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VOF announces $1.89 million for 35 open-space projects across Virginia

VOF announces $1.89 million for 35 open-space projects across Virginia
Farmstrong Community Farm project in Richmond. Photo by Renew Richmond.

The Virginia Outdoors Foundation (VOF) today announced $1,891,206 in grants for projects that increase access to public open space in 24 counties and cities.

The 35 grants were awarded from VOF’s Preservation Trust Fund and Get Outdoors grant programs. The Preservation Trust Fund program provides grants for acquisitions, easements, rights of way, and other methods of protecting open space for farming, forestry, recreation, wildlife, water quality, and more. The Get Outdoors program provides grants for projects that increase equitable access to safe open space in underserved communities.

To learn more about VOF’s grant programs, visit https://www.vof.org/protect/grants/.

Grant Recipient Summaries

Preservation Trust Fund Grants

Grantee: Fairfield Foundation

Project: Preserving Historic Fairfield Property

Locality: Gloucester County

Amount: $115,000

Description: This land acquisition will protect 20.77 acres of land from development and increase a greenway surrounding historic Fairfield manor, which was built in 1694.


Grantee: Meadowview Biological Research Station

Project: Caroline Diamonds – The Oak Barrens at Barrel Springs

Locality: Caroline County

Amount: $100,000

Description: This project will protect 96 acres of a globally rare gravel bog, an historic 1840 farmhouse, and surrounding oak barren uplands and add it to an adjoining 17-acre preserve. The site is used for guided tours, research, educational, and recreational purposes.


Grantee: New River Land Trust

Project: Brush Mountain Property 3

Locality: Montgomery County

Amount: $100,000

Description: This funding will be used to purchase 203 acres of intact forest on Brush Mountain and donate it to the Town of Blacksburg as part of a larger recreational area. The project is a partnership between the New River Land Trust and the Poverty Creek Trails Coalition.


Grantee: New River Soil & Water Conservation District

Project: New River Hill Park Project

Locality: Grayson County

Amount: $125,000

Description: The funding will be used to purchase a 30-acre tract of land on the New River that will be operated and maintained by the New River SWCD as a public natural area and be protected from development in perpetuity. The site will have approximately 13 miles of trails, interpretative signage, and a parking lot.


Grantee: Northern Virginia Conservation Trust

Project: Accotink Floodplain and Trail Conservation Project

Locality: Fairfax County

Amount: $63,656

Description: The project will protect 6.7 acres on several parcels of stream valley floodplain alongside an existing public trail in suburban Fairfax County and place it under easement with Fairfax County.


Grantee: Renew Richmond

Project: Farmstrong Community Farm Development

Locality: Henrico County

Amount: $150,000

Description: Farmstrong Community Farm is a project that engages youth and community members in hands-on, skills-based immersion in agriculture, STEM, and environmental sustainability that will promote food access, career opportunities, and educational advancement.


Grantee: Roanoke County Parks, Recreation and Tourism

Project: Read Mountain Preserve, North Expansion

Locality: Roanoke County

Amount: $150,000

Description: Read Mountain Preserve, North Expansion, is focused on the acquisition of 56 acres adjacent to the 547-acre Read Mountain Preserve in Roanoke County. The existing preserve has three conservation and open-space easements protecting the natural environment, but only one limited public access point. This addition would allow for direct public access.


Grantee: Tadpole Land and Trail Conservancy (TLTC)

Project: Ballenger Creek Nature Preserve (BCNP)

Locality: Fluvanna County

Amount: $67,550

Description: In 2021, TLTC purchased 76 acres along Ballenger Creek to create public trails. TLTC will place 73 acres of the property under open-space easement with VOF and create trails and a parking area for public access.


Grantee: The Conservation Fund

Project: Dock Street – James River Park System

Locality: City of Richmond

Amount: $150,000

Description: The Conservation Fund is working to create a new riverfront public park on Dock Street in Richmond’s historically underserved East End neighborhood. The additional parkland will be added to the City of Richmond’s James River Park System and will protect the “View That Named Richmond.”


