CCFT Trustee Linda Friend on the Challenge and Joy of putting this "season's promise in the ground"
“Watch the field behind the plow turn to straight dark rows,
Put another season’s promise in the ground.”
This quote is part of the chorus of a great song about the challenges and joys of farm and rural life, written by Stan Rogers (1949-1983), a well-known Canadian singer-songwriter. Stan had a gift for portraying the lives of working people in song.
Although we see a lot of no-till in our area as well, anyone can relate to someone hurrying to finish field work before the rain comes.
In our ridges and valleys, the sounds of spring — and the rain — have come early again this year. When I walk with the dogs in the early morning, there’s a chorus of birdsong, and the recent downpours have awakened a noisy waterfall in the small pond near my house.
Our farmlands and woods in Centre County are unique, and you can help CCFT with your gift to continue our work of helping to preserve land for future generations. Developers tend to take the easier road and build on prime farmland and our mission is to help landowners find a path to preservation of this valuable asset.
Above: The CCFT-preserved 100-acre Cole Farm, in Haines Township.
The Centre County Farmland Trust is moving forward with a new strategic plan, strong momentum, and fresh ideas, and we are working to support our current 17 easements and work with local owners to add additional preserved parcels.
Your donation is a vote for open spaces and preservation. Once land is used for houses or highways, it can rarely if ever be reclaimed.
Please consider a donation of any amount. You can give May 8-9 during the Centre Gives 36-hour community fundraising event here — when every donated dollar brings more than $1 thanks to a $100,000 stretch pool and lots of other prizes.
You can also give directly to the Trust online here, or mail a check to:
Centre County Farmland Trust
PO Bx 604
Centre Hall, PA 16828
Contributions from donors like you allow us to fund the considerable costs of farmland preservation and ongoing easement maintenance, such as land surveying and analysis, documenting the current conditions of the land, real estate closing costs, and research.
We also work closely with other land trusts in their preservation efforts. Please consider making a tax-deductible contribution to support this important work.
Our donors, volunteers and supporters are all working hard to preserve farmland and invest in conservation.
Thank you for all that you do to support farmland preservation!
Linda Friend, Trustee & Secretary
Centre County Farmland Trust Board of Trustees
