Francis Small Heritage Trust Inc

Provided stewardship, education, and outreach on approximately 3,158 acres of land in and around Limington, Limerick, Baldwin, Porter, Parsonsfield, Newfield, Waterboro, and Cornish, Maine. These properties conserve natural resources and provide for public access, enjoyment, and education. Stewardship included land taxes, and trail maintenance. The statewide recognized resource has an estimated 5,000 visitors a year, including school groups. Outreach included distributing 1,000 free hiking maps to the public, all to encourage hiking in the area. Granted $1,100 to the Town of Limington as Payment In Lieu of Taxes (PILOT). The organization also paid local property taxes of $8,923 in Limerick, Baldwin, Parsonsfield, Porter, Waterboro, and Cornish even though the organization could be technically exempted from such taxes.

Continued our education outreach to local schools the "Sense of Place" program. Approximately 120 students were served by the program. We also worked on a "Forest Carbon Workshop" area on Sawyer Mountain where the public can measure the carbon content of the forest and can investigate ways to manage a forest for maximum carbon sequestration. Approximately twenty volunteers established the program and the forest plots are open to the public. FSHT also published a newsletter which offered directions and descriptions of our local hiking trails. This newsletter was distributed to approximately 14,000 addresses.