When news of Sisson Meadow‘s not so loving fate spread this past Valentine’s Day 2014, the heartache was palpable (click here to read more about the vandalism from last February). Community members immediately began contacting Siskiyou Land Trust to inquire about how they could help repair the damage.
“Calls of support started flowing in February 14th and kept flowing ever since. It felt incredible to know and feel how much the entire community loves Sisson Meadow, so much so they were moved to immediate action,” reported Sam Baxter, Land Trust President.
According to Baxter, over fifty individuals and businesses have contributed to the Sisson Meadow Repair Fund to date… “community members near and far have contributed professional services, raffle items, an entire event, web services to create an online donation page, materials, volunteer time, offers for entire volunteer crews, and cash donations.
Conservation Director Kathleen Hitt expressed her gratitude. “From this surprising challenge, we’ve grown stronger and even more appreciative of our extraordinary community. What a fantastic place to live, where we see the wisdom in participating in the fixing of broken spaces so all can return to fully enjoy the beauty of a place. When we return to our shared spaces that are fixed up and made anew after troubling carelessness, we are reminded of the beauty of this community reflected in the extraordinary care taken to make sure we do have places like this to come to every day – places we tend together in community. How great it is to share in that kind of tenacity and an honor to be a part of it.”
In fact, the Siskiyou Land Trust just exceeded their $5000 funding goal for Sisson Meadow Repairs. Online contributions on the SLT’s campaign page provided by Donation Pay and mailed in donations totaled $1,300, Tom Stienstra’s Slide Show and raffle event raised $1700, and two surprise donations were given to the Land Trust at Wednesday’s Adventure Stories and Stewardship Tourism slide show presented by Di Strachan. The first surprise came from a donation jar that Nancy Gandrau of Haircuts set up next to her hair cutting chair, raising $120 for Sisson repairs from her clientele.
The second surprise made the Land Trust Board President drop to his knees when Nancy Swift ended the stewardship tourism conversation with an award to Sisson Meadow Repair Fund from the Jefferson Economic Development Institute’s (JEDI) Stewardship Fund. Ten years ago, a group of wise and visionary Mt. Shasta businesses and chamber members created a funding mechanism called the Stewardship Fund of Far Northern, CA. The idea was to ask their clientele, visitors to the region, to donate cash to the fund that would in turn grant it out to projects that would impact the local economy and enhance the traveler’s experience. This would be one means to “give back” or “do good” to a beautiful and scenic place people were visiting.
Inspired by Tom Stienstra’s slide show event that successfully raised funds for Sisson Meadow repairs and the timing of Di Strachan’s Stewardship Tourism presentation, Nancy Swift proposed a surprise donation from JEDI’s Stewardship Fund to fulfill the Land Trust’s Sisson Meadow repair goal. A standing ovation thanked Swift, Strachan, and all who created and contributed to JEDI’s Stewardship Fund after Swift handed over a $2065 check to Siskiyou Land Trust. Again, we see the many ways in which our community shines.
The fundraising total of $5185 will be dedicated to Sisson Meadow, and used to repair the damage from February’s vandalism and maintain continued upkeep.
