2015 Blue Ridge Foothills Protection Challenge

Make a 2-for-1 Natural Investment This Summer!Invest in the beautiful lands and waters of the Blue Ridge Mountains and foothills this summer and watch your dollars double during Foothills Conservancy's 2015 Blue Ridge Foothills Protection Challenge.Between now and August 31, your gift will be matched dollar-for-dollar,doubling your impact and helping us reach our $60,000 goal!Other generous donors, the von Drehle Corporation of Hickory and an anonymous individual, have pledged to match up to $30,000 in gifts during this time.Your gift - doubled during the Challenge, will help Foothills Conservancy continue protecting our extraordinary region, much of which was identified in a new 2015 National Academy of Sciences study as the number one priority for the expansion of conservation in the entire United States! The study confirms that the Southern Blue Ridge Mountains are among the most biodiverse places in the country and home to plants and animals found nowhere else in the United States, and in some cases the world.We are forever thankful for our donors, who invest in land and water conservation, which ensures that future generations can experience this unique region.Last year, our donors made possible the formation of Foothills Conservancy's new 91-acre Smith Cliff/Henry Fork Preserve. This state-significant natural area will remain a haven for wildlife and a source of clean water.Donor contributions also helped us close two important gaps in South Mountains State Park, expanding the park by 132 acres and continuing a relationship with North Carolina State Parks that has resulted in a recreational treasure for our region.At Lake James and the Linville Gorge, donor support allowed us to explore and advance new opportunities to protect these beloved places, including securing land near Linville Caverns that will someday be added to Pisgah National Forest.With your help this year, we will continue to add to the more than 49,000 acres of land and thousands of miles of streams, rivers and lake shores that Foothills Conservancy has permanently protected in our region since 1995.By making a gift - no matter the size - during this matching challenge, you will help us advance current projects that will protect the headwaters of the Catawba and Broad Rivers and add strategic tracts of land to three state parks at South Mountains, Lake James and Chimney Rock. Your contribution will also help us protect private farms and forests with permanent conservation easements and leverage additional public and private funds to complete land and water conservation projects throughout our region.Secure your dollar-for-dollar match by mailing your gift, making a secure gift online or by calling our office at 828-437-9930 by August 31.With your help, we will continue protecting the lands and waters that sustain our beautiful, unique Blue Ridge Mountains and foothills region.Thank you,Susie Hamrick JonesExecutive DirectorCarl SpanglerBoard PresidentP.S. Mark August 31 on your calendar today, so you're sure to seize the opportunity to double your natural investment this summer!