Spring/Summer 2012

LANDMARKS 12 SPRING/SUMMER

Newsletter for Kachemak Heritage Land Trust HIGHLIGHTS

Effler Trail Plans A Legacy Gift We’re Almost There . . .

Upcoming Events

Director’s Column

Marie McCarty Executive Director

“The practice of conservation must spring from a conviction of what is ethically and aesthetically right, as well as what is economically expedient.

A thing is right only when it tends to preserve the integrity, stability, and beauty of the community, and the community includes the soil, waters, fauna, and flora, as well as people.”

– Aldo Leopold

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ecently Mandy, our Conservation Director, and I spread out a series of colorful maps on the big wooden table in our main office. We flipped open the laptop, pulled up the Borough parcel viewer, and scrutinized the prioritized Excel spreadsheets ranking properties for their conservation values. I wish that you could have joined us as we dreamed about the next phase of our conservation project on the Anchor River. It was a great afternoon. It was also the official kick off of the next phase of our Anchor River work.

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At 37, fifteen years ago, I found the land trust community after years of alternately working in the field of welfare law and in conservation. Given my dual concern for human issues and conservation, I appreciate Aldo Leopold’s quote above describing a triad of ethics, beauty, and economics, with people and nature combined to define community. Leopold’s description of conservation practice is the perfect definition for me, blending my belief in the importance of the human community balanced with my desire for conservation. Through KHLT I am personally and professionally able to practice conservation in a way that is meaningful to me by fostering permanent conservation in a way that honors people while also preserving the landscape.

In this issue you will read heartfelt articles about how other people practice conservation. From Jeanie Sherwood’s love for Kachemak Bay, to Hannah Heimbuch’s interview with one of KHLT’s founding Board members, Toby Tyler, to the article about conservation easement donors, Nina Faust and Ed Bailey, each article describes how these people like you practice conservation in their lives and why. Each one of these wonderful people holds Kachemak Heritage Land Trust close to their hearts.

Please take a minute and consider how you practice conservation in your life. We each travel our own path, but as supporters of KHLT, we come together to create a wonderful opportunity to make the world a better place . . . forever.  Marie McCarty, Executive Director

KHLT Board Members Dotti Harness-Foster, President John Mouw, Vice President Larsen Klingel, Treasurer Scott Connelly, Secretary Marian Beck Nancy Lee-Evans Rachel Lord Sam Means

KHLT Staff Marie McCarty, Executive Director Mandy Bernard, Conservation Director Jamie Grant, Development Coordinator Sheryl Ohlsen, Accounting Manager Patrick Miller, Stewardship Coordinator

KHLT Contact Information Kachemak Heritage Land Trust 315 Klondike Avenue Homer, AK 99603 (907) 235-5263 | (907) 235-1503 (fax) www.KachemakLandTrust.org

Credits Photos © Wild North Photography Layout Design | Debi Bodett

CONTENTS DIRECTOR’S COLUMN.. . . . . . . . . . 1 THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE WELCOME TO KHLT!. . . . . . . . . . . . 2 EFFLER TRAIL PLANS AND PROPERTY UPDATE. . . . . . . . 3 NEW OPERATING ENDOWMENT AT THE HOMER FOUNDATION. . . . 4 HOMER IN MY HEART. . . . . . . . . . 5 A LEGACY GIFT. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 LAND STEWARDSHIP – FOR LIFETIMES TO COME. . . . . . . . 7 GRANT FUNDED STEWARDSHIP ASSISTANT SHARES HIS EXPERIENCE.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

On the Cover

CONSERVATION DIRECTOR’S DESK. 10

Conservation Director Mandy Bernard captured this awesome picture of Spring in Homer, AK while enjoying a beautiful day outdoors.

UPCOMING EVENTS KHLT EXPANDS ITS POTATO PATCH. 12

WE’RE ALMOST THERE.. . . . . . . . . 11

KENAI RIVER CONSERVATION EASEMENT PROPERTY FOR SALE. 13 PLANNED GIVING.. . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 ANNUAL MEETING RECAP. . . . . . . 13 THANK YOU EVERYONE FOR YOUR SUPPORT.. . . . . . . . . . . 14

photo © Mandy Bernard 2011 1

www.KachemakLandTrust.org

Thank You for Your Service

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fter serving more than 7 years, Shirley Cox has decided to step down from KHLT’s board of directors.

She now finds herself spending much of her time away from her Happy Valley, AK ranch while away at her ranch in Eastern Oregon where she tends to more than 40 horses and mules, as well as her horse outfitting business. These days she Shirley Cox Board of Directors enjoys taking families and groups up into the Eagle Cap Wilderness to camp, fish and hike. She says “Eastern Oregon is beautiful, full of clear rivers similar to the Anchor River, high granite mountains and clear snow fed lakes. There are miles and miles of horseback trails to enjoy.”

Shirley will continue returning to her Alaska home from midMay through September and still remains involved in many community activities on the Kenai Peninsula. She also is excited to have recently discovered the Wallowa Land Trust in Oregon and plans to visit soon!

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essica Ryan has decided to step down from the KHLT board of directors. After more than two years on our board she is excited to concentrate more of her free time on her ever-expanding garden. Jessica, the Education Coordinator with Kachemak Bay Research Reserve, will continue to remain active with KHLT Jessica Ryan as a volunteer, and has offered to take Board of Directors on a new summer fundraiser – “Wild Arts,” which will draw upon the talents of locals like Marian Beck and Marybee Kaufman. For more details see upcoming events on page 12!