Grantee: Town of Abingdon

Project: Abingdon Skills and Pump Cycling Park Project

Locality: Washington County

Amount: $125,000

Description: The town is developing a skills and pump cycling park to complement the growing use of the Virginia Creeper Trail and solidify Abingdon’s reputation as a cycling community. The project will be constructed on 1.8 acres, owned by the Town, that borders Interstate 81, the Virginia Creeper National Recreation Trail, and the new Meadowview Sports Complex.


Grantee: Town of Saltville

Project: Salt Trail Gateway Park

Locality: Smyth County

Amount: $90,000

Description: The Salt Trail Gateway Park preserves and restores one acre of land at a critical entry to the town limits. Recently purchased by the town, this area had been noted as a deterrent by visitors and residents, overrun by debris and abandoned buildings but sitting directly near an important rail-to-trail facility.


Grantee: Town of Warrenton

Project: Preserve Warrenton Horse Show Grounds Open Space

Locality: Fauquier County

Amount: $100,000

Description: The 9.57-acre historic Warrenton Horse Show grounds in the Town of Warrenton is home to the oldest continuously operating horse show in the country. The town wishes to purchase the land from private ownership to preserve the unique land and open it to the public year-round. This would create the first public park in Warrenton’s Ward three.


Grantee: White’s Mill Foundation

Project: White’s Mill Phase II Public Access and Improvements

Locality: Washington County

Amount: $55,000

Description: White’s Mill, one of few remaining operational watermills in Virginia, seeks funds to acquire and improve an adjacent parcel of land to enable public access to a broader area of the surrounding existing White’s Mill property.


Grantee: Wythe County Parks and Recreation

Project: The Reed Creek Blueway Initiative

Locality: Wythe County

Amount: $100,000

Description: This project would create two safe access points for the public to utilize Reed Creek and Miller Creek for free public recreation such as kayaking, fishing, wading, and tubing.

Get Outdoors Grants

Grantee: Afro American Historical Association of Fauquier County

Project: The Morgantown School Project

Locality: Fauquier County

Amount: $25,000

Description: This proposal requests funds to stabilize the at-risk building and grounds of the Morgantown School on Free State Road. This small school served Morgantown’s African American Community for more than 70 years.

 

Grantee: Albemarle County

Project: Simpson Park Fitness Walking Trail

Locality: Albemarle County

Amount: $25,000

Description: The Simpson Park Fitness Walking Trail project entails the construction of an approximately 2,250-foot stone dust trail around the perimeter of an existing park in the rural village of Esmont in southern Albemarle County, which is a predominately working-class community and boasts significant African American history.

 

Grantee: Bessie Weller Elementary School

Project: Weller Woods Learning Trail

Locality: City of Staunton

Amount: $25,000

Description: Bessie Weller Elementary is establishing an outdoor learning and play area on a wooded lot adjoining the playgrounds. Improvements to the area will include a trail connecting a creek to “Investigation Stations” designed for nature-based learning. The area will be accessible for public use and open for use by all schools in the city.

 

Grantee: Calfee Community & Cultural Center, Inc.

Project: Greene Natural Outdoor Playspace at the Calfee CCC

Locality: Pulaski County

Amount: $17,500

Description: The Calfee Community & Cultural Center will revitalize a Jim Crow-era African American school into a facility that will house community programs including a high-quality early childcare center that will serve 100 children primarily from low- to moderate-income families.

 

Grantee: Camp Under the Stars, Inc.

Project: Overnight Summer Camp

Locality: Prince William County

Amount: $12,000

Description: This project supports an inclusive overnight summer camp serving campers from the greater Washington, D.C. area. In 2021, 40 percent of campers received financial assistance and 60 percent identified as people of color. Camp activities include kayaking, waterfall walks, campfire cooking, STEM, yoga, mindfulness, exploring nature, and outdoor play.

 

Grantee: County of Pulaski, Virginia

Project: Fairview Home Pocket Park

Locality: Pulaski County

Amount: $25,000

Description: Pulaski County in partnership with the Fairview Home Board is engaged in a year-long planning effort to design a new public park. The Fairview Home Pocket Park’s focus will be on universal design, with a special emphasis on serving individuals with disabilities, limited mobility, and the elderly.

