An Open Letter to the People of Santa Cruz County

Dear Friend,

We live in a community well known for its commitment to the environment and love of the land.  It is one of the reasons I live here.  Santa Cruz County is a special place – with its beaches, forests, hills and farms – and the people of our county are committed to keeping it that way.  This is why I am confident that we will be able to save one of the truly rare and special places in our county. 

In the sandy hills between Scotts Valley and the San Lorenzo Valley there is a rare habitat that supports seven species of plants and animals found nowhere else on earth!  Renowned botantist Peter Raven, one of the world’s leading experts on biodiversity, calls this place the “Galapagos of Santa Cruz County.”  We call it the Santa Cruz Sandhills.

The Sandhills were formed millions of years ago when the Santa Cruz Mountains were formed, raising an ancient seabed into the air.  You can find sand dollars, shell fossils, and the bones of extinct sea mammals there.  And this geology, combined with climate, creates a habitat that is home to at least seven species found nowhere else on earth.

All this is threatened by the usual human uses.  Houses and roads destroy and fragment the land.  Destructive recreational uses like motorcycle  riding erode the fragile sandy soil.  Even something as simple as outside lighting threatens this special place – attracting, and killing, the endangered Mt. Hermon june beetle.

But we now have the opportunity to save the Sandhills.  This summer the Land Trust began seeking funds from the Moore Foundation  and public agencies to save 200 critical acres.  The Land  Trust has been encouraged to continue that process with the expectation that it will receive over $4 million in outside grant funds – if it can also raise $1.2 million in local community support.

I was honored to be asked to chair the Sandhills Campaign Committee to raise those funds – and I am confident that our community will support protecting the Galapagos in our backyard! 

My wife, Julie Packard, and I have made a lead gift to kick off the campaign.  In the past two months I have talked to others in our community and they too have stepped forward to join this effort.  We have already raised most of the funds we need to save the Sandhills. 

I am writing to ask you to help us raise the rest by making a generous gift today. Your support of this project will not only help us leverage over $4 million in outside funds, but will also help the Land Trust grow healthy and strong – so it can do more to protect the lands that make Santa Cruz County special.

I sit on the Board of the Packard Foundation and I can tell you that foundations and public agencies, rightly see community support as a prerequisite for their support.

I can also tell you from experience that the success of the Land Trust in this campaign will impress these conservation funders – and pave the way for future partnerships that will protect other lands in our county.  With your support today, our partners will learn that the people of Santa Cruz County will do their part to protect the lands we love.  And we will save a place like no other on earth.

Sincerely,

Robert Stephens
Chair
Save the Sandhills Campaign

P.S. You can follow our progress on this website, which will be updated weekly.  And please, pass along the word about the campaign to Save the Sandhills to friends by directing them to this website. Thank you for your help!

Email this page to a friend