We will miss you both on our board and are so happy for the exciting changes and new interests in your life. Thank you so much for all that you have done and continue to do in support of KHLT. You are the best!



Welcome to KHLT!

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ur newest board member, Nancy Lee-Evans, has a love of nature that led to a long and varied career as an environmentalist, in sustainability and ultimately to her current work as a business owner. In 1977, she founded the Alaska Alternative Energy Resource Center at the Alaska Center for the Environment which hosted the first Nancy Lee-Evans Board of Directors three of six Annual Alaska Alternative Energy Conferences, early precursors to Bioneers in Alaska.

Nancy has a MA and PHD and is the newest member to join the KHLT board in January 2012.

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annah Bradley, a Homer local; has come to join KHLT as the 2012 Summer Stewardship Intern.

She has Bachelor of Arts in Human Biology and a Minor in French from Scripps College in Claremont, CA. She previously worked as an intern at the Pratt Museum and as a park guide at Lake Clark National Park. Hannah will be assisting our Conservation Hannah Bradley Stewardship Intern Director, Stewardship Coordinator and our Development Coordinator with monitoring, stewardship and an outreach special project.

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atrick Miller comes to us by way of Vermont and Minnesota, where he interned with the Minnesota Land Trust and completed a variety of stewardship tasks and legal research. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in History and Philosophy from Bethel University in Minnesota, and recently completed his Juris Doctor and Masters in Environmental Law Patrick Miller Stewardship Coordinator and Policy from Vermont Law School.

Patrick is filling a new Stewardship Coordinator position at KHLT where he will assist the Conservation Director in property management and stewardship activities.

We thank each of you for the commitment you have made to KHLT and the future work that we will accomplish together!

Welcome to KHLT, we look forward to having you as a part of our team!



LANDMARKS • NEWSLETTER FOR KACHEMAK HERITAGE LAND TRUST • SPRING/SUMMER 2012

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Effler Property photo © KHLT

Effler Trail Plans and Property Update

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id you know that KHLT owns a beautiful 18-acre property on the North side of Skyline Drive in Homer? The Effler family generously donated these wetlands to KHLT to honor the dreams of their parents, Gene and Mim Effler, in the hopes of making them come true. Gene and Mim Effler were among Homer’s first homesteaders.

Gene had a lifelong dream to create an educational nature trail for the Homer community. The property’s wetlands include a headwater fen that drains into a major tributary of the Bridge Creek Reservoir-Homer’s municipal water supply.

KHLT assistant, Greg Goforth, just completed a comprehensive management plan for KHLT to manage this sensitive and scenic property. Completion of this management plan was made possible both by a donation from the family, individual contributions, a grant from the Mountaineers Foundation, and a grant from the Pacific Coast Joint Venture. To uphold both the family’s wishes, meet the needs of the property and achieve KHLT’s goals, the Effler property is being managed for habitat protection with a public use component.

Kachemak Heritage Land Trust has received a matching grant from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Partners for Fish and Wildlife program to develop a well-designed interpretive pedestrian-use nature trail with a small observation deck. This

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Gene and Mim Effler photo © KHLT

grant also provides funds to discourage ATV use of the property and to create controlled access to the property to ensure that the wetlands are not disturbed.

Next summer the trail will be designed, as boundary signs will begin to be placed around the property, we will begin to place natural barriers to impede trespass on the property, and we will complete additional biological surveys. KHLT will begin trail construction in the summer of 2013. Stay tuned for more details on this exciting project! 

www.KachemakLandTrust.org

Operating Endowment at The Homer Foundation

By Joy Steward Joy Steward, Executive Director, The Homer Foundation photo © Jake Schmutzler, Five Foot Photo

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ommunity foundations represent one of the fastestgrowing forms of philanthropy in the United States today.

The Homer Foundation is our local community foundation. It was established in 1991 to serve the lower Kenai Peninsula. For 21 years the Foundation has been recognized as the steward of permanent philanthropic resources for our community. These assets are invested and the earnings are distributed back to the community for charitable and educational purposes. Donors have chosen the Homer Foundation because we provide community knowledge, flexibility and personalized service, and because we have built trust through accountability and transparency.

At the Foundation we like to refer to the philanthropic assets we hold as a “basket of funds”. All assets are pooled for investment purposes, but accounted for individually. There are four major types of permanent endowment funds that we manage: Donor Advised Funds, Field of Interest Funds, Scholarship Funds and Agency Endowment Funds. Agency Endowment Funds are the permanent endowments we hold for local nonprofit organizations.

To establish an Agency Endowment Fund an organization must make an irrevocable gift to the community foundation.

When would a nonprofit organization choose to do this? The “when” is critical, it speaks to organizational maturity. Does the organization believe it is here for the long run? Does it have a sustainability plan? Does it have adequate resources for current needs? Does it have committed donors willing to support future needs? An organization must be confident with their vision of the future and their place in the community to take on endowment building.

The “why” is equally important. The decision to establish an endowment fund may be part of a sustainability plan. Annual earnings from an endowment can be a reliable revenue stream to help support one’s mission year after year. An endowment fund may be part of a development plan, a tool to attract donors who like the idea of knowing their gift will always be there, working for their favorite nonprofit in perpetuity.

