20Winter-2008-09

Serving:

Ashburnham

Athol

Barre

Bernardston

Erving

Gardner

Gill

Greenfield

Hardwick

Hubbardston

Leyden

Montague

New Salem

Northfield

Orange

Petersham

Phillipston

Royalston

Templeton

Warwick

Wendell

Westminster

Winchendon

Inside This Issue

Views from Mount GraceVolume 19, No. 4 • Winter 2008-2009

C O N S E R V I N G T H E L O C A L L A N D S C A P E TM

Page CR Royalston • Member Profile • North Quabbin Thanksgiving

Quabbin Corridor: Petersham Projects • Mount Grace Updates

New Staff • Land for Sale • Stewardship for Wildlife • Upcoming Events

Stewards of Our Common GroundB Y D A V I D K O T K E R

The last 22 years have seen enormous changes in land protection and land use trends. Over those years,

Mount Grace has protected over 22,000 acres of land and been joined by a host of local land trusts and

conservation commissions which have protected thousands more. This is an enormous achievement

that brings many added responsibilities. As land trusts mature, grow, and take stock of a growing array

of completed projects, we must ask this forward-looking question: How can we meet our ethical and

legal commitment to the public to guarantee the stewardship of these places in perpetuity?

To begin to answer this question, Mount Grace and the North Quabbin Regional Landscape Partnership

(NQRLP) have developed the Common Ground Initiative. The ideas behind Common Ground germinated

from a 2005 Open Space Institute study which noted that local land trusts and conservation commissions,

which ensure that conservation reaches every community, are typically underfunded and all-volunteer.

In addition, farm protection efforts are threatened by the need to shift farm ownership to the younger

generation. The average age of farmers in our region is 60. Fostering an interest in farming among

young people is critical to ensure that farms do not fall to development pressures. Our own sense

that conservation projects can be a catalyst to strengthen the bonds of community, rooted in our

experiences with projects like the Tully Initiative, also influenced the program.

(continued on page 3)

Community action kept Tully Mountain part of our Common Ground

Please Support OurYear End Appeal

PAGE 2 • VIEWS FROM MOUNT GRACE • WINTER 2008-2009

Dear Friends,In generations past, it was common to pass the family homestead intact to the eldest child or to the child most interested in working the land. When land stewardship was a way of life, reinforced by economic necessity, family traditions accomplished the work that formal conservation restrictions do today.

With fewer people being raised in rural areas, making their living from the land, or regularly spending time outside these days, connecting non-conservationists with the land is necessary in order to rebuild traditional understandings of the role nature plays in our lives. All people who love the land remember a childhood place or experience that is the foundation of their appreciation for conservation in the present day.

Today we have extraordinary opportunities to protect our remaining cherished places and to re-kindle the traditions of stewardship and respect for the land that created the New England landscape we enjoy today. Mount Grace’s new Common Ground Initiative builds on our ongoing outreach efforts to involve the wider community and new generations in land conservation.

Mount Grace works actively to conserve places like the McCrae-Townsend land in Petersham, 187 acres that have been an intact family homestead since the property’s first deed was recorded. Adjacent to the 3,300-acre Phillipston Wildlife Management Area and now protected with a conservation restriction, this historic homestead will remain as fields and forest for generations to come.

With your involvement, together we can work to expand our land protection efforts, and to encourage the idea of responsible land use in our next generation of land stewards. Please give generously to our year-end matching challenge.

Thank you,

Leigh YoungbloodExecutive Director

Views from Mount Grace

Mount Grace Staff

Leigh Youngblood, Executive Director

David Graham Wolf, Conservation Director

Paul Daniello, Conservation Project Manager

Tom Wansleben, Stewardship Biologist

Jennifer Smith, Land Conservation Associate

Jay Rasku, North Quabbin Regional Landscape

Partnership Coordinator

Pam Kimball-Smith, Development Director

Nathan Rudolph, Director of Donor Relations

David Kotker, Membership Coordinator

Sean Pollock, Director of Finance and Operations

Lisa Cormier, Office Manager

Jim Crisp, Special Project Assistant

Mount Grace Board of Directors Mary Williamson, President WarwickHoward Mathison, Vice President WarwickAllen Tupper Brown, Treasurer Gill Celt Grant, Clerk RoyalstonBill Ames NorthfieldJassy Bratko HubbardstonLen Glick New Salem Bonnie House Phillipston Mary Eliot Jackson Royalston Wendy Lavallee Northfield/Boston Mike Roche Orange Kasey Rolih WarwickColleen Sculley Montague Jon Waidlich Montague

www.mountgrace.org

Mount Grace Land Conservation Trustprotects significant natural, agricultural and scenic areas and encourages land stewardship in North Central and Western Massachusetts for the benefit of the environment, the economy and future generations.

