Dear Friends:
Greetings and we hope you are able to start resuming your normal outdoor activities. We are, and we hope to see you soon!
New and Enhanced Staff
We’re pleased to announce great staff news! Jessica Smith (left), who has been with OLT since last summer on a part-time basis, assumes the full-time role of Operations and Development Specialist. And we are happy to welcome Abby Cyr (right), who will be our new Stewardship Specialist based in Sikeston, MO. We congratulate both and we are excited to increase our capacity and our ability to conserve and steward more lands across the Ozarks.
Conservation Property for Sale
From time to time, one of our partner landowners sell their property that has an OLT conservation easement on it One of those properties currently on the market is the Kullman conservation easement. This 75-acre property is mostly wooded with a creek running through it and is a great recreation property. (https://matrix.marismatrix.com/matrix/shared/YXgqwq8sFCGd/15300MATTOXLane)
So if you are a potential conservation purchaser, or know someone who is, feel free to pursue this opportunity or contact us for more details.
Members and Annual Meeting
Two big connection opportunities are coming up. June 9 at 5 pm, we have a Zoom meeting of our Members Advisory Committee. The new group is working to determine how best to work with OLT landowners, supporters and others, and we’d love your participation and input. Contact [email protected] with any questions.
June 12 at 10 am, we have our online Annual Members Meeting, at which we’ll bring everyone up to date on both our work of the past year and our plans going forward, including a return to in-person meetings with you in Arkansas and Missouri in the coming year. Our staff will offer up a synopsis of their work, and we’re pleased to offer another new OLT video! Again, contact Jessica for details and RSVP. We thank Lewis Rice, Merrill, Brown Smith Wallace, David A. Watson, Edward Jones and Venku for their sponsorship, and the Community Foundation of the Ozarks for their generous support of the Annual Members Meeting and Video.
RCPP grant for the Huzzah
OLT is thrilled to announce its participation in a $2.5M grant award from the Regional Conservation Partnership Program of the National Resource Conservation Service of USDA. The grant will allow partners Missouri Department of Natural Resources, Missouri Department of Conservation, the Nature Conservancy, US Environmental Protection Agency, the US Fish and Wildlife Service and OLT to implement conservation practices in the Meramec River Basin. Photo by Rob Pulliam, Missouri Department of Conservation.
OLT has helped bring resources, grant funders, restoration and protective conservation easements to this region for years, and in the Huzzah Creek watershed in particular. The grant will allow conservation of soil and water resources, protection of wildlife habitats and support for farmers, ranchers and forest landowners in the area. Kudos to the team for their outstanding efforts to acquire this important funding! To see more about RCPP and the awarded projects this year, visit
https://nrcs.maps.arcgis.com/apps/Shortlist/index.html?appid=ab6aa86f9aea48e2af92ed165450d110.
On the Ground
OLT was on the ground with conservation partner, Kress Farm Garden Preserve in Hillsboro, MO this week. What a great resource to visit for garden and nature enthusiasts. Here’s a local TV story about Kress: https://fox2now.com/am-show/get-gardening-tips-and-native-plants-at-kress-farm-garden-preserve/ (picture attached of Kress Board Chair Joe Corio)
Holler coming!
Your Ozark Holler will be arriving in early June, so be on the lookout. If you want to receive the Holler but don’t currently, support us by visiting www.ozarklandtrust.org/Donate.
We look forward to seeing you (in person) in the coming year. All the very best!
Sincerely,
Larry Levin
Executive Director