An endowment fund may be marketed as a repository of appreciated assets, planned gifts and bequests, providing ease and flexibility for donors. At the Homer Foundation we also like to believe a nonprofit organization would establish an Agency Endowment Fund with us because we are a trusted partner, and because they want to be a part of something permanent, something larger than themselves.

The Kachemak Heritage Land Trust has been one of the Foundation’s long time Agency Endowment Fund holders. As stewards of conservation easements and other permanent holdings, KHLT’s board and donors recognized early on the value in building a permanent endowment. As a friend of the Kachemak Heritage Land Trust you may want to consider supporting their vision by dedicating a portion of an annual gift, or by making a planned gift, to the Kachemak Heritage Land Trust’s Agency Endowment Fund at the Homer Foundation. 

Joy Steward is the Executive Director of the Homer Foundation and believes our local nonprofits are the heart of a strong, vibrant community with whom we partner to impact lives, solve problems and improve futures.

LANDMARKS • NEWSLETTER FOR KACHEMAK HERITAGE LAND TRUST • SPRING/SUMMER 2012

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Homer in My Heart

By Jeanie Sherwood

Jeanie Sherwood

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he first time I came to the end of the road was in late June 1964, three months after the Good Friday earthquake. My first view of Homer and Kachemak Bay was from Baycrest Hill; I think my heart stopped beating for a full minute. It’s been that way every time, ever since. I think that’s the most stunningly beautiful sight in the world.

By the end of our short visit that summer, my husband Morgan and I had purchased 3-plus acres from Jacob “Rusty” Lien in Halibut Cove, a surprise to all of us. Two years later we put up a little Pan Abode cabin, with considerable help from Halibut Cove neighbors, especially Clem Tillion and the Ram, who together brought over and unloaded the kit cabin. There followed almost three decades of perfect summer visits to our wilderness retreat.

Morgan became acquainted with KHLT through Barbara Seaman, its first Director. We had known Barb when she skippered the Danny J, after it became the Halibut Cove Ferry.

The idea of a land trust in the Homer area really appealed to Morgan’s lifelong dream of keeping Alaska as pure and unspoiled as possible. We helped underwrite the original

Calvin and Coyle Trail, and our modest early contributions to KHLT have increased, thanks to gifts of stock, a truly winning way to donate to a favorite organization.

In 1994, we sold the Cove property, but continued to make three summer trips to Homer. Each visit was more impressive than the last. The care Homer community members were taking of their natural environment was inspiring. After Morgan’s death in 2000, I did not return until 2009. With California sailing friends, I finally returned to Alaska so we could attend the Wooden Boat Festival. The best part of our extremely pleasant stay in Homer, was the hours-long tour graciously provided by Marie McCarty, who drove us all over the Homer hills, pointing out acreages that are now part of the Land Trust, relating the history of each. We were bowled over by the extent of the Trust’s Homer properties and the incredible beauty all around that they now protect.

This past October, Marie was able to stop off at my Chicago apartment for an afternoon on her way to a workshop in Milwaukee. It was fun to see her in a totally urban situation and listen to stories about her childhood in the Chicago area.

Her departure left me seriously homesick for the lower Kenai Peninsula, but it was comforting to know this still only gently touched part of the world is in such good hands. KHLT and Homer are a great partnership. 

A Legacy Gift

By Hannah Heimbuch

Hannah Heimbuch photo © Homer News

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omer artist Toby Tyler is a man that takes care to preserve things. He surrounds himself with history, and in many ways he surrounds us with it as well. He preserves it on countless canvases with his unique taste for line and color. He cherishes it in scrapbooks and albums, overflowing with the sketches, photos and mementos of decades. And he chooses to share his history, and future, with the community of Homer through land donation.

Spending even a few minutes with Toby at his home overlooking Kachemak Bay gives a person the front row reason for his choice to establish his land as a protected space. “It’s the view,” he said.

“I knew I loved Alaska the minute I flew up on the little plane over the panhandle and saw it.” He points to the peaks framed by his large picture windows, using few words to accompany a gesture that says to me, isn’t it obvious? This is beautiful. And it is. Just as it is.

Although he competes from time to time with treetops edging into that sky-scape, Toby is satisfied that he has carved a place out for this open space that will last lifetimes to come. He’ll tell you about the wildlife that trek below his windows, the prints of which one can see in the snow pack this time of year. He’ll tell you about the moose in tones of both joy and frustration —

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Toby Tyler photo © Wild North Photography

mourning the loss of his willows at the same time he admires the mother and young moose that have bedded down on the east side of the house. He wants the land for them, too.

Toby’s appreciation of Alaska’s wild beauty began in the ‘50s, when a friend suggested he might like this place up north. A teacher in California at the time, Toby submitted an employment request to the Alaska Department of Education. He still has the Western Union wire response from the state, from the spring of 1954, asking that he accept a teaching position and report to Umnak Island by August. He did; and in the 1950s scrapbook, alongside the faded paper job offer, start the many sketches of Umnak and the children he taught there. He only spent a year on the island, but it was the beginning of a lifetime as a teacher, artist and adventurer of Alaska. That’s why the sketches and photographs don’t stop, filling album after album with evidence of one man’s experiences and the way he chooses to treasure them.

