Hale Celebrates Protection of More Than 1,100 Acres at Fall Equinox Event

Thanks to Hale Education for contributing this news to Westwood Minute.

Hale Education celebrated the permanent protection of more than 1,100 acres in Westwood and Dover during its Sept. 24 Fall Equinox Celebration, marking the culmination of years of work by Hale, conservation partners, donors, volunteers and community members. Hale Executive Director Aaron Morehouse called the protection a commitment that will extend far beyond the people who made it possible.

“That word permanently is worth lingering on for a moment,” Morehouse said. “Long after us, these forests will still be forests. The ponds will still be ponds. Wildlife will have a safe habitat here. And children who haven’t even been born yet will have a place where they can get muddy, explore trails, paddle across ponds, and discover how good it feels to be outside.”

Photo courtesy of Hale Education/Sean Browne. Attendees at Hale's Fall Equinox Celebration enjoyed food, drink, and conversation in an outdoor setting at Hale.

The evening also recognized the Westwood Land Trust and Dover Land Conservation Trust with Hale’s Community Service Award for their contributions to conservation in their communities. Westwood Land Trust President Nancy Dempsey used the occasion to highlight the important role local volunteer organizations play in protecting open space.

“Small land trusts are really a backbone of land conservation in Massachusetts,” Dempsey said. “What we do is we’ll protect land one piece at a time and add it together and then you have a wildlife corridor or a really beautiful view scape.”

Keynote speaker Mardi Fuller, a writer, speaker, community builder and lifelong backcountry adventurer, called Hale’s conservation restriction “monumental,” while emphasizing that protecting the landscape also creates a foundation for expanding opportunities for people to experience and connect with nature.

Photo courtesy of Hale Education/Sean Browne. Keynote speaker Mardi Fuller provided remarks at Hale Education's Fall Equinox event that celebrated the protection of 1,100 acres of Hale's land in Dover and Westwood.

“Thanks to the generous funding and advocacy and all of the work and collaboration, this landscape and ecosystem is now protected in perpetuity,” Fuller said. “And that is just massive, but the restriction alone does not provide or ensure access. It is only a foundation, and this is why Hale’s programming is so critical to this larger mission to make nature for all.”

State Senator Becca Rausch (D-Needham), Senate Chair of the Joint Committee on Environment and Natural Resources and Senate Chair of the Joint Committee on Municipalities and Regional Government, also joined the event. 

“It was such a pleasure to celebrate the fall equinox at Hale Education, one of Greater Boston’s natural treasures,” Sen. Rausch said. “The setting, occasion, and company were both fun and inspiring, especially the opportunity to speak with Mardi Fuller about inclusion and belonging in the outdoors. Thanks to Hale’s monumental work to protect 1,100 acres in Dover and Westwood, thousands of people will be able to access this land for generations to come. Hale’s collaboration with The Trustees of Reservations and local land trusts sets the standard for protecting vital habitats while uplifting our shared communities. I’m proud to partner with the Hale Education team on environmental preservation and outdoor engagement.”

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