In Memoriam: Jean Vaughan

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Dedication of Vaughan Memorial Forest, October 11, 2003, (l-r) Cecilia Walsh, Larry St. Pierre, State Rep. John Lepper, Jean Vaughan, ALT President Bob Thayer, Robert Schoch    Image credit: Bob Thayer

We at the Attleboro Land Trust would like to express our sympathy to the family and friends of Jean Vaughan, who passed away on January 31.  Jean and her late husband Victor were known to many, as they were both active in many community organizations.  In 1999 Jean donated 32 acres of land on Steere Street in memory of Victor. Her gift, combined with another acquisition, is now the 52-acre Vaughan Memorial Forest.  We are honored to be caretakers of this living legacy.

In Memoriam: Don Ouellette

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Don Ouellette, a longtime advocate for the environment in Attleboro, passed away on January 26 after a long illness. Don served on the 2002 Open Space and Recreation Plan Committee, Ducks Unlimited, the board of the Attleboro Land Trust, and the Conservation Commission.

While Don and his wife Laura had been members and supporters of the land trust going back to at least 1997, Don was first elected to the Board of Directors in 2010. He became Chair of Land Acquisition later that year, serving in that position until 2017. He also served as Vice President from 2011 to 2016. Under Don’s leadership as acquisition chair, the land trust had a long string of successes in protecting additional land in the city. Nine properties totalling 197 acres were acquired and another 80 acres were put under a conservation restriction.

Don was perhaps proudest of the acquisition of the 63-acre Deborah and Roger Richardson Nature Preserve. This was by far the most complicated project in ALT history, requiring teams from the City, Mass Audubon, the ALT, and the Richardson family all working together to cross the finish line.

Charlie Wyman, Ted Leach, Don Ouellette, and Lauren Gordon on a 2014 site visit to what was to become the Deborah and Roger Richardson Nature Preserve.    Image credit: C. Adler

Don also left his mark on the partnership that has formed to promote Attleboro as an attractive place to live, work, play, and go hiking. Past ALT president Ted Leach, who launched the partnership, credits Don with coming up its slogan: “Hike Attleboro.” As Ted recalls, “Don suggested it during a meeting at City Hall with Mayor Kevin Dumas. It was an immediate hit with all present.”

We will remember Don, not only for his dedicated service to the land trust, but also for the personal warmth and enthusiasm he brought to his every endeavor.

New TerraCorps Member for the Attleboro Land Trust – Evan Foster

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Riding my bike in the Adirondacks.

My name is Evan Foster, and I will be serving as the TerraCorps member at the Attleboro Land Trust for the next several months. TerraCorps members are a part of the larger AmeriCorps National program whose mission states “making service an indispensable part of the American experience”. TerraCorps service members are placed in community-nonprofits across the states of Massachusetts and Rhode Island. The TerraCorps mission is to engage and mobilize future leaders to get involved with local communities and conserve land for both people and nature. Equity is at the heart of what TerraCorps strives to achieve. TerraCorps members understand that individuals in underrepresented communities do not have the same access to these public lands and aim to create opportunities for those communities to experience them. The future of land conservation lies in the same goal of making land more equitable. To understand more about the TerraCorps mission, I highly recommend visit their website to read more: (https://terracorps.org/equity-in-land-conservation/).

Skiing at Jay Peak Resort in Vermont.

Growing up in Boxborough, MA in a family that highly valued outdoor recreation, my passion for environmental work was formed at a young age. My childhood experiences ranged from skating on a backyard rink to attending a canoe summer camp in Canada to swimming in the local pond to running cross country in high school. I developed a love for the outdoors, and it has shaped everything that I have done so far. When it was time for me to think about attending college, I landed on the University of Vermont because of its strong environmental program. Living in Burlington, Vermont gave me access to an endless number of outdoor activities including cross country and downhill skiing, snowshoeing, road/mountain biking, rock climbing, and numerous hikes throughout the Green Mountains. My degree in Environmental Science was complimented and enhanced by all of these activities. I soon discovered another passion of mine through my Geospatial Technologies minor which involved using satellite imagery for a variety of reasons including creating maps, analyzing spatial data, and much more. I continued with this passion into my undergraduate job at the Spatial Analysis Lab where I gained experience creating Land Use/Land Cover maps for cities and towns across North America. I developed an indispensable skill that I hope to bring to the Attleboro Land Trust. I am extremely excited to be serving with the Attleboro Land Trust and am ready to put my education and knowledge to use! Feel free to reach out to me if you have questions or want to get to know me better (evanfosteralt@gmail.com). Happy winter!

A Winter Choir – Blog Post #1

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A Winter Choir

Japanese Umbrella Pine.    Image credit: Evan Foster

The heavy snowflakes gracefully fell from the sky but quickly dissipated into liquid the moment they touched my bright, orange jacket. The individual snowflakes that found their home on me were no match against the heat emanating from my body, but the ground beneath my feet was a different story. Most snowflakes swirled past my jacket full of energy almost as if they were squealing with glee as they rode the air towards the ground. They nestled and nuzzled with the other sparkles of light until they formed a blank, white sheet of snow, an almost perfect white. My brown, ragged pair of boots looked odd against the white of the snow, and yet my boot was accepted by the snow with each step that it took. The snow sank and creaked as I walked past the Japanese Umbrella Pine and into Deborah’s Garden. I wondered to myself what those creaks meant. Were the snowflakes all talking… were they trying to talk to me?