Toby taught high school math in Homer for several years before moving more permanently into artistic endeavors, coupled with frequent trips back to California and work in local fisheries.

We can still visit the eight-by-ten cabin that housed Toby’s art studio on Pioneer Avenue. Don’t let the spruce tangle fool you, it’s right there by the sidewalk, next to Wild Berry Products.

Pictures of that space as he had it in the ‘70s make a person envious of those who had a chance to drop by and peruse the paintings that packed the walls and ceilings inside and out.

Toby bought the land where he currently lives and paints in the late ‘70s. “It was 20 acres then, it’s 20 acres now,” he said.

And it will stay that way through the vision he shares with the Kachemak Heritage Land Trust.

An afternoon with Toby will teach a person many things, not the least of which is this: Whether we know it or not, we all have some sort of relationship with the land we live on and the community we share it with. And the nature of that relationship takes many forms — maybe it lives only in memory or in journaled words; maybe it’s in afternoons spent in the garden or long days laboring to build a home; perhaps it’s laid on canvas, preserved in trust or simply held tightly in the moment it takes to put your face toward Kachemak Bay and say yes, this is beautiful. Regardless of how we express the bond between self and land, perhaps we should all, as Toby has, take the time to consider — how will I take care of what I have loved?  LANDMARKS • NEWSLETTER FOR KACHEMAK HERITAGE LAND TRUST • SPRING/SUMMER 2012

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Land Stewardship—For Lifetimes to Come

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and stewardship, the heart and soul of Kachemak Heritage Land Trust, is what draws Edgar Bailey and Nina Faust to donate conservation easements to KHLT. Protection of habitat for the future drives their vision and efforts in preserving land.

Often, when they have been asked how much land they own, the response even from some “green” friends has been, “Oh you guys are real land barons.”

Edgar Bailey and Nina Faust photo © Wild North Photography

Scientists across the country are now carefully studying the need to protect local and long distance migration corridors so that animals wintering in one region can continue to make the journey back and forth to summering areas. Even in a very local region like Homer, protecting routes up and down the bluff for animal movement between summer and winter range is necessary for long-term survival of local species. They believe KHLT plays a very valuable role in working with willing landowners to protect land and especially corridors.

Ed and Nina’s response, “No, we are land stewards.”

“In our society a large landowner is often pejoratively categorized as a ‘speculator.’ We want the public to have a better understanding of land stewardship and how it benefits a community,” Ed said. “In the future, communities that do not make efforts to protect nearby valued open space will learn what has been lost after it is too late.”

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Both Ed and Nina had experiences when they were young that developed their passion for land stewardship. Ed grew up in Los Angeles where rampant development is the norm. Very few natural areas were left around his Hollywood neighborhood, but the nearby Runyon Canyon and Wattles parks made a lasting impression on him. He and his father frequently went bird watching and hiking in these areas that had been acquired

www.KachemakLandTrust.org

by the City for parks. These open spaces provided critical habitat for remaining wildlife populations.

Later when he was away at school in Ojai, California he spent much of his free time gardening and caring for the animals in the school’s animal yard. He was especially attached to the waterfowl. The adjacent high school began an expansion project that encroached on the area where the animals were kept; this experience impressed him with the need to protect even small habitats.

Shortly thereafter, at age 14, he and his father embarked on a month-long tour of nearly all the western U.S. and Canadian national parks. He was astounded at all the wildlife and beauty of parks and other protected areas.

Being from a huge urban area, Ed was awed by natural lands, its wildlife, and habitat. These experiences honed his scientific and conservation interests. After high school he went on to earn a B.S. in biology and an M.S. in wildlife biology. He spent more than 30 years working as a biologist for various national parks, forests, and wildlife refuges. When he retired from the Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge, he knew he still wanted to conserve land, so creating a private wildlife preserve was the ideal retirement project for both Ed and Nina.

Nina grew up in Tucson, Arizona where living on the edge of town with her family provided access to undeveloped desert areas to spend free time playing. The desert was a natural playground for her, her brothers, and her neighborhood friends.

Her family also had a weekend routine of heading to natural areas in nearby foothills or mountains for picnics, hikes, fishing, and just enjoying the outdoors.

On a recent visit to Tucson, she was shocked at the loss of

desert habitat and the nearly total development of the east side of town right up to the national monument boundary.

“Subdivisions and malls have devoured all the open desert I remember as a child. It shocked me, and it is not slowing down.”

At college in Anchorage she met professors at Alaska Methodist University who were conservationists and avid wilderness travelers. From them, she learned about backpacking, ski mountaineering, hiking, winter ski camping, mountain climbing, and conservation. After graduation all the outdoor skills and environmental knowledge led her to become involved in many conservation groups, particularly the Sierra Club.

When she and Ed met in 1973, she began volunteering to do wildlife survey work with him for the USFWS during summers when she was not teaching. The projects took them to remote coastlines along the Alaska Peninsula, Shumagin Islands, and Aleutian Islands. “Exploring these magnificent, remote, rugged coastal landscapes by 16-foot inflatable boat allowed us to gather the information to determine the distribution and abundance of marine birds and mammals in the newly created Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge. I think doing this sort of work really permeated my thinking with how important land stewardship is and how important it is to look to the future within one’s own community. I think this is part of why both Ed and I are so passionate about saving important lands for the future.”

