Goulet Farm: Conserved!

Winter 2025 Newsletter

Over the past few years, South Hero Land Trust has been working with the Goulet and Swanson families, alongside our partners at Vermont Land Trust, to conserve 195 acres of critical farmland in the Keeler Bay Watershed. This land, which is home base for the beloved Goulet Farm, was conserved this summer thanks to the generosity of our community. 

South Hero Land Trust is pleased to announce this critical land base for the Goulet Farm is secured long into the future. To close the project, SHLT and Vermont Land Trust worked together to secure $918,000 in federal and state grants. The landowners also helped by lowering the price by $270,000 through what’s known as a “bargain sale.” This left a gap of $350,000, at which point the community stepped up in a huge way - together we were able to raise just enough to close the project and protect this land forever!

READ THE FULL ARTICLE ON THE GOULET FARM CONSERVATION HERE

A Labor of Love: Neighbors Work Together to Protect the Goulet Farm

Fall 2024 Newsletter

Four Generations of Farming

Guy Goulet’s grandfather emigrated to Vermont from Quebec in the 1940s. His family, including a 3 year old son who became Guy’s father, came with him. After short stints in Lincoln and Jericho, the family purchased a farm in South Hero and set down roots.

Guy always knew he wanted to be a farmer. “My heart was always here,” he says. He met his wife Lori in 2013, at the Ford dealership where she worked and he had his pickup trucks serviced. They have six grown children between them, including Guy’s stepson Brad Isham, who works the farm with them.

Brad will be the next generation to steward this land, and he quotes the adage, “if you love what you do, you’ll never work a day in your life,” to explain how it just feels right to him. READ THE 2024 ARTICLE ON THE GOULET FARM PROJECT HERE>>>

Meet SHLT’s New Programs Coordinator: Nora Seymour

Summer 2025 Newsletter

Hello! My name is Nora Seymour. I’m very happy to be joining the South Hero community as SHLT’s new Programs Coordinator, and look forward to meeting many of you this summer!

My story in outdoor education began while I was getting my undergraduate degree in Sustainable Food and Farming at UMass Amherst and working in the campus garden. Leading field trips there, I realized that my passion was in sharing the knowledge and curiosity of gardens with others.

Since then I’ve been able to work at a school garden in the desert, lead thousands of students on farm field trips in Washington, do restoration projects and teach about riparian ecology in Oregon, and run the education programs at a nonprofit farm in Vermont. READ MORE ABOUT NORA HERE>>>

Meet SHLT’s Summer Interns!

South Hero Land Trust is thrilled to be working with Ella Yates, Sidra Hoffman, and Isabel Sykora through UVM’s Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources Perennial Internship Program.

Ella and Sidra are splitting their time between Sandy Bottom Farm, where they’ll learn about sustainable agriculture and food production; and SHLT, where they’ll work on food security, trails, restoration and education projects.

Isabel, our dedicated SHLT position, is working with Nora to lead youth and adult education programs, maintaining our two gardens, and stewarding South Hero’s public access and natural areas.

READ OUR INTERN BIOS AND MORE HERE>>>

Changing Seasons and Transitions at South Hero Land Trust

Fall 2024 Newsletter

After leading South Hero Land Trust for 9 growth-filled years, Emily Alger will step down from her position of Executive Director at the end of 2024. We are thrilled to announce that Guy Maguire, our Director of Programs, will be stepping into this leadership role. We will miss Emily as a daily part of South Hero Land Trust, are grateful for all she has done for the land trust and our community, and wish her all the best in her new adventures with her family. At the same time, the South Hero Land Trust Board and staff are excited about new opportunities for the land trust under Guy’s leadership.

Emily has worked at South Hero Land Trust for over 15 years. After serving as Director of Programs for 6 years, she was appointed Executive Director in 2015. She’s had a hand in everything we do during her time here, including land conservation projects, trail development, environmental education, and farm viability programs. She oversaw the conservation of Tracy Woods and opening of the Tracy Woods Community Trail, expanded the Guide to Agriculture into the interactive website and print map it is today, inspired us to prioritize accessibility in current and future trail projects, and more. Her love of the land and commitment to nurturing the relationships we each have with the land have been guideposts for our growth over the last several years. READ MORE ABOUT THE STAFF TRANSITION HERE>>>

A New Trails Partnership: Making South Hero More Accessible and Inclusive

Fall 2024 Newsletter

Approximately 1 in 4 people in the US live with disabilities, and historically, many outdoor spaces haven’t been designed to include them. Over the past few years, SHLT has increasingly been focusing on this injustice: it’s one of the main drivers behind projects like our inclusive paddles, the rebuilding of the wheelchair accessible boardwalk in the Rec Park, and design plans for the Islandacres Trail, our next major trail project.

We’re grateful to have a strong local partner and mentor in Cathy Webster, Northeast Disabled Athletic Association’s Kayak Program Manager. Earlier this year, we paired with Cathy to design a new project that will deepen our involvement in making our community’s trails and outdoor spaces more accessible for people with disabilities. We’re excited to share That this partnership is one of only 10 groups in the country who were awarded the Partnerships for Disability Access, Inclusion, and Leadership grant - a new grant co-created by the Land Trust Alliance and Disabled Hikers. READ MORE ABOUT THIS ACCESSIBILITY PROJECT HERE>>>