Here we are once again on the backside of another March, that slightly scary month of transition, one that always seems to include more than its share of lows and highs, ends and beginnings, as we travel from winter to spring.

March of 2022 included the passing of one of our board members and longtime supporters of the Land Trust, island native Georgia Golden.

Although Georgia exuded a steady, tranquil presence, she was also known for her sharp and contagious sense of humor that remained until the end. We are grateful that she shared her knowledge and love of St. Simons, her wit and wisdom, and a small part of her large life with this organization.

On the very day that Georgia transitioned from earth to the heavens, my friend and colleague Sara Baker and I were having a heavenly experience of our own. Photographer, writer, and private pilot David Fisher kindly took us up in his Cessna 177 from which we were able to view most of the one hundred miles of Georgia's coast. Leaving from the Jekyll Island airport after the winds had died down late that afternoon, we flew north to Sapelo and then back south to Little Cumberland and over the northeastern cusp of big Cumberland Island. Down on the ground, all the earthly matters and March madnesses were still roiling. But from the air, I kept thinking of Anne Morrow Lindbergh on those long flights with her husband when she would say to him, "Listen. The wind."

The patterns that the marshes and the sandbars make from that vantage point looked like pieces of art. The red sunset through the clouds was a painting. The rivers and creeks and barrier islands all seemed connected and complete in a way that can't be comprehended from a car or boat or on foot. Best of all, the maritime forests along the coast, including on St. Simons, looked intact. Full and verdant and miraculous. It was a rare gift to see March on Earth from the heavens.

As we landed on that little airstrip on Jekyll, a raccoon ran across the tarmac in front of the plane. Dave made just the tiniest swerve and the animal scampered into the underbrush. To live and work here -- it is the next best thing to heaven.

Emily Ellison

Executive Director

The board and staff of the Land Trust were saddened by the death of Georgia Golden on March 20, 2022, during her first year serving on the SSLT Board of Directors.

Coming from a family who had lived on St. Simons for generations, Ms. Golden was born and raised on the island and attended what is now the Historic Harrington School (formerly the Harrington Graded School). She received a BA degree from Dillard University in New Orleans and a graduate degree from the Atlanta University School of Social Work. She was a social worker in New York City and in Atlanta before returning home to the Georgia coast and working for the Georgia Department of Family and Children’s Services and as a Program Consultant for the state and Glynn County.

Georgia Golden was a loyal member of the Land Trust for more than 15 years, and her first land acquisition support was in 2004 for the old Chevron Station that is now the protected corner at the Demere/Frederica Roundabout. She was a beloved pillar of the community and served until her death as Secretary of the First African Baptist Church, where she was leading the search for a new minister. She was also a member of the St. Simons African American Heritage Coalition and the Zeta Iota Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority. Georgia’s first year of service on the SSLT board officially ends on April 31, 2022, but she will be missed and remembered forever.

The NEW Land Trust website is here!

Visit WWW.SSLT.ORG

We are truly grateful to our partners and friends at SocialCompass for helping make this fresh face a reality, and we hope you enjoy it as much as we do!

NOTE: All monthly, quarterly, or annually recurring Land Trust members,

Sincerest thanks to so many community members who have made generous gifts and commitments to this important capital campaign. Your support has helped us to raise nearly $4.5 Million toward our total $5.5 Million campaign goal.

If you have not done so already, we hope that you will consider joining in this community-wide investment to conserve some of the last remaining large tracts of undeveloped land

on St. Simons. We welcome the opportunity to meet with you and answer any questions you may have about the purpose and goals of the campaign.

To learn more about the campaign and how you can participate, please click HERE or contact Emily Ellison at 912-638-9109; emellison@sslt.org.

This month was filled with visiting groups to Cannon's Point Preserve. As a platform for education and a wilderness area that is full of volunteer opportunities, the Preserve is the perfect place for classes and clubs to learn and to give back to the community.

Nearly 40 students from the AP Environmental Science and AP Biology classes at Brunswick High School enjoyed a two-hour guided tour with Land Conservation Manager Stephanie Knox, History Task Force member Myrna Crook, and Education Task Force Chair Steve Kipp. During their tour, the students discussed coastal resiliency, forest succession, and ongoing research including living shorelines, maritime forest restoration, and archaeology.

Next, the Camden County Georgia Master Naturalist class visited as part of their certification. The Preserve provided an important resource to educate the class about living shorelines, maritime forest restoration, the Preserve's Ecological Management Plan, and important partnerships in coastal conservation.

Most recently, a group of Glynn Academy students who are part of the school's Environmental Club spent a Saturday morning cleaning up and trimming the nearly two-mile trail along the marsh inside the Preserve. This work helps the Land Trust to continue to provide safe public access to the Preserve. The hike was a great educational opportunity for the group, as well, as they discussed native plants, past land use, today’s land management needs, and ongoing research.

The Land Trust is grateful to all staff, volunteers, and partners

who made these visits possible!