Over the years, Ed and Nina have granted six conservation easements to KHLT, totaling more than 570 acres. They still have a little over 200 acres that they are planning to put under easement. “Our vision of land stewardship atop the ridge along the eastern end of Skyline Drive is to permanently protect land and wildlife corridors. This is an effort that we hope will be an enduring legacy and encourage local land stewardship.” 

photo © Nina Faust LANDMARKS • NEWSLETTER FOR KACHEMAK HERITAGE LAND TRUST • SPRING/SUMMER 2012

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Grant Funded Stewardship Assistant Shares His Experience

Greg Goforth photo © KHLT

By Greg Goforth

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oming to Alaska has been the fulfillment of a lifelong dream for me. As someone who loves nature, I always knew that Alaska - with its vast, pristine wilderness and abundant wildlife was a place I had to visit. Since arriving in Alaska, that wilderness has become a tangible reality. From coming across wolf scat, to stumbling upon bear-killed moose carcasses, working with KHLT has afforded me the opportunity to experience firsthand, that wilderness is abundant on the Kenai Peninsula.

In September 2011, I began working at KHLT with the goal of writing management plans for seven of KHLT’s fee-owned properties. In an effort to understand how best to manage these properties and make management recommendations for perpetual stewardship, I set to work researching and compiling everything I could about KHLT’s properties (land use history, soils, hydrology, flora, fauna, and more). Armed with this important information, I was able to begin my fieldwork studies of these properties with a better understanding of their 9

needs. Some of my fieldwork consisted of monitoring, walking property boundaries, taking GPS points, and gathering photos which were needed as a reference in the management plans.

One of the first properties I visited was KHLT’s Martin property along the Anchor River. In April 2011, KHLT acquired this beautiful 11.82 acres of spruce forest and riparian wetlands with more than 200 feet of river frontage. The Martin property is a part of KHLT’s Anchor River Project, which is focused on protecting significant lands along the river for water quality, fish, and wildlife. Based upon research done by Kachemak Bay Research Reserve, Homer Soil and Water Conservation District, and Cook Inletkeeper, it was suspected that the wetlands, and especially a side-channel on the Martin property, were good rearing and overwintering habitat for juvenile salmon.

On that visit I was accompanied by an experienced KHLT volunteer, Nina Faust and I was impressed by the signs of

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abundant wildlife. As eagles soared overhead, we walked past large game trails, found tree-scrapings and diggings where bare soil had been exposed, and… moose carcasses. It quickly became apparent that the Martin property was important for more than just eagles, fish, and moose; and I wasn’t in California anymore. With loud conversation, and interjected shouts of “Hey, bear!”, Nina and I cautiously made our way through the thick riparian vegetation adjacent to the river. As we approached the Anchor River, there was a large splash. We both paused at the noise and asked, “Did you hear that?” With evidence of a predator on the property and the loud splash, we decided that it would be best if we came back to that corner of the property later.

In November, 2011, I paid my second visit to the Martin property with Kachemak Bay Estuarine Research Reserve biologist, Coowe Walker. By this time there were several inches of snow on the ground and the side-channel was frozen over. We augured through the ice of the side-channel and set bated minnow traps at three different sites. Later that afternoon, the traps were checked and two of the three traps had caught juvenile Coho salmon! The fact that two Coho had been caught within a few hours indicates that there are likely many more juvenile salmon using the side-channel. It was a special moment to witness in person, what KHLT was working to protect.

So far, I have spent only 6 months here, and it is my conviction that Alaska is a resource of national and global significance. In this place of natural beauty, we have the opportunity to focus our efforts on protection. We can prevent the degradation of ecosystems that would warrant future restoration. Although wilderness is abundant on the Kenai Peninsula today, it is one of Alaska’s most populated regions. KHLT is playing a vital role with their proactive work that conserves this land for the benefit of the people, and for maintaining the long-term integrity of ecosystems on the Kenai Peninsula. Conserving this land by working with willing landowners is one important part of the equation; the other is protecting the land we steward forever, through the use of long-term management plans.

Conservation Director’s Desk Mandy Bernard, Conservation Director I wasn’t born in Alaska, but I got here as fast as I could.

You’ve undoubtedly seen this type of bumper sticker in our own great state and throughout the country. Swap “Alaska” with “Colorado,” “Sublette County,” “the South,” or just about any other American locale, and you’ve got yourself a simple traffic-distraction declaration of hometown pride.

Mandy Bernard photo © KHLT

Though the aforementioned example is a little inane for my taste, I can’t help but concede its accuracy. My brief residency on the Kenai Peninsula has provided more encounters with people originally from other places than any other state I’ve ever lived in. The reasons everyone travels here, or never leaves, are endless—though hardly related to happenstance arrival or loitering. Whatever the initial cause, the collective thread that pulls us all together is that we love this place. And that’s where the land trust comes in.

Kachemak Heritage Land Trust’s mission statement is accurate: we acquire, protect, and steward land with natural, recreational, and cultural values. We’ve got trails and scenic open space.

We protect wetlands, tidelands, forests, riparian and wildlife migration corridors, and pristine natural habitats. We determine what to protect by looking at a multitude of maps and working to connect all of these on a landscape level with conservation easements and land acquisitions.

As a recent college graduate with aspirations of a career in conservation and a dream of visiting Alaska, I am thankful to KHLT for the opportunity to contribute to the conservation of a place that is more beautiful than I could have ever imagined.

