Annual meeting celebrates growth
The atmosphere in the Camp Hayward dining hall was undeniably indigenous last October 20th prompting one guest to remark, “I have never experienced an annual meeting quite like this before,” saying it was certainly not your typical land conservation assembly.
More than 60 friends, donors, staff, and board members were on hand to celebrate 11 years of conservation and preservation by the Native Land Conservancy. The hall was filled with displays of land rescue achievements, traditional crafts, a rare and extraordinary turkey feather mantle, and food prepared by award-winning Wampanoag Chef, Sherry Pocknett. After the meeting was conducted, the Wampanoag Nation singers and Dancers got everyone out of their seats to participate in popular tribal social dances including the round dance, the duck dance, and the stomp dance for a rousing finale.
The meeting was a retrospective of relationships forged and work accomplished in the last year while gratefully acknowledging our many supporters.
Sage filled the air as NLC Vice-Chair and Mashpee Wampanoag Rabbit Clan Mother Marlene Lopez generously smudged the gathering hall and all those attending. An opening prayer offered by Mashpee Wampanoag Chief Earl Mills Jr. set a tone of gratitude and appreciation for the many acres of land that have been rescued and preserved by NLC over the last decade.
Featuring the nine sites that NLC holds title to as well as the cultural significance of each land holding, NLC Board President Ramona Peters spoke about what an honor it is to be responsible for the caretaking of each parcel and invited the guests to take part in a ceremony offering blessings to the land. Hickory twigs were distributed to all in attendance who then deposited their stick in a container beside a poster of the land they were most inspired by. The twigs will ultimately be placed on the respective land holdings to complete the offering as the NLC staff and volunteers visit those sites in the coming year.
The big news of the day for Executive Director Diana Ruiz was the long-awaited relaunch of the NLC website which went live earlier in the day. The new site features a clean and user-friendly format to better engage the community. Diana was also excited to report two new hires this year, Administrative Assistant Jodi Keegan and Communications and Programs Coordinator Paula Peters, who have dramatically improved the efficiency and productivity of the NLC operations.
NLC Treasurer Leslie Jonas’ report highlighted significant donations in the last two years that have put NLC in a position to grow administratively, programmatically, and to respond to its priority mission – land rescue. It was thanks to funds dedicated to urgent land protection, Leslie said, that the NLC was able to quickly address the rescue of the Aquinnah property overlooking the cliffs on Martha’s Vineyard. Another major milestone this year was the launch of two long-term investment accounts that are invested in environmentally-focused portfolios. Revenue from these accounts provides a clear path for our continued work with a stable source of income for future work.
A beautiful hand-coiled pot created and donated by Ramona Peters served as a door prize for the evening with each attendee hopeful their ticket was the winner.
After an introduction of all of her fellow board members NLC Board Clerk Kitty Hendricks-Miller called upon 7-year-old Weekanasque Peters to draw the winning ticket. Congratulations to NLC friend Gaby Immerman, who was absolutely thrilled to have her number called and take the pot home.