship Program Manager, spoke with The Nature Conservancy (TNC) about possible living shoreline partner projects. LLT and TNC have partnered on multiple living shoreline projects, or oyster reef restoration builds, over the years, including a major reef installation at Gold Bug Island, a Land Trust protected property located along the Intracoastal Waterway between Mt. Pleasant and Sullivan’s Island. Living shoreline projects provide volunteers the opportunity to give back to the land and water they love, as living shorelines naturally improve water quality, provide erosion control services, and are habitat forming.
October 13th: The LLT Advancement Committee met to discuss ongoing fundraising efforts, funding opportunities, and communications plans for FY21. End of year is a busy time for the Advancement staff and we hope you’ll consider supporting LLT this year.
October 14th: Sam Seawell, Stewardship Associate, visited several properties in the Four Hole Swamp area, including Norfolk Southern’s Brosnan Forest. This 14,000-acre property is home to over 80 pairs of Red Cockaded Woodpeckers, thousands of acres of Longleaf Pine, and a 228-acre pocosin wetland, which has been protected and restored in order to generate wetland mitigation credits. In 2008, Norfolk Southern donated a conservation easement to LLT, permanently protecting more than 12,000 acres of the forest from development. To date, Brosnan Forest is the largest conservation easement that LLT holds.
October 15th: Ashton Lamb, North Coast Project Manager, and Sam Seawell met with partners for the fall Sewee Longleaf Conservation Cooperative meeting. During the meeting a number of topics were discussed, including outreach efforts, land restoration and protection, and the 2021 SLCC Fire Festival. Stay tuned for more information to come on SLCC Fire Festival.
October 16th: Carl Taylor, GIS & Conservation Planning Manager, recently became a FAA certified remote drone pilot. On Friday, he attended the remote workshop, “Drones in the Coastal Zone,” which brought together government, nonprofit, private sector, and academic individuals to explore how drones are being used on the coast and oceans.
OTHER NEWS
Partner Event Opportunity: In celebration of the Center For Heir’s Property Preservation’s 15th anniversary and the Aspen Institute Community Strategies Group’s 35th anniversary, they are co-hosting an heir’s property virtual event titled, “All Land is not Creating Equal: Unleashing Family and Community Wealth through Land Ownership,” on November 18th. Attendees will learn about the role of land in wealth inequality, about heirs’ property and fractionated land, and about strategies and policies that can address this issue to build rural regions and urban communities that are more inclusive and resilient.
The Good Life: Did you know that last week was National Wildlife Refuge Week? We couldn’t agree more that our lives are happier and healthier because of national wildlife refuges. Do you have a favorite U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service refuge in South Carolina or beyond better that you like to visit?
Brosnan Forest, photo by Thomas Moorer
[The President’s Log will feature a series of rotating guest writers, including LLT staff and board, as well as friends of Lowcountry Land Trust]
This edition of the Lowcountry Land Trust President’s Log is presented with support from Anderson Insurance Associates. Thank you!