 

Grantee: Defensores de la Cuenca

Project: Conectando la comunidad- Connecting with the Community

Locality: Fairfax County

Amount: $25,000

Description: Through this project, Defensores de la Cuenca will engage Latino and

Spanish-speaking families to participate in fun, family-friendly activities in parks and community green spaces in Northern Virginia. Participants will make positive connections to nature, learn about the benefits of a clean environment and the connection to healthy families, and be offered leadership opportunities in the green space.

 

Grantee: DuPont Elementary

Project: Heart of Hopewell Wellness Loop

Locality: City of Hopewell

Amount: $25,000

Description: DuPont Elementary desires to create the “Heart of Hopewell” wellness loop and hub using the designs generated by 5th grade students and various community partners. The wellness loop will connect to a .5-mile exercise loop, community garden, LOVE sign, and social gathering places.

 

Grantee: Friends and Family of Battlefield Park Road Cemetery

Project: The Battlefield Park Road Community Cemetery Restoration

Locality: Henrico County

Amount: $6,000

Description: To recover and restore a forgotten, unseen, and unidentifiable cemetery for African Americans in the St. James Community.

 

Grantee: Friends of New River Trail

Project: Ivanhoe Birding Trail

Locality: Wythe County

Amount: $20,000

Description: The Ivanhoe Birding Trail will be accessible for the enjoyment and education of visitors, students, citizen scientists, and the mobility challenged. The trail will be on 48 acres owned by the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation adjacent to the New River Trail and the historic Ivanhoe Trestle.

 

Grantee: Friends of Sons & Daughters of Ham Cemetery

Project: Sons & Daughters of Ham Cemetery – Every Acre Counts

Locality: City of Richmond

Amount: $25,000

Description: This is Phase Two of a multi-year project that will restore the dignity of, and access to, this historic African American cemetery. This will be by identifying cemetery boundaries, rerouting the existing neighborhood trail from the middle of the cemetery to the perimeter, locating a memorial meditation garden, and providing interpretive signage and programs.

 

Grantee: Girls on Outdoor Adventure for Leadership and Science, Southwest Virginia

Project: Girls on Outdoor Adventure for Leadership and Science (GALS)

Locality: Montgomery County

Amount: $1,500

Description: GALS is a summer program for high school students to learn science while backpacking in the Virginia wilderness. GALS seeks to increase opportunities for students who identify as female or gender nonconforming and are from other groups traditionally underrepresented in science, technology, engineering, and math.

 

Grantee: Groundwork RVA

Project: Cherae Farm and Community Space at Hillside Court

Locality: City of Richmond

Amount: $17,500

Description: Groundwork RVA and Hillside residents started Cherae Farm in 2021 to grow and distribute fresh produce to residents. Funds will create classes and programming in gardening/farming, wildlife wonders, and cooking/nutrition.

 

Grantee: Hampton Roads Urban Agriculture

Project: HRUA Farmer’s Market

Locality: City of Newport News

Amount: $25,000

Description: HRUA offers a Farmers Market and Food Pharmacy at its garden on Saturdays and accepts EBT/SNAP benefits. The market provides families with an opportunity to receive healthy fresh food options for their household. HRUA also offers a Youth Urban Agriculture and Entrepreneur program.

 

Grantee: Historic Pocahontas, Inc.

Project: Pocahontas Town Park and Trail Linkage

Locality: Tazewell County

Amount: $25,000

Description: Provides a park in a former coal town whose residents face increasing physical and mental health challenges. The park will offer children a safe space to explore the outdoors, increase physical activities, and spend time with family and friends.

 

Grantee: Lambsburg School-Community Complex, Inc.

Project: Lambsburg Community Center Walking Trail

Locality: Carroll County

Amount: $15,229

Description: Funds will be used to improve and make safer an existing walking trail located on the community center’s grounds.

 

Grantee: Patrick Henry High School

Project: Outdoor Classroom Environment

Locality: Washington County

Amount: $7,271

Description: The project will create a multi-purpose outdoor education pavilion that supports outdoor learning for students.

 

Grantee: Save Historic Thoroughfare

Project: Ethel Johnson House

Locality: Prince William County

Amount: $25,000

Description: The project seeks to transfer ownership and to continue restoration of the last original standing home of Historic Thoroughfare, a community that was home to generations of free people of color and their descendants.

