Levels of Support
We greatly appreciate every level of support. Please let us know if you would like to keep your gift anonymous.
President’s Circle: $1,000+
With your gift of $1,000 or more, you will be invited to our Annual President’s Circle event, gain early access to event reservations and be recognized in our newsletter, A Sense of Place.
Preservationist: $500-$999
Protector: $250-$499
Conservationist: $100-$249
Family Membership: $50
Individual Membership: $30
Business Membership: $100
Planned Giving
Orchard Society
By including the Westerly Land Trust in your estate plans, you will become part of the Orchard Society, a group of forward-thinking individuals committed to protecting the natural beauty, environmental health, and urban character of Westerly for future generations.
For those who make a planned gift of $10,000 or more, we will plant a native Rhode Island tree in a Westerly Land Trust preserve garnished with a plaque acknowledging your legacy.
In whatever manner you choose to give, and in whatever amount, we are grateful for your investment in Westerly Land Trust’s future. Your planning today helps ensure the natural beauty and ecological integrity of Westerly tomorrow. Future generations will benefit form your foresight. You will truly give a gift that lasts forever.
Planned Giving Opportunities
Bequests through a will or trust
The most common and simplest way to make a planned gift is through your will or trust. You can provide a specific dollar amount, a percentage, a residual amount, real estate, or tangible property to the Westerly Land Trust. This provision can be made through a new will or trust or added as a codicil or amendment. The following sample language can be used to add a codicil to your will:
I give to the Westerly Land Trust, with its principal business office at P.O. Box 601, Westerly, Rhode Island 02891 (insert written amount of gift, percentage of the estate or residuary of estate, or description of property) for its land conservation work.
A simple codicil as this may be attached to your will at no cost. It need only be signed and dated by you and forwarded to your attorney.
IRA Rollover and Pension Fund Gifts
Often the largest part of one’s estate, these funds are some of the best ways to make a charitable gift because of the ease of initiation, particularly under recent legislation. Donating these assets to the Westerly Land Trust avoids potential double taxation under both income and estate tax provisions. The Westerly Land Trust can be named as a partial or contingent beneficiary of your retirement or pension plan.
Gifts of Life Insurance
Several options are available for making a charitable gift of insurance policies. With a relatively small outlay for premiums, you can make a substantial gift while obtaining tax benefits. The Westerly Land Trust can be named as the sole, partial, or contingent beneficiary of a new or existing policy. Also, a paid up policy can be donated to the Land Trust as the owner and sole beneficiary.
Charitable Gift Annuity
There are many ways to fund a Gift Annuity, but cash or appreciated stock are the most common. When transferring securities to the Westerly Land Trust, you can obtain an immediate charitable income tax deduction and avoid a portion of potential capital gains tax as well. In addition, your income can frequently be increased in the form of a lifetime annuity payment based upon your age.
The Next Step
If you would like assistance planning and directing your gift to the Westerly Land Trust, please contact Jennifer Fusco [email protected] or 401-315-2610.
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Acquiring new land is akin to making a new friend—there’s lots to learn about each other. Such is the case with the Champlin Farm Preserve— 90 acres of forest and farmland along the Pawcatuck River that WLT permanently protected in October 2024.
Since then, our Stewardship team, including many dedicated volunteers, has been exploring this land, getting acquainted, and learning how best to share it with our community. This included blazing a new trail system, and last week our Thursday Hiking Group was invited in to test these new trails with great success. 🥾
We are really proud of this conservation project and look forward to sharing this special place with you long into the future. 🌳
#hike #nature #landtrust #rhodeisland #westerlyri #westerly #stoningtonct #conservation #acquisition #community
Continuing last fall’s work at Haversham Preserve in partnership with @weekapaugfoundation the WLT Building Crew (a faction of CCC) added a staircase to improve access to and from the newly constructed boardwalk that allows walkers to safely and scenically pass between Haversham and Noyes Neck Roads. 🥾🪚
Today, WLT and WFC gathered together to celebrate this collaboration with a ribbon cutting, signifying the opening of the new trail segment. 🥳
Westerly is fortunate to have so many environmentally focused organizations. This is just one example of the power of partnerships! 💚🌱
#nature #westerlyri #newtrail #misquamicutri #weekapaug #trails #ritrails #conservation #environment #hike #partner #community
Our bloom peepers are peeping! 🌸
We’ve enlisted the help of a few dedicated volunteers, who are now keeping their eyes trained on rhododendron and mountain laurel buds at various WLT properties, anticipating their pop!🌱
Stay tuned! When our bloom peepers say “Go”, we’ll send out an email notification inviting you to a pop-up Awesome Blossom hike. We don’t know when or where just yet, but that’s part of the fun in working with Mother Nature! 🥾🌍
🐝This event will be free and open to everyone, so if you know someone who might like to get to know WLT better, please bring them along!
#flowers #bloom #hike #blossom #mountainlaurel #rhododendron #buds #nature #spring #summer #pollination #bees
At first we thought this was a bright blue beetle- but it turned out to be a moth, freshly emerged from its cocoon and just beginning to unfurl its wings! 🦋
#nature #spring #moth #summer #butterfly #cocoon #emerge #outside #insects #entomology #pollinators
Thanks to Mario’s North End Pizzaria for supporting the Westerly Land Trust’s conservation efforts with a Dine-To-Donate during Earth Week! 🍕🌳
#landtrust #community #dinetodonate #pizza #westerlyri #mariospizza
Homeschool students helped us harvest honey during our Pollinators & Planting class today!! 🍯🐝
#honey #bees #beekeepers #honeyharvest #honeybees #pollination #flowers #planting #conservation #nature #landtrust #westerlyri #rhodeisland
This past weekend current Girl Scouts visited Wahaneeta Preserve to learn about the history of the property. Did you know that Wahaneeta Preserve was previously an active Girl Scout camp?! 🏕️
We hiked trails that former Girl Scouts pioneered, waded in the pond in search of critters, and discovered what it was like to be a Girl Scout when the camp was open and operational. The Scouts got to meet Ellen and Sandra who camped at Wahaneeta in the 1940’s! Things are much different now—but thanks to our land trust community this land will be stewarded long into the future. 🥾🌲
Another fun fact: We didn’t even know the cabin was there when we acquired the property, because it was so overgrown. What a nice surprise it was to uncover it!
#landtrust #conservation #history #girlscouts #rhodeisland #forest #woods #camp #westerlyri #girlscoutsofamerica
After a long winter slumber, nature has awoken! What a beautiful time in Westerly—bird songs fill the air and trees display their finest spring green.
Does this time of year inspire you to get involved or take action in your community? If the longer days are motivating you to connect with nature and neighbors, read on to see what we have in store for May:
🌱5/7 at 5:30 pm- Historic Cemetery Hike at Grills Preserve
🌱5/10 at 7 am- Migratory Bird Day: Guided Bird Count at Barlow
🌱5/11 at 10 am- Volunteer Stewardship Day at Grills Preserve
🌱5/15 at 10 am- Thursday Hike at our new Champlin Farm Preseeve
🌱5/18 at 10 am- Outdoor Bootcamp with @barre_coast at Winnapaug Farm Preserve. WLT members, email [email protected] to receive a reduced registration price of $10.
🌱 5/22 at 10 am- Thursday Hike at Riverwood Preserve
🌱 5/31 at 10 am- Beehive Check- Caring for Your Colony at Barlow Nature Preserve
For more information and to register for each event follow the link in our bio to our Calendar of Events! We hope to see you there😊🌸
#landtrust #may #summer #spring #sunshine #garden #beekeeping #flowers #cutflowers #conserve #nature #hike #outside #cemetery
