Words from the Executive Director

“There can be no greater issue than that of conservation in this country.”

— President Theodore Roosevelt

Dear Friends and Partners of LNRP: First and foremost, on behalf of our entire LNRP Team, I hope this finds you and yours well.

With this Summer edition of our electronic newsletter, we welcome warmer weather, more daylight, and abundant outdoor adventures – and that is something we all can celebrate!

In all actuality, our LNRP Team has been hard at work these past few months, as this quarterly newsletter illustrates. Since our Spring newsletter in April, we’ve advanced several project and programming efforts; celebrated several grant awards and a successful “Giving Tuesday Now” appeal; provided support for partner-led online events; and actively connected and communicated with our stakeholders and supporters via weekly “Virtual Happy Hour” engagements.

We’re grateful for the opportunity to share this newsletter update with you, and to use it as a forum to showcase the conservation impact that our LNRP Team, our Partner Groups and so many of you are having in the coastal and ledge communities we are privileged to serve.

In truth, as we all know, the first half of 2020 was indeed unprecedented in the public health uncertainty we have endured and the social discord we have witnessed. It has been a time of suffering in our nation.

In such times of anxiety, I have always believed we can find commonality and unity in conservation and stewardship of our greatest natural resources. In that cause and in those efforts, we are called to protect, preserve, and enhance our shared national treasures. Those of us living in the Great Lakes Region have a special calling; here in Wisconsin, that means we are all truly Lake Michigan Stakeholders.

Such a calling gives real inspiration, purpose and meaning to our LNRP mission and work, and it serves as the foundation of our intimate collaboration and connection with our Regional Network, Watershed, and Community Partner Groups. Together, we cultivate community and stewardship, from the ledge to the lakeshore – and we can all take great pride in the difference we make for the special places we call home.

Please enjoy reading our Summer e-newsletter. Better yet, please join us and support us in the critical community-based conservation work we do. Now more than ever, our planet needs us.

With gratitude,