 

Grantee: Town of Belle Haven

Project: Town of Belle Haven Park Beautification

Locality: Accomack County

Amount: $25,000

Description: The town desires to provide a town park for the community, while also encouraging revitalization and beautification.

 

Grantee: Town of Clinchco

Project: New Camp Road Pocket Park

Locality: Dickenson County

Amount: $25,000

Description: This project is the first of five potential interconnecting “pocket parks” that would form Clinchco’s McClure River Blueway. It creates a park with safe and easy access for the public, a parking area, a canoe/kayak/tubing/fishing access ramp, an observation deck, picnic tables, and safety signage.

 

Grantee: Valley Conservation Council

Project: Complete the Silver Lake Path

Locality: Rockingham County

Amount: $3,000

Description: Silver Lake is a 10-acre, spring-fed lake located within the Silver Lake Historic District in the Town of Dayton. The lake is used by the public for wildlife viewing, boating, and fishing. The lake does not have full public access around its perimeter and the public must currently trespass to access the lake in its entirety. This project aims to create a public access right of way across several private parcels in partnership with the town.

Birding Bull Run with Jacob Saucier

 

Preserve Assistant Deneith Reif and I recently had the opportunity to join ornithologist Jacob Saucier on a birding hike around the Preserve’s south section. Jacob is a long-time friend of the Preserve and museum specialist at the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History. Between his travels to record bird songs and calls all over the world, Jacob enjoys spending time at the Preserve, where he is currently building a “sound library.” Make sure to follow our Facebook page where we regularly share his latest recordings!

Photo by Deneith Reif

Both Deneith and myself are avid birders, but are working on developing our “birding by ear” skills. Jacob graciously offered his expertise, so the three of us met up to learn how many bird species we could see—and hear—on the public trail system. We started at 7 AM, sleeping in by birding standards, but wanted to get a feel for what species would be active during the trails’ open hours (8-6).

Over the next five hours, we covered several miles of the red, green, and yellow trails. But the birding began even before we reached the trailhead. The Preserve’s parking lot area creates excellent “edge habitat.” Many striking species of bird prefer these liminal spaces between forest and open land. In the first few minutes we spotted the indigo bunting (Passerina cyanea), cedar waxwing (Bombycilla cedrorum), and European rock doves, AKA pigeons (Columba livia). Once on the trails, highlights included several prolonged views of scarlet tanagers (Piranga olivacea) and the discovery of an active black vulture (Coragyps atratus) nest, including an adorable baby! We also enjoyed wood thrushes, a red-shouldered hawk, Acadian flycatchers, and more.

Photo by Deneith Reif

Although birding was the focus of the day, we also paused to appreciate other fascinating features of the Preserve ecosystem. We came across an American toad (Bufo americanus) hopping along the trail and we took the time to admire a rare living American Chestnut (Castanea dentata) tree. Sometimes being so focused on maintaining the Preserve can distract from its beauty and significance. It was so refreshing to take a day to fully appreciate the wonderful place we get to work.

Check out the full list of the 36 bird species recorded on this hike at ebird.com. By uploading our data here, we are also providing valuable data points for scientists studying bird populations. Deneith and I hope to offer birding hikes like this one to the public soon—so keep an eye on our Facebook and Instagram for updates!

Photo by Deneith Reif

Black and African American History of the Bull Run Mountains: A Cultural History Fellowship Report

The Preserve’s brilliant and talented cultural history interpreter Barinaale Dube recently graduated from the prestigious Howard University! In celebration of this fantastic achievement, we are happy to share the completed report on her fellowship work, co-authored by Barinaale and Preserve staff.

Click Here to Read Barinaale's Fellowship Report: Black and African American History of the Bull Run Mountains
Black and African American History of the Bull Run Mountains: A Cultural History Fellowship Report

Barinaale began her time here as the first Cultural History fellow in 2020. Despite the unique challenges of the last two years, she managed to not only complete her fellowship, but to further her research and its impact as cultural history interpreter. This report contains summaries of her findings focused on three families integral to the history of the Bull Run Mountains, as well as discussions of the importance of Black history and the unique challenges and questions that arise in this kind of inquiry.

Featuring timelines, family trees, pictures, blog posts, and even a transcript of one of her guided hikes, this report represents hundreds of hours of hard work. Take the time to read and you will step back in time to meet some of the incredible Black and African American people who called these mountains home for generations. We are very proud of Barinaale for her dedication to this project, and wish her the best in her new endeavors!