After we record an easement or acquire the land identified through prioritization mapping, stewardship is the everlasting other half of this protection. It’s well understood that part of our job is to steward and care for our lands, ensuring that they retain their wildlife and natural habitat in perpetuity. But often, the simplest implication of all this is overlooked: that pieces of this place you love best, whether you were born here or wish you were, are going to be here forever.

Thank you so much Greg for the wonderful management plans you put together. Your professionalism and eye for detail provided us with a product that will help to ensure the conservation of those properties forever. We hope that when you leave Alaska, you carry with you the knowledge, that you have made a mark on our little corner of the world. We wish you all the best! ~ KHLT Staff 

You don’t have to own land or donate an easement for this assurance. The little white remittance envelope tucked inside this newsletter doesn’t have an allocation line for I am connected to this place. I want to be part of its permanence. But we’ll understand the meaning behind your altruistic support. We love it too. 

LANDMARKS • NEWSLETTER FOR KACHEMAK HERITAGE LAND TRUST • SPRING/SUMMER 2012

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2011 Annual Appeal: We are Almost There… Can you Help Make this Happen?

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hank you for your support of Kachemak Heritage Land Trust. Because of members like you, KHLT currently protects 3,047.13 acres on the Kenai Peninsula and we continue to focus our strategic efforts on important lands for conservation. As you can see, KHLT is committed to ensuring that our important mission and projects continue and that we are able to meet our promises into the future. It is important to remember, however, that the land trust operates as a team of individuals and your participation and donations are the most important part of that team!

As you know, we operate through individual donations and grants. Today we are writing to you seeking assistance with two grants, described below. We first appealed to you regarding these grants in November and we are very close to reaching our goals. We just need just a little boost from our membership to help make these projects possible. 

Your donation towards one or both of these grants will go a long way towards the land trust’s mission.

You can donate by visiting our website and clicking on the “Donate Now” button at the bottom of our home page: www.kachemaklandtrust.org. If you prefer, we also accept gifts by phone and gifts mailed or dropped off personally.

1st Grant Match U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Coastal Program

Total grant: $43,600 Required match from KHLT: $21,800 (50%) Remaining funds needed to reach match: $5,324

Funds from this grant will provide the resources needed for KHLT to: • Determine priority land parcels on the South Fork of the Anchor River that are important to our conservation strategy by developing map products that have key conservation values overlaid with parcel information and river data.

• Provide educational information to priority landowners on the Anchor River to preserve salmon habitat and water quality. We have already had tremendous success by purchasing the 11.82-acre Martin Property along the Anchor River on the Old Sterling Highway in Anchor Point. This property has been so exciting for us to discover and facilitate its protection! It is across from and adjacent to two other properties that have a conservation mechanism in place. The most exciting news is that we found spawning salmon just off the property banks, overhanging vegetation (important for fish habitat and winter Coho habitat), and overwintering juvenile Coho Salmon! Proof that with research and planning, we can strategically protect areas important to our environment and the Alaskan way of life.

• Create priority maps identifying high priority land across the Kenai Peninsula for conservation. This effort will be similar to the strategy for the South Fork of the Anchor River but at a courser scale.

• Continued work to preserve high priority land adjacent to existing conservation properties in the coastal zone.

• Educating decision-makers about the reasons for private land conservation.

• Create management plans for KHLT-owned properties.

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2nd Grant Match Land Trust Alliance Accreditation

Total grant: $5,000 Required match from KHLT: $1,250

KHLT is in the final phases of the accreditation process with the Land Trust Alliance. This process helps a land trust to make sure that they can meet their perpetual obligations by assessing their structural and financial health. Accreditation is an important process in the land trust community and increases public awareness of, and confidence in, land trusts and land conservation.

Land trusts that make this commitment in time and resources, use the accreditation application process as a way to fine-tune their policies and streamline their operations.

The Commission conducts an extensive review of the land trust applicant and upon approval, grants accreditation to land trusts that meet the practices.

The accreditation seal is a mark of distinction in land conservation. It recognizes organizations that meet national standards for excellence, uphold the public trust, and ensure that conservation efforts are permanent.

Funds from this grant will provide the resources needed for KHLT to: • Enhance the capacity of KHLT to continue to meet the best land trust management practices and high standards set by the Land Trust Alliance.

• Organize the pre-application and application.

• Purchase materials and printing supplies associated with accreditation activities.

www.KachemakLandTrust.org

Upcoming Events July – August • Wild Arts Something new and artful is on the horizon for this summer.

KHLT will be offering three miniworkshops featuring area artists who intend to bring out your wild side! Wild Arts will début beginning July 8th, with painter and photographer Marybee Kaufman which will be followed

by Mavis Muller and Melisse Reichman on July 15th, who will co-teach a workshop with clay, inspirational cards and more.

The grand finale of the Wild Arts workshop is on August 19th with an awesome day long adventure to Halibut Cove with Marian Beck, an artist well known for her bold and colorful style!