We welcome your articles, photographs, comments and suggestions. For information about becoming a member or to request a change of address, please contact our office at:

Mount Grace Land Conservation Trust1461 Old Keene RoadAthol, MA 01331978.248.2043 (tel)978.248.2053 (fax)[email protected]

Visit our web site at www.mountgrace.org

P A G E C R – R O Y A L S T O N

Common Ground builds on existing Mount Grace programs

to address these points. Common Ground will expand and

formalize our current ad-hoc work with youth volunteer

groups to a regular program of service learning aimed at

strengthening a land conservation ethic in young people

by exposing them to the working landscape and teaching

responsible land management through projects like building

trails and community gardens. Common Ground envisions

closer partnerships with civic groups, encouraging them

to make more use of, and help care for, land we protect

within their communities. Together with the NQRLP, Mount

Grace also plans to build and support the capacity of towns

and local trusts to do land protection projects and steward

conservation land.

The program was launched in September after Mount

Grace was awarded a $57,700 grant from the Massachusetts

Service Alliance to underwrite stipends and associated costs

for five people to enroll as members of Massachusetts’ new

Commonwealth Corps, a service organization patterned on

AmeriCorps.

WINTER 2008-2009 • VIEWS FROM MOUNT GRACE • PAGE 3

Stewards (continued from page 1)

After interviewing candidates from around the region,

Mount Grace has assembled our team. Regional Land

Stewards, Katie Blake and Diane Torres, will assist local

trusts and conservation commissions with baseline reports

and monitoring conservation land. NQRLP Conservationist,

Gary Howland, will support towns and local trusts on land

protection projects. Kate Kerivan, our Conservation Outreach

Coordinator, will focus on encouraging more people to

visit Mount Grace lands and on demonstrating how Mount

Grace’s work affects local communities and families. Sarah

Mildren will work as the Service Learning Coordinator,

focusing on schools in Athol and Orange.

Corps members began work as this newsletter went to press,

bringing new ideas and energy to an already busy office. As

Mount Grace executive director, Leigh Youngblood, summed

up the first weeks of the program: “Having experienced

Commonwealth Corps members working with Mount Grace

on this project is really adding to our momentum. We’re

very glad to find a new partner in Commonwealth Corps

to help land trusts and local communities work together

more closely for the permanent stewardship of our region’s

common ground.”

aft Hill Road in Royalston is a rural corner of a

rural town, running past a handful of houses,

including Aurora Ranch, a Tully Initiative project

partner. Most of the land is wooded, and a

good deal of it makes up part of the Birch Hill Wildlife

Management Area (Birch Hill), one of the largest blocks of

protected land in the North Quabbin region.

Birch Hill originally consisted of lands within the floodplain

created upstream of Birch Hill Dam, which protects the

Millers River Valley from floods such as those caused by

the 1938 hurricane. Since the dam’s completion in 1941,

inholdings and other parcels have been added to Birch Hill,

bringing the total area conserved to 7,400 acres.

Mount Grace helped protect one such inholding by

purchasing a 23-acre parcel from Alan and Joanna Page on

June 30, 2008. The Pages sold the land to Mount Grace after

the Selectboard contacted Mount Grace for assistance in

exercising the Town’s right of first refusal on the Chapter

61 land. The Pages were willing to sell the parcel to Mount

Grace, with the understanding that Mount Grace would

subsequently convey the parcel to the Massachusetts

Department of Fish and Game. The Department was eager

to acquire the parcel to eliminate the inholding in Birch

Hill.

The Page land is truly wild, covered with mixed hardwoods

and wetlands, including a pond and tributary of Priest Brook,

which flows through Birch Hill and the Otter River State

Forest before joining the Millers River near Lake Dennison.

The partnership of the Pages, the Town, the Commonwealth,

and Mount Grace permanently conserved this pristine open

space, which benefits wildlife and outdoor enthusiasts.

B Y D A V I D K O T K E R

T

loan. However, we could not complete the project in the

anticipated two years, leaving us in a situation where we

needed collateral, but

were obligated to return

what we held.

To the relief of Mount

Grace and the original

lenders, Lila agreed to

replace over $70,000 in

collateral, allowing for the

return of the borrowed

funds while providing

time to complete the

project. When asked

her motivation, Lila said,

“I’m hoping I can inspire others who can do something to do

something.” We hope she can as well.

To learn how you too can “do something” to support Mount Grace, please contact Nathan Rudolph, Director of Donor Relations, at 978-248-2055 x18 or [email protected].

