Downeast Salmon Federation News

Dear Friends and Supporters of the Downeast Salmon Federation
 

This letter has been posted now to notify you of some great things underway here at DSF, including a brand new promotional documentary video about the work of our organization. The 14 minute video highlights our accomplishments in protecting natural habitats and public access along our rivers and our efforts to rebuild endangered salmon populations and other fish and wildlife in the region.

The video can be found at the center of our home page and can easily be viewed using common software. The purpose of this "film" is to motivate more interest and support for this important work. Many, many of you have given so generously over the years and we want to thank you for that trust in our programming and planning. We hope you can continue to support our work and will view the video and consider an extra gift this season to DSF.

Right now we have two exciting "campaigns" underway:

The biggest project right now is our fundraising drive for matching funds for construction of the new East Machias Aquatic Research Center. The J.A. Woollam Foundation has just announced that they will match every dollar we raise up to $25,000! On top of that we can then match your gift and the Woollam grant another time against a 1:1 matching grant from the USDA Rural Development Public Facilities program! And then there are all of the dedicated local volunteers donating services ranging from snow plowing and lumber milling to electrical work and caring for the salmon we are raising. This is truly a local project with local buy in - and we all know that is what makes the world go round. For more info about EMARC you can look to our website, view the video or give us a ring. We should also have a new newsletter posted on our site very soon - and that has much more detail than I will include here. Next week our wind turbine will be installed and the hatchery system will be running this winter on solar and wind generated power. Again, more details in the newsletter and video...

The second intiative we are trying to complete (and this one before years' end) is the purchase of an 8 acre parcel of riverfront property in Township 10 on the famed West Branch of the Narraguagus River. This prime riverfront parcel is located adjacent to roughly 24,000 acres of conservation land - much of which is managed as one of the largest Ecological Reserves owned by the State of Maine. We have been offered a big bargain on this parcel from the current owner - a retired fisheries biologist, infact. The property has a well maintained, four bunk, classic log cabin dating from the 1930's. We are purchasing the property and cabin for just $8,000. Add to this the usual legal costs and stewardship / maintenance "layaway" bringing the full project budget to $10,000. We have already raised $2,500. Our plan is to allow use of the cabin free to the Scouts and other service groups and to allow the public to use the camp on a donation basis just as we have done successfully with our two other cabins on the Machias River (first come first served, so schedule your stay for 2010 soon!). The land will remain in a natural and wild state forever. What better way to have access to that "log cabin in the woods" on one of the few remaining wild rivers in the United States? Please help us get this project completed. There's no doubt we can "get there from here". By the way, I should mention that access is by boot or canoe only...

We hope that some of you will be as excited about these projects as we are. Any size donation you can send will be greatly appreciated and acknowledged.

So, without further adieu, we again thank you for your support and interest in these efforts and wish you and your families Happy Holidays from the Board and Staff of the Downeast Salmon Federation.

Sincerely,

Dwayne

Dwayne Shaw
Executive Director
Downeast Salmon Federation / Downeast Rivers Land Trust
PO Box 201
Columbia Falls, ME 04623
(207) 483-4336
Fax: 483-6057
dsf@panax.com
www.mainesalmonrivers.org