Click Here to Read Barinaale's Fellowship Report: Black and African American History of the Bull Run Mountains

Goodbye to Bull Run’s Bug Guy, Michael J.W. Carr!

               The Preserve is blessed with an impressive array of research associates from all kinds of specialties. Today we are highlighting Michael J.W. Carr, who has made a huge contribution to understanding some of our smallest mountain residents. A graduate of George Mason University’s conservation biology program, Michael is an accomplished naturalist and entomologist. Over the last several years, he has both assisted in and led a variety of projects. 

               Michael created the Inaturalist project for the Preserve, which currently sits at an impressive 6,735 observations! Click through the page to check out some amazing photography or compare the most commonly spotted species. Over 100 people have contributed observations to the project so far, and over 900 people have assisted in providing identifications. Thanks to Michael, the Preserve has a record of wildlife encounters that anyone can add to, access, and enjoy! 

               Speaking of Inaturalist, Michael also utilized this citizen science tool to create an online record of his entomological collection. Over the course of many trapping events, he collected, photographed, preserved, and identified almost 200 insect specimens that became the start to our official Bull Run Mountains synoptic (or comparative reference) collection.

               We at the Preserve are so thankful for his scientific contributions, but also for his other forms of volunteering. Michael has helped rebuild a wall at our research outpost, assisted in trail maintenance and invasive plant removal, and brought his enthusiasm and warm smile to countless events.  

               Michael is off to Santa Fe to pursue exciting new opportunities, but his work here at the Preserve has left behind a lasting legacy. Please join us in wishing him well and offering our sincerest thanks for all his contributions! 

Green Family Farms, Fauquier County

Green Family Farms, Fauquier County
Strawberries are just the beginning of the berry season at Green Truck Farm, one of three pick-your-own operations on the Green family property in Fauquier.

Nestled on 443 acres of productive farmland at the foot of the Blue Ridge Mountains, the three farms owned by the Green family of Markham—Hartland Orchard, Hartland Farm, and Green Truck Farm—have been welcoming families to their year-round pick-your-own operations for generations. The family’s patriarch, Henry Green, who celebrated his 101st birthday in April, is pleased to see the business he started in the late 1960s thriving under the management of his sons and nephew. He’s just as pleased to see people enjoying the farm, which he protected with a Virginia Outdoors Foundation easement in 2003. “It’s a good-sized operation,” he says. “Customers drive out and pick what they see, and the family is still all working together to run it.”

By 1962, Henry Green had already been farming for decades.

Visits are a tradition for families across Virginia, many of whom return every year for their favorite picking seasons. While strawberry picking ended in May, the orchard will be open for sour cherries on June 18th (for just one week, and no sweet cherries this year due to a late frost). Green Truck Farm, located in the front fields of the property, will have blueberries, black raspberries and blackberries from mid-June into July. Beef from cattle raised on the farm and honey from the farm’s hives are also available. 

A variety of berries will be ripe for the picking from mid-June through part of July.

Late summer and fall will bring more seasonal fruit (red raspberries, peaches, and tomatoes, with apples and pumpkins not far behind). Hartland also hosts fall festivals, with pick-your-own pumpkins, a corn maze and fun field for the kids. Cut-your-own Christmas trees, with wreaths and other Christmas decorations for sale, round out the year.

A more detailed calendar for cherries, blueberries, peaches and apples  can be found on Hartland Orchard’s website. For berries, check out Green Truck farm’s website and Facebook page. To be certain of fruit and vegetable availability, it’s always best to call before driving out. Potential visitors can find more information, directions, and contact numbers here. 

For the latest events (like a sunflower planting session for kids!) check out Hartland Farm and Orchard’s Facebook page.

Fifeville Trail, City of Charlottesville

Fifeville Trail, City of Charlottesville
Getting from Charlottesville's historic Fifeville neighborhood to a nearby park and shopping center has gotten a whole lot easier thanks to a unique partnership between neighbors, city agencies, and regional and state conservation groups.