Nearly 20 members of the Cannon's Point Preserve docent team attended a recent appreciation potluck inside the Georgia-Pacific Education Pavilion. The event was a small way for SSLT staff to say thank you to our volunteers and to remind docents about how important their volunteer roles are to this island and to coastal conservation.

An on-site refresher course also took place, facilitated by Volunteer Coordinator Marty Moody. The session included a southern-area tour of the Preserve led by SSLT Land Conservation Manager Stephanie Knox.

Thank you to ALL our committed volunteers who help us properly manage and maintain this beautiful 644-acre preserve and other Land Trust properties. We are truly grateful!

Learn more about volunteering with the Land Trust HERE

or by contacting Volunteer Coordinator Marty Moody at mmoody@sslt.org.

Keep an eye out for Spring Migration Bird Walks at Cannon’s Point Preserve and Guale Preserve in late April/early May during the peak of spring migration. More information to come!

Members of the Land Trust's Advisory Council enjoyed a day's adventure on Little St. Simons Island (LSSI) earlier this month. The day began with guests being met and welcomed at the LSSI boat dock by Wendy Paulson (member of the Cannon's Point Preserve Advisory Council and co-owner of LSSI) and Scott Coleman (the island's Ecological Manager). Following a council meeting, where the Land Trust's recently adopted five-year strategic plan was shared, Wendy and Scott took members on a tour of some of their favorite spots on the island. This included a stop at "Norm's Pond," a rookery that included hundreds of nesting great egrets (and a few great egret eggs). From the pond's observation tower, the group was able to also see anhingas, cormorants, roseate spoonbills, and Norm (the resident alligator and namesake of this extraordinary viewshed).

View Advisory Council members HERE.

Moke America St. Simons.

Moke America is an electric, street legal, and open-air low speed vehicle with style. From British classic car models to Caribbean icon, Moke has become a symbol of fun in the sun.

Moke America St. Simons is Georgia’s original Moke America dealership where you can purchase or rent Moke vehicles starting April 4th. When you rent a Moke vehicle, a voluntary donation of two dollars per day will go directly to protecting important acreage at Oatland North and to helping create and maintain a wilderness corridor on St. Simons. With zero emissions, a full recharge in just eight hours, and no special outlet needed, it’s a win for the planet!

A special thank you to Moke America St. Simons owner Lance Toland, Jr. for offering environmentally friendly vehicles to locals and visitors, and for his Pennies for Preservation partnership.

The 'A Penny for Your Thoughts' conversation series with our Pennies for Preservation partners continues! This Q&A initiative individually highlights each partner so the community can connect with and get to know each business and business owners a little better!

Please see a recap of comments from those Pennies for Preservation partners who were featured on social media in MARCH:

Sarah Callaway, our local bagel expert, and owner of Sandy Bottom Bagels said the favorite on St. Simons must be the ‘Everything Bagel’ because it is ordered most often. Sarah blew our minds when she shared that the Sandy Bottom Bagels team baked over 100,000 BAGELS in 2021. That’s nearly 2,000 bagels per week! In that same week, SBB makes an average of 90 pounds of cream cheese that will be served with those authentic New York style bagels.

Mary Anderson had several coastal towns to choose from when deciding where to relocate and open her art gallery, Anderson Fine Art Gallery. When we asked why she chose St. Simons Island 24 years ago Mary said, “The welcoming [live] oaks gave me a feeling of stability, healing, and permanence…it was as if they enfolded me, and I knew I was home.”

Throughout the last two decades, Anderson Fine Art Gallery has become a destination for the finest in original paintings. The gallery represents an outstanding group of professional and emerging artists with a selection of landscapes, still life, figurative, interiors and sculpture. And for 14 years the gallery has sponsored Painting Workshops taught by nationally recognized artists.

When we asked Owen Plant, owner of Lulu Entertainment if there was an interesting story behind his business’s name, we loved learning that his dog Lulu was the namesake! Owen’s first client was The Westin Jekyll Island. The hotel’s Director of Sales and Marketing, Kevin Baker, jokingly referred to Owen’s business as “Lulu Entertainment.” Owen told us, “Kevin was taking me through billing protocols and said ‘then, LuLu Entertainment bills us.’ He was joking, but Lulu was our crazy Pomeranian mix dog. Her energy summed up my brain and company perfectly…a scramble for perfection!”

and the Land Trust's dedicated Pennies for Preservation partners.

Pennies for Preservation businesses raise funds to preserve and protect St. Simons Island.

1) Collecting a voluntary 1% or specific dollar amount donation from their

customers' receipts/invoices.

2) Donating 1% of their companies' proceeds or services.

April 9: Coastal WildScapes Spring Native Plant Sale, Ashantilly Center, Darien

April 10: Spring Festival at The Farm at Oatland North

April 20: GaDNR Brownbag Presentation: A Virtual Tour of Gray’s Reef National Marine Sanctuary. 12-1pm. Susan Shipman Environmental Learning Center.

April 23: Keep Golden Isles Beautiful annual Electronics Recycling Event. Brunswick Mall.

January 21, 2023: 23rd ANNUAL OYSTER ROAST!