Now we need your help.

This spring at Opacum Woods, beavers built a new dam that’s flooding the bridge on the blue trail, making it difficult to enjoy a place that donors like you helped protect. It’s the kind of challenge that arrives every year, alongside fallen trees, washed-out trails, and invasive plants.

Spring has arrived and so has spring clean-up. You’re probably cleaning up your yard, too. At Opacum that “yard” is 2,600 acres; it’s 31 properties in 8 towns with 30 miles of trails. And those numbers are growing all the time.

It’s a lot to care for, but conserved properties need to be stewarded and defended forever. That’s the promise made to every piece of land protected.

And Spring clean-ups are only the beginning. They keep the land open and accessible, but that’s not enough. Once a property is protected, the real work begins – to make sure it stays that way.

Conserved properties need to be monitored. The boundaries checked. The endangered species’ habitat surveyed. Threats to the land, water, and wildlife identified.

And when threats like dumping, habitat destruction, or pollution are found, they need to be stopped so that the land stays protected.

It’s quiet, unglamorous work, but it is essential. A conserved property is only as strong as the community of supporters standing behind it.

Forever means defending the land, year after year.

That is why gifts made to the Spring Stewardship Appeal are so important. These gifts help to maintain and defend protected land for another year.

Announcing a $10,000 Matching Gift

This spring, generous Opacum supporters have created a $10,000 matching fund, meaning that your gift today will be doubled, doubling your impact!

WHAT YOUR GIFT TO THE SPRING STEWARDSHIP APPEAL SUPPORTS:

• Trail Stewardship – Clearing fallen trees, repairing washed-out trails, removing invasive plants every spring, year after year
• Property Monitoring – Checking boundaries, surveying endangered species habitat, and identifying threats to the land, water, and wildlife.
• Defending the Land – When dumping, habitat destruction, pollution, or other threats are found, Opacum acts so that the land stays protected.
• A Promise Kept Forever – Every conserved property carries a commitment that never ends. Your support makes it possible for us to keep that promise.