While Brooklyn resident Lila Teich Gold does not live in our

area, she has many connections to Central and Western Mass.

While a student at Pembroke, she met numerous young women

who had attended school in Northfield. Her sister currently

lives in the area, and Lila’s publishing company, NightinGale

Resources, has ties to Fitchburg. Through visits with family,

friends and business associates, Lila grew fond of our region

– in her words, “Western Massachusetts is solid and real.”

Lila’s brother-in-law, Lester Halpern, suggested that working

with a community foundation could help Lila meet her

philanthropic goals, leading to the establishment of the Lila

Teich Gold Charitable Fund at the Community Foundation

of Western Massachusetts. The Community Foundation then

introduced Lila to Mount Grace, and for nearly ten years, Lila

has been directing distributions to Mount Grace.

Lila recently became even more involved with Mount Grace

through supporting the West Hill Project. In January of 2006,

Mount Grace needed collateral to initiate the project, and a

group of New Salem residents provided us with a two-year


A P A R T N E R S H I P T H A N K S G I V I N G

M a r g a r e t P o w e r B i g g s S o c i e t y

I t’s Thanksgiving, and thanks are in order for some

recent land conservation successes:

Thanks to our local State Representatives and

Senators for cosponsoring the Environmental Bond Bill

and voting YES to ensure that programs that help willing

landowners conserve their farms, forests and natural areas

will continue for the next five years: Senators Steve Brewer

and Stan Rosenberg, and Representatives Bob Rice, Anne

Gobi, Christopher Donelan, Lew Evangelidis, Denis Guyer,

and Stephen Kulik. We are fortunate to have such forward

thinking elected officials representing us in Boston.

Congratulations to Doug Walsh, David Ames, and David

Small of Athol, and Brandon Kibbe of the Department

of Fish and Game for presenting to Athol voters a land

conservation project, which, pending State Legislature

approval, will permanently protect 990 acres of land

through a combination of land sales and conservation

restrictions in the Thousand Acre Swamp and Newton

Reservoir area in Athol and Phillipston. The warrant article

passed overwhelmingly at the Athol Town Meeting. This

project is the first step in a larger initiative supported

by the Partnership to work with willing landowners and

build corridors of conservation land within the Thousand

Acre Swamp area for the benefit of wildlife habitat and

recreational opportunities.

Finally, thanks to the voters of Northfield, Royalston, and

Shutesbury for passing the Community Preservation Act.

B Y N A T H A N R U D O L P H

B Y J A Y R A S K U

Member Profile: Lila Teich Gold

Planned Giving withMount Grace

Would you like to see more land protected in our region

instead of being lost to development? Would you like to

conserve land special to you or a loved one? Would you

like to take advantage of tax deductions in your lifetime or

for estate planning purposes? If you are interested in the

long term success of land protection in our region, Mount

Grace can offer some estate planning options that can

benefit both you and our local landscape.

What your planned gift can do for you:

• Protect land that is special to you or your family for future generations

• Reduce your current tax burden

• Set up an income stream for life from a tax-deductible donation

• Reduce estate taxes

How you can help Mount Grace with a planned gift:

• Donate land that you would like to see protected

• Donate a conservation restriction on land you would like to see protected

• Donate a house, land, securities, or tangible personal property to benefit land protection

• Name Mount Grace Land Conservation Trust as beneficiary of your IRA or insurance policy

• Set up a Charitable Gift Annuity though Mount Grace

For more information about planned giving, please

contact Nathan Rudolph at 978-248-2055 x18, or rudolph@

mountgrace.org.


WB Y D A V I D K O T K E R

Q U A B B I N C O R R I D O R U P D A T E

The area around Lorinda Pond, a mosaic of marshes, fields,

and diverse forest stands, provides habitat for moose, bear,

otter, fox, and numerous species of birds. The wetlands

east of the pond reach to the 3,300-acre Phillipston Wildlife

Management Area. Protecting the 187-acre McCrae-

Townsend property adds to this large block of conservation

land and helps connect it, by way of other protected lands in

Petersham, to the Quabbin Reservoir. The WPRs all protect

wetlands that feed the East Branch of the Swift River, which

in turn flows into the Quabbin.

orking in partnership with Petersham’s

McCrae-Townsend and Day families, the

Massachusetts Department of Conservation

and Recreation (DCR), and the US Forest

Service, Mount Grace has completed two

more Quabbin Corridor Connection (QCC) projects, bringing

the total amount of land protected so far as part of QCC to

1,273 acres.

The Day project, near Brown’s Pond, covers 11 acres of land,

which the family protected with a watershed protection

restriction (WPR). The Days also donated two other WPRs, on

29 acres the family owns north of the pond, last December.

