Greetings Friends,
In the last couple of weeks, we saw the return of thick tule fog rising from the valley’s wetlands and blankets of leaves covering the ground in fiery yellow, orange, and crimson hues. Nature gently reminds us that fall is a time for gratitude and reflection as we transition to winter and prepare for new beginnings. This year’s crops have gone to harvest, and we begin to sow the seeds for a new year of growth and life.
What a year it has been!
With your support and participation, SVC hosted over 8,000 visitors and put on 175 outings, making more meaningful and memorable outdoor experiences while connecting with nature at Camp Pollock and Deer Creek Hills.
As we look to 2024, we seek to expand outdoor experiences through new partnerships and added properties.
In September, five members of SVC’s staff attended the national Land Trust Alliance Rally, thanks to support from donors and the Keith Campbell Foundation.
This investment in staff was maximized through connections with other land trusts, tribal representatives, and environmental professionals who shared stories, ideas, and inspiration from across the globe.
We gained the knowledge to improve organizational health to strengthen governance, maintain financial well-being, and ensure land acquisition practices are in perpetuity.
We continued to monitor, manage, and steward the land to the same high standard as always while adapting new stewardship practices to ensure the open spaces we manage – and seek to protect – provide agricultural and recreational benefits, maximize carbon sequestration, and support habitat for the species most impacted by humans and a changing climate.
Your support has allowed us to add several exciting acquisition projects that span the four corners of our 21st Century Vision Map, working as far north as the Feather River, along Morrison Creek, throughout the Cosumnes River watershed, and in the Delta.
In this year alone, we’ve added 2,000 acres to our list of in-progress land conservation projects along the Southeast urban edge of the county. With your donation leveraged to secure grant funding, we can permanently protect more open space and riparian corridors to increase flood and drought resiliency.
Major capital improvement projects are well underway, with the design of three murals, a river viewing deck, and improved river access at Camp Pollock, and we will begin working to finish the lodge kitchen and water infrastructure upgrades. Oak woodland restoration, invasive treatment, and regenerative ag management practices will be implemented at Deer Creek Hills Preserve. Conversion from old orchards to row crops will begin at the Elkhorn Basin Ranch in Yolo County. These projects will be ongoing through 2025 and will take considerable community input and contributions from dedicated and generous supporters like you.
Your financial contribution allows us to remain steadfast to SVC’s mission; to protect the beauty, character, and biodiversity of the valley. We are beyond grateful to YOU for choosing to support this meaningful work.
With deep gratitude,
Kelly Hopkins
Executive Director