Generations ago, the African American neighborhood of Fifeville in the heart of Charlottesville was connected to local businesses and a community park by 5th Street. When the city rerouted 5th Street in the 1960s and broke the connection, residents created an informal trail through a patch of privately owned open space so they could still walk to the places they needed.

Many residents of the neighborhood could see the popular Tonsler Park from their windows but had no safe way to get there on foot.

Starting in the 1970s, “No Trespassing” signs and fencing blocked the trail. Pedestrians were forced to take an extensive and dangerous detour along 7-½, 9th, and the new 5th Street, now with fast-moving traffic and few sidewalks. 

Something had to change, says Carmelita Wood, president of the Fifeville Neighborhood Association (FNA) and longtime advocate of reopening the 5th Steet trail. “We came together with our neighbors and started talking about how to make the route safer. We wanted to get kids to the park without their parents worrying.”

Neighbors talking and assessing their own needs resulted in the FNA’s Cherry Avenue Corridor Community Visioning Report, which identified goals such as affordable area housing and a plan to guide development of the area businesses. Restoring the old trail was also a neighborhood priority. At community engagement meetings, longtime residents shared memories of how they would take the connector trail down to the creek to play as children; others noted how neighborhood green spaces like the trail had disappeared over the years, lost to development.

The city took notice, awarding the FNA a Small Area Planning grant so that neighbors could begin to map out their ideas. Partners in that planning process included the City of Charlottesville, the Piedmont Environmental Council, and the Charlottesville Area Community Foundation.

Trail planners built a switchback trail up the steep incline to this apartment complex so that elderly residents would have an easier time accessing the trail.

Envisioned in two stages, the project was set on tackling the restoration of the connector path along the old 5th Street route first, with a second path planned to cross over it, extending eventually between 5th and 7 ½ streets. This route would create a pedestrian link for people going to work from the surrounding neighborhoods. A grant from the Virginia Outdoors Foundation’s Get Outdoors Program provided funding for implementation, and both trails opened in 2021.

“The VOF grant meant we could hire a professional to complete the whole trail plan at once,” says Michael Holroyd, president of the Rivanna Trails Foundation, the non-profit fiduciary for the project.

Children’s drawings of trolls, fairies and unicorns along the route testify to a new generation of trail users.

Now, at a little over a year old, the trails are well-used and maintained by the people who envisioned them. The nearby mosque and Abundant Life Ministries, along with the local Boy Scouts troop, have hosted cleanups. Colorful drawings by neighborhood children posted on trees alert passerby to hidden fairies and potential unicorn crossings—handmade evidence of a new generation of Fifeville and Charlottesville neighbors who are making the trail their own.

“It’s for everybody,” says Wood. “People from the community going to the stores on Cherry Avenue, people who work at the University of Virginia, or just people out walking the dog. The need for and love for this space is so clear.”

Welcome Erica Lyon

Please help us officially welcome VOF Herpetological Field Intern, Erica Lyon!
Erica joined VOF this season to assist our VOF Herpetological fellow, Lauren Fuchs with her field work investigating the Ophifiomyces ophiodiicola fungus in Bull Run Mountains’ snake populations
 
Photo by Herpetology Fellow Lauren Fuchs
Before coming onto this project Erica earned her dual bachelors degrees in Environmental Science and Psychology from @vcu where she helped out with @vcuricerivers translocation study on box turtles 🐢
Erica enjoys has worked as an outdoor adventure guide and anticipates her time here at VOF’s Preserve will be a crucial professional step in her journey into the fields of wildlife conservation and animal behavior.
 

Field of Dreams Recreational Complex, Craig County

15 years in the making, Craig County's "Field of Dreams" gives kids a place to play at the edge of the Jefferson National Forest.
15 years in the making, Craig County's "Field of Dreams" gives kids a place to play at the edge of the Jefferson National Forest.

It was 2007, and kids in Craig County needed a place to play ball. “We’re a rural community, and kids don’t have a lot to do, so sports are very popular here,” says Debbie Snead, adviser to the Craig County Recreation and Conservation Association (CCR&CA). “We had no regulation fields, so every time there was a league game parents had to haul the kids to the next county over.” Building a home for Craig County’s youth teams would not only ease the travel expenses that prevented some families from participating but also give the young athletes a sense of pride in their own community.

Team sports is the activity of choice for Craig County schoolkids, who now have three regulation ball fields where they can practice and host games.