Says Frederick Day, “My sisters and I felt it was important to

protect this land. Although these 3 parcels don’t abut one

another, it’s all land that is surrounded by other protected

property. It’s another piece of the puzzle that fits in nicely

with our goals and those of Mount Grace.”

Mount Grace also worked with Ann Townsend and Richard

McCrae to add a WPR to their land, which includes the

northern shore of Lorinda Pond. Located in the eastern

corner of Petersham, the pond will be entirely surrounded

by protected lands when QCC is completed. A place of quiet

natural beauty, the pond was chosen as the focus of the

Mount Grace spring appeal. As Leigh Youngblood explains,

“This is a wonderful example of a land project with deep

personal meaning to the landowners and extraordinary

ecological values that benefit us all. It is inspiring to have

public water supply, diverse wildlife habitat, forest and farm

stewardship, scenic beauty, and peace of mind conserved in

concert.”

Winter on Lorinda Pond


Special Thanksfrom Mount Grace to:

Grants ReceivedAnonymous$75,000 for Mount Grace and NQRLP programs

Massachusetts Service Alliance:$57,700 for the Common Ground Initiative

FREMO (Forest Resources Education of Municipal Officials)and CESU (Cooperative Ecosystem Study Units):$22,200 for NQRLP outreach and training

M O U N T G R A C E U P D A T E S

Trail Head Outdoor Gear and Gifts for holding a Gale Farm benefit sale

John Burk, Don LeMay, and Joanne McGee for leading hikes

Carlie Gaida and Anne Cervantes for their volunteer help in the office

SERVE volunteers Christine Duerring and Russ Gaulin for stewardship and GIS work

Peter Haley and Isaac Gallant of Henshaw Well Drilling for emergency well assistance

New Salem Preserves for their help with the Interface Quabbin Arts and the Environment event

Celt Grant for building the new library shelves at Skyfields

Don Flye, Dick French, and Ray Purington, for their help at the volunteer workday

Mary Williamson, Joe Delfausse, and Jack Cadwell for their help on the Blackbird Project

Outgoing Board Members Mick Huppert and Lynn Harper

New Board Members Len Glick and Jassy Bratko

Extra Special Thanks to all who helped withthe Annual Meeting at Bascom Hollow Farm:

Faith Rand, Brian Donahue, Tom Chalmers, and Joan Meyer for hosting the meeting

Gifts were Received in Memory ofJudith DavisMary Cunningham PilletHarold Hackett, Jr.

Gifts were Received in Honor ofMary Williamson

Jennifer Smith, Land Conservation Associate, worked as an organic farmer, educator, and organizer for five years in California and Massachusetts before joining Mount Grace in 2008. Most recently, Jen worked as a farmer-teacher at the Farm School in Athol, instructing adults in the theory and practice of organic agriculture. Jen joins the staff at Mount Grace with a passion for protecting the natural and working landscapes of the North Quabbin region. Jen is also an avid gardener and beekeeper, and enjoys hiking the trails of our region. She has a bachelor’s degree from Oberlin College.

Kathy Litchfield and Ivan Ussach for stewarding the meeting and the farm

Brian Donahue for his presentation “The Fall & Rise of

Farming in Massachusetts”

Cornerstone Insurance for sponsoring the event

Diemand Farms for catering and delivery

Dick French and Emily Samuels for financial support of the meeting

Tom Roulston for video recording and production

Red Apple Farm, Dean’s Beans, The People’s Pint, Smith’s Cheese, Green River Ambrosia, Celt Grant, Allen Young, Bob Youngblood, Garth Shaneyfelt, and the Greenfield Farmer’s Co-op for their contributions to and help with the Annual Meeting

Thanks to all who joined us at the 22nd Annual Meeting


For tickets, directions, or more information, contact David Kotker at 978-248-2055 x19 or [email protected]

Upcoming Winter 2008-2009 Events

S t e w a r d s h i p

Land for SaleBrush MountainMount Grace seeks a buyer to help protect a wild and scenic 123-acre parcel on Northfield’s Brush Mountain. The property, which is adjacent to the M & M Trail, has a house lot, mature forest stands, critical wildlife habitat, and sweeping views from Connecticut to New Hampshire.

This sale is contingent upon placing a conservation restriction on the parcel to allow a hiking trail with limited public access as well as sustainable forestry with an approved forest management plan. The asking price is $149,000.

Contact Conservation Project Manager Paul Daniello at 978-248-2055 x15 or [email protected].

