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Summer & Fall Edition
September 2024
Summer & Fall Snapshot
Dear Friends of the Trust,
We are thrilled to share updates on exciting opportunities to get involved and upcoming events!
​Ready to get involved? Please browse our list of upcoming volunteer workdays and join us for the dates that fit your schedule. We'll see you there!
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What's New?
Welcome, Devon!
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We’re thrilled to welcome Devon Dunbar to The Central New York Land Trust as our new Development and Fundraising Manager! With a robust background in the nonprofit sector, Devon brings a wealth of knowledge and enthusiasm to support our mission of preserving and protecting lands throughout Central New York.
Devon studied Environmental Policy at SUNY-ESF and has held impactful positions at Adirondack Experience and New York Funders Alliance, focusing on nonprofit memberships, operations, and development. Her expertise in grant writing will also be invaluable as she works to secure future funding for The Central New York Land Trust.
Outside of work, Devon enjoys wood-burning crafts and kayaking. She is excited to share her passion for Central New York’s natural landscapes with her new colleagues and the many constituents of The Central New York Land Trust. Please join us in welcoming Devon to the Central New York Land Trust family!
Evergreen Everblue 2024
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The Central New York Land Trust would like to thank everyone who made our annual Evergreen/Everblue Dinner Event a success in August in Marietta, NY!
We want to thank the thoughtful and friendly staff at The Marietta House Restaurant, Joe Carello's Jazz Trio, for performing the night away, and Syracuse Trivia for donating a night of trivia to our guests! It goes to show that many hands make for light work - whether it was our strong working committee of volunteers organizing the event (Kathy Schwab, Steve Kulick, Peggy Ries, Gail Calcagnino, Jane Field, Mary Ryan, Jan Witter) to the MANY businesses who donated toward our silent auction. Nonprofits survive on volunteers and generosity, and that's precisely what we received this past August - lots of generosity from everyone, INCLUDING our guests. Thank you all for making our annual Evergreen/Everblue Dinner Event a reality and a success.
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Save the date for Evergreen Everblue 2025: Saturday, September 20, The Marietta House, from 5:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.
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-Executive Director, Simon Solomon
The 2024 NYSFOLA Conference
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NYSFOLA (New York State Federation of Lake Associations) hosts an annual conference for and with regional lake friends of groups and the community to discuss best practices regarding lake conservation.
This year’s conference, “Practical Tools for Protecting our Lakes: Challenges and Choices, " was held at the beautiful Dwyer Memorial Park Pavilion and was a fabulous day of presentations, workshops, and panel discussions.
Nine presenters spent the day covering many topics, and attendees learned about phosphorus from agricultural fertilizers and waste sewage systems and how they are available to harmful algal blooms in our lakes. An excellent presentation by IMapInvasives and PRISM (Partnership for Regional Invasive Species) gave us the tools to map, identify, and monitor invasive species electronically from an app on our phones. John Jablonski III, Special Project Coordinator for The Chautauqua Watershed Conservancy, spoke about how lake camp owners can contribute to the health of their lakes by re-thinking how camp owners landscape their lots. Re-wilding was the key to this program, which encouraged the camp owners to turn away from mowed lawns, pesticides, and herbicides, and plant native shrubs and trees to form a buffer zone around the lake to offset impacts from development and conventional agricultural practices. Sharon Moran, associate professor and MS student Mackenzie Gregg, SUNY ESF, presented on the social issues of lake camp septic systems. Ms. Moran talked about how individual septic systems can impact the water quality in our lakes and discussed the implementation of updated waste management systems. Taki Heath, President of NYSFOLA Kettle Lakes Association, wrapped up the day with a group panel discussion.
We look forward to implementing many practices discussed at this informative event on our Central New York Land Trust preserves. See you next year at NYSFOLA.
Upcoming Events and Opportunities
Save the Date!
The Central New York Land Trust will host its annual meeting on Tuesday, October 15th, at 6:30 p.m.
Learn about what the Land Trust has been up to this past year with an organizational update from CNYLT Executive Director Simon Solomon and Dermody, Burke, and Brown CPA Travis Smith.
Please RSVP by emailing jwitter@cnylandtrust.org to receive a Zoom invite link before the event.
Upcoming Volunteer Days
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Saturday, October 19th at 10 am
Woodchuck Hill Preserve
Barn Cleanout: Stalls will be cleaned, old hay will be taken away, shoveled out, etc.
Friday, November 1st, and Saturday, November 2nd at 10am
Albanese Cottage along Skaneateles
Camp Cleanout: Arrive by boat/canoe or on foot (from Lourdes Camp). We hope to have two large dumpsters delivered via barge to discard everything.
Friday, November 8th at 10 am
South Meadows
Cleanup Day: Neatening trails, invasive removal, mowing, and Bluebird box cleanouts
Friday, November 15th at 10 am
Bachar
Woodworking Workshop
Attend our Ribbon-Cutting Event!
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It's happening! On October 30th at 5:30 p.m., we will hold the official grand opening of our Woodchuck Hill headquarters in Fayetteville. An open house with light fare will follow the ribbon-cutting. We hope to see you there!
Thank You, Volunteers!
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This is another opportunity to let you know that your value as a volunteer is immeasurable. Thank you all for your selfless service and goodness this past summer season and beyond.
To show our appreciation, we will bring back our very popular Strawberry Social in June 2025 at the Bachar Preserve. We realize June is far away, but we would be remiss if we didn't acknowledge the hard work all of you do every day throughout every month. From the friends groups connected to our various preserves to CNYLT's board and committee members to the one-off volunteers we meet one day yet never see again.
Thank you!
Ways to Give
Effortless Giving Through SEFA
We're excited to announce that The Central New York Land Trust is now part of SEFA (State Employees Federated Appeal)! If you're a state employee, you can support our cause effortlessly by choosing us for your payroll deductions. It’s an easy and impactful way to contribute directly
from your paycheck. To get started, select us from the SEFA catalog, which you can view at www.sefanys.org. Thank you for your support!
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Donate Directly from Your IRA
Did you know you can support The Central New York Land Trust directly from your individual retirement account (IRA)? If you’re 70½ or older, you can make a Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD) from your IRA to our organization. This can help reduce your taxable income while making a meaningful impact. Contact your IRA custodian to arrange the donation. For more details, feel free to reach out to us!
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Donate Your Appreciated Assets
If you have stocks, bonds, mutual funds, or real estate that have gained value, you can donate them to The Central New York Land Trust. By donating, you won’t have to pay taxes on the profits you made from those assets (capital gains taxes). You might also get a tax deduction for the total value of what you donated!
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