Beginning as an all-volunteer land conservation organization in Amherst in 1970, The Kestrel Trust expanded in the 1990s to include a nine-town region. Then in 2011, The Kestrel Trust merged with the Valley Land Fund to serve 19 towns surrounding Northampton and Amherst. Throughout its history, the Kestrel Land Trust has had a mission of conserving and caring for land as well as nurturing a love of the land. Together the merged organizations have conserved more than 20,000 acres of farmland, river land, woodland, and other wild land in our valley. Their aim is to continue and even accelerate the pace of this work and expand their programs, which are more critical than ever in addressing problems posed by the global climate crisis.

As we enjoy the diverse land that surrounds us, with its rich wildlife habitats, we are no doubt benefitting from the Kestrel’s efforts to protect our ecosystem now and make it sustainable in the future. On March 19, as we anticipate the coming of spring, we have a wonderful opportunity to learn more about stewardship of the land, get involved, and thank the Kestrel for all that they do. It will be our honor to welcome Kristin DeBoer, Executive Director of the Kestrel Land Trust and member of the UUSA, to tell us more about the important work our gifts will support. You are also encouraged to read about the many remarkable accomplishments and goals of the Kestrel Land Trust and the Valley Land Fund at: http://www.kestreltrust.org/

Dedicated Offerings provide a way for our Unitarian Universalist Society of Amherst community to recognize and financially support worthy organizations engaged in projects that reflect our guiding Unitarian-Universalist principles. We hope you will give generously on March 19.