A Legacy Remembered Through Conservation
By: Katrina Meserve
Easton – The Ammonoosuc Conservation Trust (ACT) is thrilled to announce our newest fee acquisition in Easton thanks to the extreme generosity of Lorie Gols.
The Gols forest consists of 82 acres of forested land surrounded on three sides by the White Mountain National Forest in Easton, NH. The headwaters of the Ham Branch stream run close to the property, which hosts some of the state`s highest ranked stream and aquatic wildlife habitats – with tributaries flowing through the Gols forest. This unique piece of land is also part of a much larger undeveloped forest which is an important wildlife habitat for both animals and plant life and provides connections to other nearby conserved land.
In addition to the protection of the forest, the wildlife, and the local water quality, this property has a deep connection for the Gols family who have a decades-long love of the North Country.
Lorie and Fred on the property.
The Gols family grew up and lived in Massachusetts with frequent visits to the North Country to enjoy the natural beauty of the mountains, valleys and streams. Lorie’s father grew up part-time in Germany and the landscape of the North Country happily reminded him of his days spent in Europe. After many summer visits renting houses for the family, the Gols acquired the land in the 60’s with the family goal to preserve and protect this special place. Going to the property as a young girl, Lorie recalls the vibrant stream running through the land and reflects on her great childhood spent visiting this beautiful place.
Her father had a love for hiking and nature which extended to their local community garden where he would grow everything and anything he could to eat organic produce year-round. Lorie’s childhood visiting the North Country was instilled through her father’s passion for these natural spaces, she reflects on her love of nature and the natural world and preserving it. She shares that she gets emotional when she comes up to visit saying, “he’d be really happy to know it’s being conserved”. By generously donating this land to ACT she is focusing on making a positive mark and fulfilling her father’s dream. Lorie says, “Dad would be happy and smiling”. Conservation is imperative for future generations but in this heartfelt story, it can also be important and valuable to those who are no longer with us.
ACT would like to thank Lorie and her partner Fred Fowler for working with ACT to conserve this special piece of property and to ensure the vitality of the environment in the North Country. ACT takes its responsibilities for the long-term care of its conserved lands very seriously and is honored that Lorie chose ACT to carry out her father`s legacy.
The Ammonoosuc Conservation Trust is the community-based lands conservancy serving New Hampshire’s North Country. Learn more and become a member at act-nh.org or call (603) 823-7777.
