Natural Lands - The Magazine of Natural Lands Fall/Winter 2018, Issue 153 | Page 16

N ATUR A L L A NDS
with “#SaveStoneleigh,” and thousands of emails and
calls of protest from community members to the School
Board. And a group of area legislators, inspired by the
community response, collaborated on a bill intended to
provide additional protection for Stoneleigh and other
places preserved with a conservation easement.
On June 22—less than three weeks after it was intro-
duced—the state legislature passed and the Governor
soon signed House Bill 2468 with broad, bipartisan
support. An unheard of achievement. The law requires
Orphan’s Court approval before any property under
conservation easement can be condemned and seized
through eminent domain.
Finally, just before Thanksgiving, Lower Merion School
District announced that Stoneleigh was no longer under
consideration as a location for their expansion plans.
Said Molly, “If anyone had a doubt, it is now abundantly
clear that our communities’ green spaces are beloved,
and that there is a large and passionate constituency
ready to stand in their defense.”
Stoneleigh: a natural garden
once in a lifetime chance.
“I know of no other expanse of vulnerable, unprotect-
ed land like it in the greater Philadelphia area,” Molly
explained when asked last year about Bryn Coed Farms,
a vast collection of farms, fields, and forest in northern
Chester County.
Knowing that the cost of purchasing and keeping the
entire 1,505 acres as a nature preserve was more than
the typical sources of funding could underwrite, Natural
Lands—with Molly at the helm—devised an uncon-
ventional approach whereby the organization would
retain 520-acres as a preserve, transfer 72 acres to West
Vincent Township as a park, and sell the remainder to
private buyers with conservation easements in place.
“My family sees this property as our touchstone,” said
Richard Dietrich, III, whose family had owned the prop-
erty for generations. “But we knew Natural Lands is an
organization with the experience and ability to achieve
the conservation result we wanted.”
Natural Lands was able to secure $12.5 million in grants
from Chester County, the PA Department of Conservation
and Natural Resources, and from West Pikeland, West
Vincent, and East Pikeland Townships. However, we need-
ed to raise another $5 million in private donations in order
to fulfill our vision. Remarkably, within a year’s time, we
exceeded that goal, thanks to a challenge grant from the
William Penn Foundation and gifts from more than 700
households in the Chester Springs area and beyond.
This winter, Bryn Coed Preserve opened its trails for
the community and region to enjoy and explore and ad-
ditional miles of trail are on the way. This quintessential
Chester County landscape is now preserved and open to
the public, forever.
In addition to the organization’s land preservation
accomplishments under Morrison’s leadership, Natural
Lands has enhanced greatly its capacity to care for the
lands it owns. With seven new preserves added and 10
preserves expanded in size since 2005—including many
of the organization’s hallmark properties—Molly and the
Board of Trustees knew that it would take substantially
more financial and staff resources to maintain Natural
Lands’ long-standing commitment to natural resource
management. Molly also understood that first-hand
experiences in nature are what help us to fall in love with
nature and that, if there are to be future generations to
carry on the work of conservation, we must be intention-
al about facilitating the nature-human connection. Con-
sequently, since 2012 and through a series of campaigns
and other fundraising, Natural Lands has raised more
than $22 million, primarily in new endowment funds, for
stewardship and engagement priorities.
An elevated mission emphasis on connecting people
to the outdoors has yielded considerable results. Since
2005, the number of people who visit the organization’s
preserves—many of which are open to the public, free
of charge, 365 days a year—has more than doubled.
Today, more than 125,000 people enjoy Natural Lands’
properties annually. Thousands more take part in more
than 100 public programs each year or in the successful
Force of Nature® volunteer program, which began in 2011.
And the recently launched effort to improve access to
green spaces in urban communities—including Philadel-
phia, Chester, Coatesville, and Pottstown—means the
beneficial impact of time spent outdoors won’t just be a
privilege of the suburbs.
. WI NT ER 2 018 –2 019
“Molly has built a remarkable conservation legacy
throughout her entire career, but nowhere more pro-
foundly than at Natural Lands,” said Peter Hausmann,
chairman of the organization’s Board. “Her imprint on
conservation is extraordinary and she will be missed.”
“Fortunately, Natural Lands is one of the most effective
and stable non-profit organizations with which I have
been associated,” Hausmann continued. “It has a superb
and seasoned senior management team, a nationally
regarded staff, a knowledgeable and engaged Board of
Trustees, and a loyal and dedicated donor and member
base. We are well positioned to build upon the success-
es that have occurred during Molly’s tenure as president.”
“I love this organization and my experiences at Natural
Lands have been incredibly rewarding,” shared Molly.
“The essential role that nature and open spaces play in
the quality of life for all of us is better understood today
than it has ever been. Knowing that Natural Lands, as an
organization, is having an impact on preserving nature
and connecting people to the outdoors, has made this
job especially fulfilling... one of the best parts of my life.” W
Bryn Coed Preserve
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