The workshop will start from the picturesque town of Homer where you will cruise aboard the Kachemak Bay Ferry, the “Danny J” and sail through some of the most scenic and vibrant waters anywhere. Upon arrival at Halibut Cove, you will have a chance to paint with Marian, while learning some of her tips and techniques. Later, visit the Experience Gallery and enjoy a fabulous lunch provided by the Saltry before heading home on the “Danny J”. (Limit 12). The cost for the three-day workshop is $210 for KHLT members and $235 for non-members, all proceeds will benefit KHLT. Materials are provided, participants should be 18 or older (children 14 -17 are allowed with participating adult). This KHLT fundraiser will fill up fast, for pre-registration and questions contact volunteer Jessica Ryan at 907-299-8811 or Jamie at 907-235-5263 or jamie@kachemaklandtrust.org.

Grace Ridge View • photo © Jessica Ryan

Late August – September • Blueberry Benefit (TBA) Join naturalist Dale Chorman and captain Karl Stoltzfus of Bay Excursions for an all-day trip across the bay to the Grace Ridge Trail. Hike through old-growth Sitka spruce forest and subalpine meadows to enjoy alpine berry-picking in a spectacular setting while learning about the area plants and other natural features.

This is a rigorous all-day hike. Bring lunch and water. The cost for spectacular all day adventure is $85 for KHLT members, and $95 for non-members, proceeds will benefit KHLT. Dates will be posted in the late summer so that we can plan the trip around blueberry picking season sometime in August or September.

(Limit 14).

November 17th • Annual Party and Auction at Alice’s Champagne Palace Look for updates on our website www.kachemaklandtrust.org

KHLT Expands its Potato Patch Philanthropy Enrichment Project: Learn How You Can Help TODAY!

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very year, with the help of community volunteers like you, local educators have worked with school children to grow potatoes and other vegetables in KHLT’s Community Garden.

This volunteer project is dear to our hearts because it gets kids involved with both the land and philanthropy, as the produce they plant and harvest is donated to the Homer Food Pantry.

This year, our community garden project is expanding! As in years past, the children of West Homer Elementary and The Center will maintain their garden projects in KHLT’s garden plot on the Poopdeck Platt Property. What’s new is that the children are coming to view this project as their own. They are excited to carry on the legacy of giving by sharing with their younger peers and leaving their mark. The kids have envisioned a sand box for the younger kids and nicer picnic tables for eating lunch. They also would like an informative kiosk. After all, it is important to let people know what they’re up to. This kiosk will house posted notices, garden rules, philosophy, funders, in-kind supporters, and the mission statements for the current user groups of the garden.

What’s new is that the children are coming to view this project as their own.

We are pleased to report that we received grant funding through the Peoples Garden micro-grant program, administered by Homer Soil and Water Conservation District. These funds however will support some of the plans the children have in mind for the garden this year, but not everything.

We hope you can help to supply the rest in labor and donated materials, tools and equipment that will be needed. Here is what they’re hoping for:

• Construction and materials for: »» Information Kiosk »» Covered Sand Box »» Picnic Table(s) • Local Fishy Peat • Bird Feeders, Birdbaths and Seed If you are interested in being a part of this life-shaping project, please call Jamie or Marie at 907-235-5263. Thank you! 

LANDMARKS • NEWSLETTER FOR KACHEMAK HERITAGE LAND TRUST • SPRING/SUMMER 2012

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Spectacular Kenai River Conservation Easement Property for Sale

Planned Giving

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fter we’re gone, the land remains.

But what will the land look like?

Will the land we cherish on the Kenai Peninsula still support clean waterways, intact ecosystems, healthy wildlife populations, and ample outdoor recreation opportunities? Will future generations thank us for our foresight?

Toby Tyler Homestaed photo © Wild North Photography

KHLT Bondurant Kenai River Property photo © Wild North Photography

This may be the most beautiful property on the Kenai River and it is for sale by Kachemak Heritage Land Trust protected by a conservation easement, located on the Kenai River with views of the Kenai Mountains.

Dale Bondurant very generously bequeathed this beautiful 6.98-acre Kenai Riverfront property to KHLT with the understanding that it could be sold to help support our efforts to protect important wildlife habitat and continue to monitor the provisions of the existing perpetual conservation easement.

The property contains grated walkways along the river, a large garage, a guest cabin and a small “as is” fixer upper house.

Located across the Kenai River from Bings Landing at river mile 39.5, the land includes 5.8 acres on the mainland and you would also own a 1.18-acre island.

The property supports moose calving on the island, black bear, lynx, beaver, river otter, and other small mammals. Bald eagles roost on the island, while ducks and other bird species frequent the area. Five species of salmon travel the Kenai River along the property, with Coho and Chinook smolt and adults resting in the slower backwater area between the mainland and island.

Rainbow trout and Dolly Varden also inhabit this stretch of water.

Interested parties are encouraged to contact Bill Hutchinson of Freedom Realty in Soldotna for more information or a viewing at 907-262-1770, or at bill@freedomrealty.com. The listing can be found at www.freedomrealty.com.  13

Planned giving enables each of us to make a lasting statement about what is ultimately important to us. Making a planned gift to Kachemak Heritage Land Trust makes the preservation of important conservation land on Alaska’s Kenai Peninsula part of your legacy, and ensures that the next generation will enjoy those places with special natural, recreational, and cultural values. Planned gifts are an important means to provide the financial stability necessary for Kachemak Heritage Land Trust to fulfill our mission in perpetuity, and may offer a significant reduction in your estate taxes.

For examples of the variety of planned gifts you can make, please contact Marie at 907-235-5263 or visit our website section on planned gifts http://www.kachemaklandtrust.org/ pages/planned-giving.php. This information is very general, and you should consult a qualified estate planner to assess your specific situation, goals, and options before making a planned gift. Kachemak Heritage Land Trust is unable to offer tax or other legal advice. 

