Foothills Conservancy welcomed new Trails Program Director Shane Prisby on October 3. In this role, Prisby will manage Foothills Conservancy’s expanding public trail projects.

Foothills Conservancy of NC welcomed new Development Associate Meg Gaito on September 1. In this role, Gaito will work closely with Foothills Conservancy’s development director on the organization’s fundraising and development program.

Foothills Conservancy of NC received its national accreditation renewal from the Land Trust Accreditation Commission for the third consecutive term since the organization was first accredited in 2010. Thanks to this renewal, Foothills Conservancy remains in the network of over 450 accredited land trusts across the nation, committed to the highest level of professional excellence and maintaining the public's trust in its conservation work.

Foothills Conservancy of NC helped the Calton Family permanently protect 385 acres of their family farm under an agricultural conservation easement, providing significant farmland preservation benefits in the Sunshine community of Rutherford County. With the completion of this project, the N.C. Agricultural Development & Farmland Preservation Trust Fund reached a milestone of more than 30,000 acres of preserved farmland across the state of North Carolina.

On May 16, Foothills Conservancy of North Carolina welcomed new conservation program associate Michael Gaffney to its team.

Our state’s conservation needs are not one-and-done. Foothills Conservancy and our fellow members of the Land for Tomorrow coalition are working with state leaders to build on the foundation of conservation funding.

On April 1, Foothills Conservancy of North Carolina acquired 960 acres along the Pinnacle Mountains, a section of the South Mountains of McDowell and Rutherford counties. This acquisition increases the total amount of protected land in McDowell County by Foothills Conservancy to over 15,000 acres since 1995, when the land trust was founded.

Foothills Conservancy of North Carolina and the North Carolina Division of Parks and Recreation closed on the purchase of 2,249 acres in McDowell County to become part of Bobs Creek State Natural Area. This purchase is the last of three acquisitions for the new state natural area, and increases its total size to more than 6,000 acres. The first two phases of the project, about 3,700 acres, were purchased in 2019.

On Feb. 15, Foothills Conservancy of North Carolina acquired 182 acres along Buffalo Creek in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Caldwell County. Located roughly between Lenoir and Blowing Rock, this property adjoins the Buffalo Cove Game Land owned by the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission.

To learn more about the history of Burke County, Foothills Conservancy of North Carolina is partnering with the Exploring Joara Foundation to conduct an archaeological survey of the future Oak Hill Community Park and Forest, taking place Feb. 26 through March 1.

Foothills Conservancy of North Carolina is currently seeking qualified and enthusiastic candidates for the full-time staff position of conservation program associate.

Deadline to apply: Feb. 21

This property, owned by Larry Sorkin, is geographically and ecologically diverse, and its conservation helps protect nearly a mile of headwater streams of Muddy Fork, a tributary of the Lower Little River in the Catawba River Basin, as well as types of uplands and natural forests in the Brushy Mountains foothills. The protected property is less than three miles from Rocky Face Mountain Recreational Area.

Foothills Conservancy of North Carolina acquired 130 acres along the Jacob Fork River in the Catawba River Basin.

Foothills Conservancy of North Carolina acquired 35 additional acres along Paddy’s Creek, increasing protection of the Lake James watershed. The conservancy has now helped protect more than 11,000 acres surrounding Lake James, including 235 acres in the Paddy’s Creek watershed.

Foothills Conservancy of NC welcomes new Marketing & Communications Coordinator Grayson Barnette!