On Election Day Mainers will go to the polls to choose Maine's next Governor and other lawmakers. We also have the chance to support Question 3, a $9.75 million bond issue that includes critical funding for the highly successful Land for Maine's Future program (LMF). 

Please join Friends of Scarborough at the polls today to vote YES on Question 3 to replenish the Land for Maine's Future program!

For every $1 spent by LMF, $3 more in federal and private funds are brought in for land conservation.  One local example of how LMF works with willing partners to leverage funding is the project led by Friends of Scarborough Marsh to conserve the 46-acre Gervais property on the Scarborough Marsh. Land for Maine's Future works for Scarborough! Land for Maine's Future works for Maine! Please support Land for Maine's Future with your vote!

Join the Friends of Scarborough Marsh for an evening of great food and spirited auction bidding to support critical marsh conservation and restoration programs

 There is still time to donate items!  Saturday night November 7th is your chance to spend the evening with people who feel as strongly as you do that the marsh surrounding us is an extraordinary resource we must cherish and protect for future generations.
 
Since its founding in 2000, the Friends of Scarborough Marsh (FOSM) has been a tireless advocate for the marsh.  Without any paid staff, the organization has won hundreds of thousands of dollars in state and federal grants to support marsh rehabilitation projects and the steady expansion of the Scarborough Marsh Wildlife Management Area. 
 
The recent addition of the 46 acre Gervais property to the Scarborough Marsh Wildlife Management Area was the direct result of FOSM volunteers working with local citizens, government, and private foundations to protect marsh-edge land vulnerable to development.
 
Building on their success, FOSM volunteers are actively fundraising to finance future land acquisitions. The annual auction and dinner, which begins at 5:30 pm on Saturday, November 7th at St. Maximilian Kolbe Church on Black Point Road, is FOSM's largest source of individual and corporate contributions. 

The evening will feature silent and live auctions, creative games of chance, a cash bar, and an exquisite buffet prepared by Express Events.
 
Items to be auctioned include: a Saddleback Mountain weekend ski getaway, a luxury 3-night cross country skiing adventure at the Wentworth Inn in Jackson, NH; an overnight including dinner and breakfast at the Black Point Inn; a guided shad fishing trip on the Saco River; a birding tour with Maine Audubon's well known naturalist; paintings, photographs, and handcrafts by local artists and several restaraunt gift certificates.   For the latest information on the auction - and to learn more about Friends of Scarborough Marsh - visit www.scarboroughmarsh.org. Tickets are $50/person and may be purchased by writing to info@scarboroughmarsh.org or calling Susie Williams at 883-2414.  
 
Promote your business with an auction donation! Your business can support the preservation of Scarborough Marsh and receive extensive publicity by donating an item or service to the 2009 auction.  FOSM welcomes a variety of donations, including gift certificates, works of art, weekend getaways, and professional services.  The deadline for donating an item or service is October 31st. Call Susan Koch at 510-1021 to arrange delivery of your contribution. 

Please join Friends of Scarborough Marsh and the Scarborough Land Conservation Trust for a celebration marking the acquisition and conservation of the 46-acre Gervais Property.

Wednesday, October 21st (2 p.m.), Gervais Property, 53 Manson Libby Road, Scarborough

Representatives from the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife, Land for Maine's Future Program, and Tom Hall, Scarborough's Town Manager will join other project partners in celebrating this latest addition to the Scarborough Marsh Wildlife Management Area. Project partners will give short speeches and tours of the property. This celebration event is free and open to the public! Refreshments will be served. 

"It's been a long journey bringing this project to fruition," said C.D. Armstrong, president of the Friends of Scarborough Marsh. "I take my hat off to the Gervais family for having the patience and vision to work with us to conserve their land. The major funding partners are to be saluted for their commitments, as well as the many volunteers and donors who made this project happen. Ultimately, the big winners are our kids and future generations who will have this land to enjoy in perpetuity."

A number of project partners made this effort possible, including the Gervais family of Scarborough, Friends of Scarborough Marsh, the Natural Resource Trustees for the Julie N Oil Spill, the Town of Scarborough, the Land for Maine's Future Program, the Scarborough Land Conservation Trust, the Davis Conservation Foundation, and Ducks Unlimited. 

More about this team effort.