A fairy house next to the boardwalk covered in snow.    Image credit: Evan Foster

This thought was quick and fleeting as a loud groan came from a nearby tree. The wind whistled as it blew through the branches and rocked the large tree trunks. The trees complimented each other as the groans echoed throughout the forest. I soon found myself traversing on the snowy boardwalk that snaked through the wetlands. With snowflakes still falling all around me, I pushed forward along the path but something new was emerging: a flap and a chirp. It was an effortless note caught and replicated from one bird to another. My ears perked up with every chirp that came from the remaining few birds that stayed for the winter.

A snowy tree in the woods of Richardson Preserve.    Image credit: Evan Foster

I emerged from the forest past the final trees and into the lower hayfield where I saw the full display of the winter flurries. There was a white sheet in front of me that made it difficult to see to the other side. My head remained down to avoid the snow hitting my eyes and to keep my vulnerable face from getting too cold. I wondered to myself; how do the birds fly in this? I wondered if their instincts take over and guide them to where they feel they should be or if it was something else. I wished to myself that I could find the answers by simply asking the birds.

The field echoed and amplified the sounds around me, and I soon found myself caught in a chorus of a song. There was a choir out there: the chirps from the birds, the groans from the trees, the creaks from the snow and the squeals from the snowflakes. This song filled my head and carried me home with the answers that I had longed for.

Volunteers Rake While the Sun Shines at Larson Woodland

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It is impossible for the edge of Larson Woodland on Riverbank Road to absorb the huge amount of leaves that fall each year.  It takes a crew of volunteers to rake and remove the leaves in order to keep the edge of the woodland walkable.  Fortunately, a great group of volunteers answered the call on Friday, December 11, and the job was done.  The leaves were used to help control erosion on a slope facing the Ten Mile River.

Thanks to everyone who helped in this annual effort.

Announcing an opportunity to serve with Americorps in Attleboro

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TerraCorps, an AmeriCorps-affiliated environmental nonprofit, has selected the Attleboro Land Trust as a partner for the 2020-21 TerraCorps program year. This partnership will allow the Attleboro Land Trust to host one “Land Stewardship/Community Engagement Coordinator” in a full-time 8-month service position from December 2020 to July 2021.

TerraCorps members serve communities by developing local partnerships, leading activities, and engaging with volunteers. Members have the opportunity to gain valuable hands-on experience and receive professional development training and mentorship. As part of AmeriCorps, members also receive a living allowance, and are eligible for healthcare coverage, childcare coverage, loan forbearance, and an education award.

The Attleboro Land Trust’s member will focus on (1) activities to enhance and protect the 492 acres of conservation land under its care and (2) engagement with the public to increase awareness of and involvement with the land trust’s mission across all sectors of the community.

To apply for this position, visit terracorps.org.  For questions about serving with TerraCorps, contact Lianna Lee (admin@terracorps.org). For more about the TerraCorps position in Attleboro, contact Charlie Adler (attleborolandtrust@gmail.com).

31st Annual Meeting on November 17

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Save the date–the public is invited

November 17th 7:00 pm via Zoom

This year’s guests promise an expert’s look at the past 30 years of land conservation, contrasted with an exploration of what the future holds for the local environment.

Our guests are uniquely qualified to guide us on this quest.  They are:

  • Charlie Wyman, former land preservation specialist with the Massachusetts Audubon Society,
  • the Honorable Mayor of the City of Attleboro, Paul Heroux, and
  • moderating their online discussion about our environmental future will be renowned educator and talk show host, Ron Struminski.

We’ll also be recognizing some of our dedicated volunteers who have kept the Land Trust moving forward in spite of the pandemic and letting our members in on some hot news about upcoming activities and projects.

Please plan to zoom in.  The Zoom invitation is posted below:

###############################

Topic: ALT 31st Annual Meeting
Time: Nov 17, 2020 07:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)

Join Zoom Meeting

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89029943713?pwd=QTJMeGVUODdaVy95LzB2bTc1cXZOQT09

Meeting ID: 890 2994 3713
Passcode: 719575
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Fishing for Answers at Larson Woodland

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Staff and volunteers from the Woonasquatucket River Watershed Council in Rhode Island paid a visit to the Attleboro Land Trust’s Larson Woodland on September 17 to take a census of fish species in the Ten Mile River.  They came at the invitation of Keith Gonsalves of the Ten Mile River Watershed Council.  Keith has long been concerned about the health of the river and its inhabitants and has been arranging these scientific surveys annually for a number of years to monitor the river’s condition.

Volunteers helped collect the fish, using a device which temporarily stuns the fish with a slight electric shock.  The fish are counted and measured, then returned unharmed to the river.

 

In this video clip, ranger Jacob Gorke measures a baby largemouth bass.

 

This is a Yellow Bullhead Catfish.

 

Other species found in the river were Golden shiner, Tesselated darter, Pumpkin seed, Bluegill, Redfin pickerel, Crawfish, and Chain pickerel.