With no county parks department to turn to, Snead and other community leaders filled the gap by forming the nonprofit CCR&CA. A generous landowner catalyzed the project, says Snead. “We started looking for property and about two months later we were contacted by a gentleman who wanted to sell us 18 acres for below the assessed value.” Located within walking distance of the local elementary and high school buildings, the parcel also had access to Craig Creek, a popular county blueway.

That first stroke of luck was followed by 15 years of hard work raising funds and garnering in-kind support. By the summer of 2021, the association had completed three regulation ballfields, installed electricity and water lines for concessions, and started constructing restroom facilities.

Snead estimates that around 25 percent of the labor was volunteer.  “I have been amazed at the in-kind support,” she states. “When we discovered that the public service authority water supply was just half a mile away from the site, a local contractor dug out the ditch for us.”

The last project needed to complete the complex was a septic system for the restrooms, but it was expensive and Snead had exhausted most of the local donors. “I almost threw up my hands trying to find more funds,” she recalls. Then she learned about the Virginia Outdoors Foundation’s Get Outdoors grant program. “That grant, combined with a portion of the county Economic Development Authority’s Covid relief funds, was enough to do it,” she says. 

The Field of Dreams complex is used for softball, baseball, soccer, horse shows, kayaking, walking, and fund-raising events. The restrooms will allow even more kids and families to comfortably and safely use the space.

By the summer of 2021 the building for restrooms (center) was nearing completion, but Snead was still looking for ways to fund a septic system.

“Now we’ve finished the last major infrastructure project and can go on to other things,” Snead states. The Craig County Child Care Center has chosen the complex as the site for its new outdoor learning lab, which will serve school-aged kids from the center.  The CCR&CA’s future plans include installing fencing around the entire complex and building a picnic pavilion down by the creek.

“That’s why I keep working,” she adds. “So many good things have happened to us and we can weave it all together slow but steady.”

Research update! Anthropogenic noise and cardinals on the Preserve

A hearty congratulations are in order for Preserve Research Associate, Shawn Smith! Shawn is a PhD candidate at George Mason University’s environmental science and policy program, and recently won best student speed talk for his presentation for the Virginia chapter of The Wildlife Society. We are so proud of Shawn and the important work he is conducting, some of which happened right here at the Preserve.

Shawn receiving his award at the VA-TWS meeting!

His research takes a look at how anthropogenic (or human-created) noise affects communication in songbirds. While his analysis is still ongoing, he let us know that he has found evidence that birds like the Northern Cardinal are committing more “communication errors” in areas with higher levels of noise. As Shawn explained, “They don’t always hear or respond to calls when they are expected to, and sometimes they commit false alarms. This equates to us picking up our phone when it isn’t ringing or believing we heard a knock at the door when there wasn’t anyone knocking.”

This is the first experimental study of its kind and will have important conservation implications. Birds like the cardinal rely heavily on acoustic signaling for mate attraction, predator avoidance, and more. By demonstrating in the field that human noise (like from traffic on 66!) affects their success in this, Shawn is laying critical groundwork for further study and conservation practices.

Congratulations to Shawn on his recent award, and a huge thank you for his hard work and dedication to bird conservation!

Warning: Insane cuteness ahead!

Scolopax minor, or the woodcock, is a quirky, enigmatic little bird with a variety of different names throughout its range – the timberdoodle, the hokumpoke, the bog sucker, the Labrador twister.
Photo by Sarah Causey
Whatever you chose to call it, our native woodcocks have successfully performed their entrancing mating displays and peented their annual PEENT’s and as a result, their babies are now being spotted throughout the preserve!
 
As our staff can attest, this bird is abundant throughout Bull Run Mountains, but is also very cryptic.
Photo by Sarah Causey
 
Their camouflage is so good that one usually only gets the delight of seeing them during their annual mating displays, or when you are walking through the woods and suddenly the forest floor seems to leap up and fly away just one step ahead of you!
 
There have been a few lucky exceptions being reported. This one coming with photos and video of the little babies. Totally healthy and well, they were just doing what mom taught them to do: Don’t move, stay hidden, and then explode into flight at the last second .🥰
 
As seen in these photos, they are still working on that flying part 😂