Annual Meeting Recap

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n November 2011, KHLT held its annual meeting and Board of Directors election at Islands and Oceans in Homer, AK. KHLT, in partnership with Kachemak Bay Research Reserve (KBBR), presented “Celebrating the Anchor River – A Year in Review.” KHLT and its co-host KBBR also invited Sue Mauger of Cook Inletkeeper, Coowe Walker of KBRR, Jeff Anderson of US Fish and Wildlife, Carol Kerkvliet of Alaska Fish and Game, Geoff Coble of Coble Geophysical Services, Lynn Whitmore, and former Homer City Mayor, Jim Hornaday to participate by adding their 2011 reflections and discoveries and ukelele playing. Together, community members were able to listen and participate in discussions with local scientists and non-profits about the important work collectively achieved throughout the year. Thank you to everyone for your expertise and for joining us on that snowy night. What a great success! 

www.KachemakLandTrust.org

Thank You Everyone for Your Your Support!

Business Members

Movie Night

»» 2-2 Tango

»» Homer Veterinary Clinic

»» Alaska Rivers Company

»» Homer’s Jeans

»» Alaska Timberframe, Inc.

»» Jay-Brant General

On March 9th, the Homer Theatre sponsored a nonprofit event for Homer’s opening night of The Lorax movie.

The theatre was packed and guests were able to interact with KHLT volunteers to learn about our organization before the show. This was a great opportunity for KHLT to participate with community members new and seasoned, of all ages! What a great night, thank you Homer Theatre and KHLT volunteers!

Shorebird Festival

On May 10th – 13th KHLT offered free guided educational van tours to learn about KHLT’s conservation efforts and the various conservation tools used to protect land around the Kenai Peninsula area while seeing our work first hand.

It is thanks to Oasis Environmental that this event was made possible! We hope you all had a great time during the festival!

Kachemak Bay Science Conference

On March 9th, Kachemak Heritage Land Trust was pleased to once again participate in the Kachemak Bay Science Conference.

The two-day conference was organized to provide a forum for researchers and citizen scientists to present their findings to one another and the community, and has taken place every three years since 2000.

Speakers discussed their research, citizen science, and local/ traditional ecological knowledge (LTEK) projects touching on Kachemak Bay. Kachemak Heritage Land Trust staff made a presentation titled “Focused conservation for Alaska’s Kenai Peninsula”, providing an overview of land trust work and our reliance upon local scientists to inform our land conservation strategy.



»» Alaska Wildland Adventures,

Inc. »» Alaskan Gamefisher »» Alderfer Group »» Applied Archaeology

International »» Bay Realty Inc. »» Bellamy, Annette & Marvin

Contractors »» Kachemak Bay Ferry, Inc. »» Law Office of Daniel

Westerburg »» Law Offices of Haas &

Spigelmyer »» Loopy Lupine Distribution

LLC

»» Best Western Bidarka Inn

»» Magic Canyon Ranch B&B

»» Bobcat Services

»» Marine Services of AK, Inc.

»» Chihuly’s Charters

»» Moose Run Metalsmiths

»» Cosmic Kitchen, Inc.

»» North Wind Trade Collection

»» Derry & Associates

»» Oasis Environmental, Inc. /

»» Eayrs Plumbing & Heating

ERM

»» Era Aviation

»» Seaman’s Adventures

»» Grant Aviation

»» Seaside Farms

»» Hallo Bay Wilderness Camp

»» SeaULater Charters Alaska

»» Home Run Oil

»» Seldovia Bay Ferry

»» Homer Air Service

»» Smokey Bay Air

»» Homer Electric Association

»» Spenard Builders Supply

»» Homer Saw & Cycle

»» Wild North Photography

»» Homer Theatre

»» Wilderness Garden Day Spa

Project Funders

»» Vanguard Charitable Endowment Fund »» Cottonwood Fund of the Homer Foundation »» City of Homer through the Homer Foundation »» The Homer Foundation »» US Fish and Wildlife Service Coastal Program »» US Fish and Wildlife Service Partners Program »» Alaska Sustainable Salmon Fund »» Peoples Garden through Homer Soil and Water Conservation

District-USDA Program »» Land Trust Alliance »» True North Foundation »» The Community Foundation of Boulder »» Rasmussen Foundation »» Mountaineers Foundation LANDMARKS • NEWSLETTER FOR KACHEMAK HERITAGE LAND TRUST • SPRING/SUMMER 2012

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Non-Profit PRESORT STANDARD U.S. Postage PAID Homer, Alaska Permit #67

315 Klondike Avenue Homer, Alaska 99603

Preserving, for public benefit, land on Alaska’s Kenai Peninsula with significant natural, recreational, or cultural values by working with willing landowners.

www.KachemakLandTrust.org Printed on 50% recycled paper.

KHLT Wish List

KHLT Volunteers List

• File Cabinets (4 drawer locking)

• June Clean Up Crew for Poopdeck Platte Trail

• Handheld GPS Unit

• All Summer Weed Wackers for Calvin and Coyle Trail

• Cases of Printing Paper

• Auction Ticket Sellers

• Newsletter Sponsors

• Auction Donation Seekers

• Gravel for Driveway