Own a Piece of Mount Grace HistoryMount Grace is selling the Chisolm property, our former office on North Main Street in New Salem. Built in 1971, this bungalow style home has an open kitchen and living room on the first floor, a bedroom in the lower level, 1.5 baths, and a screened in porch. The house sits on 17 acres of land covered by a Watershed Protection Restriction. The asking price is $165,000.

Contact Sylvie A. Thibeault at Henshaw and Haley, Inc. at 978-939-2701 x 14 or [email protected]

Fields for Wildlife

In early September, Bruce Scherer from Heritage Field and Mowing in Orange started up his tractor and began the task of field management for wildlife at Skyfields. Our fields are managed under a 10 year contract called a Wildlife Habitat Improvement Project (WHIP), a federal grant program offered through the Natural Resource Conservation Service that provides $3,000 to pay for wildlife habitat management.

Under this agreement, 7.3 acres of our fields are mowed once every two years. By delaying the mowing for a couple of years, landowners allow fields to grow in with a dense carpet of wildflowers, grasses, and shrubs, which provide important year round resources for a diversity of wildlife species.

From my office window, I’ve observed butterflies feeding on the kaleidoscope of summertime wildflowers and barred owls hunting for meadow voles in the fading light of winter. I invite all Mount Grace supporters to visit the fields surrounding our office, where they can hike along our trails and see with their own eyes the value of “fields for wildlife.”

If you are interested in field management for wildlife and would like more information, please contact Stewardship Biologist, Tom Wansleben, at 978-248-2055 x12 or [email protected]

Long Pond Loop HikeTully Lake Reservation, RoyalstonSaturday, January 10th9:30am to 4pm

Meet at Athol High School at 9:00 to car-pool to the 7.5 mile Tully Long Pond trail. The moderately strenuous hike will be led by Don Flye and Dan Bolton and will be geared towards snowshoers, cross country skiers, and hikers, depending on snow cov-erage. Please bring a lunch or trail snacks and weather-appropriate clothing.

Winter Tracking WorkshopSkyfields Arboretum, Athol1461 Old Keene Rd.Saturday, February 7th9am to Noon

Learn to spot and interpret the signs of lo-cal wildlife in a morning walk through the trails and woods around Skyfields, led by veteran tracker and naturalist Paul Wanta. Last year’s attendees saw signs of rabbits, deer, moose, wild turkeys, otter, and many other inhabitants of our local woods and wetlands. This year’s workshop will be lim-ited to 25 participants, with precedence given to Mount Grace members, based on order of pre-registration.

B Y T O M W A N S L E B E N

Maple Sugaring TourJohnson Farm, Orange210 Wheeler AvenueSaturday, March 21st9:30am to 11:30am

Steve and DeeDee Johnson protected their family farm in 2002 as part of the historic Tully Initiative. Walk through the maple sugaring process, from forest, to sugar house, to syrup, with Steve. Please call or email to register.

Non-profit OrganizationU.S. PostagePAIDTurners Falls, MAPermit No. 183

1 4 6 1 O L D K E E N E R O A DAT H O L , M A 0 1 3 3 1 - 9 7 3 4

M O U N T G R A C E L A N D T R U S T M E M B E R S H I P F O R M

Think Globally, Donate Locally! TM

Please join Mount Grace Land Conservation Trust. Thanks to our members, Mount Grace is one of the most activeland conservation organizations in Massachusetts, conserving more than 22,000 acres of the local landscape.

WINTER 2008-2009

Name ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Address __________________________________________________ Town________________________ State ________ Zip __________

Telephone (H) ______________________________(W) _____________________________(email) ________________________________

____ I would like to renew / start my membership with a tax-deductible contribution of:

______$25 ______$50 _____ $100_____ $250_____ $500 _____ $1,000 _____other

____ I would like to pledge $______ per quarter to Mount Grace Land Conservation Trust.

____ I would like more information on how to protect a piece of land that is special to me.

____ I would like to include Mount Grace in my will or as part of my estate. Please send me more information.

____ I am interested in learning more about volunteer opportunities at Mount Grace.

____ Please do not use my name in your list of contributors.

____ Please do not share my name with other organizations.

MEMBERSHIP FORM—Please check all which apply:

ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED

This issue of Views fromMount Grace is sponsored by:

The Highland Press59 Marble StreetAthol, MA 01331

978-249-6588www.highlandpress.biz

Complete Printing and Binding Services

Please forward to Mount Grace Land Conservation Trust, 1461 Old Keene Road, Athol, MA 01331-9734. Thank you!

Printed on recycled paper. Please recycle this newsletter by passing it on to a friend or donating it to a school, library, business or other interested party.

Documents

20Winter-2008-09