Lasting Legacies
By INHF Development Team on December 12, 2024 in Blog
Photo by the Iowa DNR
People join Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation for all sorts of reasons. Some give when a land protection project is happening near them. Some give because they want to see certain habitats — like prairie, wetlands or woodlands — protected. Some give to build Iowa’s trail network. Some give to keep open space and agricultural lands as part of our landscape. Some give to honor the person who taught them love of nature. Some give to boost Iowa’s outdoor recreation opportunities. Some give as an act of care for the voiceless — plants, animals and future generations. And some give because they wholeheartedly support INHF’s mission to protect and restore Iowa’s land, water and wildlife.
INHF’s membership program started in earnest in 1981, three years after the organization’s founding. Beyond the impact of the dollars collected as part of an annual giving program, having grassroots support for public land, private land protection and good conservation legislation gives INHF the power to act on behalf of those who are concerned about Iowa’s natural resources.
Throughout the last 45 years, INHF has celebrated successes that donors made possible. Acres made public. Special habitats preserved. The return of native species to restored lands. Waterways buffered. Wetlands reestablished. Recreation opportunities expanded. Family farms protected. The impact, stability and nimbleness of the organization has been tied to support given by those with a deep-rooted love of Iowa.
“I had a heartfelt connection with INHF,” explained Sue Hough, one of INHF’s first donors. Hough was also one of the organization’s first employees, serving as the administrative assistant to President Gerry Schnepf. “Conservation is part of my life and in my heart from growing up on a farm in Washington County.”
Asked why she continues to donate today, Hough said, “I’ve seen the programs grow over the years, and more programs added. I enjoy the variety of work we accomplish and how our work helps throughout the state. Imagine Iowa without INHF. What would have been lost? What would it look like?”
In 1980, INHF completed its first four projects, protecting 1,916 acres. Last year, INHF completed 28 projects, bringing the cumulative conserved acres to more than 190,000 acres.
Beverly Lind began donating to INHF in 1983 and continues to give in honor of her late husband, Kenneth. “We’re outdoor people,” Lind shared. Fond of traveling and of canoeing, they began with a honeymoon in Rocky Mountain National Park and Manitou Springs, then spent their lives traveling across Iowa and the US. “We found solace in nature,” she recalled, describing their affinity for northeast Iowa’s Driftless area and their frequent scenic drives.
Why does Lind keep her membership with INHF? “Nature in Iowa remains important, state parks and wilderness areas… It’s important to keep what we have. Water quality and wildlife are critical issues.”
“INHF is the go-to group when it comes to land protection,” said Robert Walton, another early donor. Walton served as the director of Dubuque County Conservation at the time when INHF was helping procure and open Mines of Spain to the public. “Wildlife corridors, trail connections, critical habitat. This work has dramatic impact. I like that my money is used wisely and going to permanent land protection.”
INHF is lucky to have donors who have been giving for over forty years. A handful of those donors are pictured here in front of Heritage Valley, a donor funded project that protected over 1,000 acres near Decorah. Featured donors from left to right are Russelle Leggett, Kenneth Lind, Doug Smalley and his grandson, Sue Hough, and Robert and Sandy Walton. Photos provided by the families.
“I’m simply dumbfounded by all of the ways INHF makes impacts across the state,” said Russelle Leggett. Leggett and her husband, Glenn, made their first gift in 1982. Glenn was integral to the founding of INHF and served on the first board of directors. He crisscrossed Iowa drumming up support and sharing INHF’s conservation vision.
“The culture of our country has emphasized personal gain so dramatically in recent years and the fact that there is an organization that works to preserve land and water so that all humans can enjoy the natural spaces without damaging the environment — that is special,” said Leggett. “We have a social obligation to preserve those things that keep our quality of life. I support INHF to honor Glenn, and because I am continually in awe of what the organization can accomplish.”
Doug Smalley served in the Iowa House of Representatives during Governor Robert Ray’s term and witnessed the idea for INHF spark and take hold. “I was impressed and thought it sounded like a group of people whose work I wanted to support and whose mission resonated with my own thinking,” he said. Smalley gave his first gift in 1983.
“People who might not always agree on all things can come together with INHF to help protect places in Iowa and help make them available for the public to enjoy,” said Smalley. “My interest in INHF has never changed. And I like the magazine because I like reading about protection in places I visited in the past and remember as being special places in the state.”
A lengthy pamphlet printed and distributed by INHF in 1979 states, “Without awareness and action, Iowa’s natural heritage is in danger of being permanently lost, threatening both our lifestyle and the vitality of our economy. We must begin to develop a well-balanced approach to management and stewardship of our natural resources… for those who follow.”
Throughout the forty-five years of INHF’s existence, tens of thousands of individuals, families, businesses and organizational partners have provided support through donations, volunteer efforts and advocacy. We are fortunate to still have over two hundred supporters that have been with us since INHF’s first decade, and equally fortunate to be welcoming people new to INHF every year.
“Donor support means so much to INHF. We rely on our members to be champions for nature and conservation, and their financial support allows us to act quickly when opportunities for protection arise,” said Abby Hade Terpstra, INHF Director of Philanthropy.
We are here to protect and restore Iowa’s land, water and wildlife. But we couldn’t do it alone. When the might of people with whom INHF’s mission resonates mixes with the knowledge and resources of our organization, that’s where the magic happens.
Conservation takes time, patience and dedication. It also takes quick action in crucial moments. INHF donors make both the steadfastness and nimbleness required to serve nature possible. Whether it is a first gift or a forty-first gift, each is valuable, impactful and much appreciated.