We have two bits of news we are immensely proud to share with you!
First, Three Rivers has been awarded $10,000 in unrestricted operating funds from the Quimby Family Foundation. This grant award was received in part to help support our work with adults living with cognitive and intellectual disabilities. A representative from Quimby joined us for the last day of our native plants project in October at the Sanford Community Forest, and was able to see first hand what a fun, collaborative, and productive workday we had with folks of all abilities working together. We are so grateful to the folks at the Quimby Family Foundation for their keen support of projects that build equity and help provide opportunities for more folks to spend time outdoors in nature.
And second, the Native Plant Trust Native Plant Trust of Wayland, Massachusetts, received $100,400 from the Recreational Trails Program (RTP), an assistance program of the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration, to build an accessible connector trail from Sanford Community Forest to the nearby Harvey Butler Rhododendron Sanctuary. Three Rivers and the Sanford Trails Committee will assist with volunteer labor to build the half-mile trail that will improve access to the five-acre stand of rosebay rhododendron, a plant common in the southern but rare this far north. The project has been in the works for four years and will become a part of the accessible trail network that Three Rivers will be constructing this summer with RTP funding.