<div><em>UPDATE - As of April 2026, both Tom and James Slater (Jim) have passed and left this world, moving on to other stages of their journey. Tom's ashes have been spread at the farm. Jim will be placed for final resting in Berea. We brought Jim down to the farm a week prior to his passing and he was able to joyfully see the progress being made. </em>
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>We had a great meeting on April 25 at the farm with service providers and we are moving forward with fencing, deer management practices and installation of pollination patches (wild flowers and milkweed for monarchs).   A contract has been signed to keep the southwesterly 5 acres in hay production for an eventual horse retirement operation.  
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><em>We are also focused on maintenance, establishing new support relationships and completing the current USDA funded project for elimination of invasive species. The scouts have continued to enhance "Slater Bluff", their campsite in the forest. Lisa Harmon is now assisting us with the property and project, as well as completing the USDA project. 95% of the GoFund me fund balance remain available for use, under the implementation policy outlined below. As we re-group, we look towards strengthening the project and continuing with the vision Tom and Jim were instrumental in creating. </em>
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><em>As of February 2025, The barn (over 100 years old) has been cleared and is now available for equipment and staging of materials. Pollination patches are being prepared for planting at spring thaw. The Boy Scouts have installed numerous bird houses and are conducting a winter campout. We hope to have the website up with more information and details soon. </em>
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><em>As of August 2024, The barn has been totally painted, re-roofed and original wood frame windows and doors all repaired. These expenses have been 100% funded personally by the family. </em>
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><em>The GoFundMe account remains in place and will only be used for direct Nature Preserve Projects as called out in the OSU Forestry Dept. Student Reports. Pollination patches are being installed by Tom Slater and Boy Scout Troop 228 from Berea has established campsite Slater Bluff, on a great spot above the major stream in the north forest. They installed 8 birdhouses this weekend and are doing 5 more in a few weeks. GoFundMe funds were used to reimburse the scouts for materials and to pay for excavation and wild flower seeds. They are receiving credit for merit badges as part of the project. </em>
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><em>The birdhouses and pollination patches were recommendations of the OSU students; they are thrilled to see their ideas being implemented !</em>
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><em>Phase 1 of the USDA invasive species removal project was approved in June of 2023 and Phase 2 is in process (to finish Nov 1, 2024). This work is being done by my brother Tom. All upfront funding and expenses for the work is being 100% covered by the family. Upon completion and approved inspection, the USDA provides reimbursement and a grant allowance. </em>
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><em>My brother Jeff continues to work on the website, drone photos and posting the property for security. This work is all being 100% funded by the family. </em>
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><em>We intend to pickup the pace ! Check in whenever you would like. We are moving forward and our devotion remains strong &amp; unyielding. My parents each turned 92 this year and they are thrilled to see the project coming to fruition. Your confidence and support means the world to us. </em>
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>_________________________________________________________
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>This 165-acre property is owned by my family. My parents, James and Patsy, purchased it in 1972. As they have reached their 90s, instead of selling it and allowing homes to be developed, we have chosen to create a forestry and wildlife sanctuary, converting the land to the natural state that existed before Ohio was settled. Working with the Ohio State University Forestry Dept., the USDA and the Ohio Dept. of Natural Resources, we are converting the land to old-growth forest, removing invasive species, creating pollination and milkweed zones, preserving barn areas for swallows, introducing bees, creating waterway management practices and establishing mapped zones for forest specie allocation. Wildlife management and particular species promotion are being studied. We are currently completing a project to remove invasive and non-native vegetation. This particular program is being funded with a grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>The vision is to create a natural, protected forest, for educational and study purposes, to reduce our carbon footprint, to offset global warming, and to create an area in Ohio like no other. My parents have pledged the land to this project, based on the foregoing vision. My brothers, Tom, Jeff, Doug and I, will manage it and implement the vision in their memory. Held in a family trust, our children and grandchildren will manage it after us.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>To date, we have undertaken most of this endeavor with our own time and our funds. Tom has planted over 30,000 trees (20+ species from seedlings), converting cornfields to forests. We are renovating the 100+year-old barn for material storage and a passive horse retirement area. A second group of Ohio State Environmental and Forestry students will study the property and provide their analysis, building on the study done by a student team last year. The educational experience afforded to the OSU "environmentalists of tomorrow" is an equally important element of the project. We are raising funds to implement the recommendations in both studies and to move quicker and accomplish more.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>All contributions will be tracked and the first round will be allocated 100% to funding the forest management planning recommendations provided by the OSU students. No administrative expenses will be deducted from contributions. All administrative and overhead expenses are covered by myself and my family. No salary or benefits are paid to any family members.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>A website is being setup to track progress and to provide information and updates to all contributors and the public. Time-sequenced aerial photos, starting in 1997 will be posted to show forest creation. All sources and uses of contributions will also be transparently posted on the website. Significant contributions will be personally acknowledged. Tours and selective access can be arranged for generous supporters. We thank you for your interest and consideration. All inquiries submitted will be personally answered.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>S. Slater
</div>

Vinton workman

Laura Merritt

Craig Mulling

Brenda Norton

Timothy Lehnert

Cody Spreng

Pallavi Chandna

Anonymous

Heather Sanderson

Caitlyn Garner

Robbie Workman

laura merritt

John Hennelly

Susan Smith

james brinks

Andrew Wilson

A Forestry and Wildlife Sanctuary in Ohio

platform

Platform is iOS

Android

Adyen Google Pay Development Audience

$opt_dummy_attribute

English only

Deprecate Stripe Legacy

dyn_template_ids

Adyen V6 Bene Transfer & MyMoney Campaign Organizers - test01

Bene transfer V6 and AdyenV6MyMoney Campaign Organizers - production

OneTrust next-app audience

fundCountryCode

NextDoor Share Option Users

Fundraisers with Reactions feature capability

fundCurrencyCode

US + Non-charity COs Only

locale

fund country is US and user language is English

personId

comms-internal-person-ids

Enhanced Story Experience Users

Suggested Goal Experience Users

user language is English and fund country: US, AU, DK, FI, IE, NO, SE, CA, GB; 

Poster share - new funds eligible (newest 9/18)

Streaming widgets beta user

paymentProcessor

3DS payment method

user language is English and fundCountry: US, AU, DK, FI, IE, NO, SE, CA, GB; 

currencyCode

Money Box Donation List Prompt Experiment Audience

GoFundMe Employees

ipAddress

Mark Rieth IP Address

Version 9.2.0 and above

Fund is in English speaking country

desktop

Android v12.11.0 and above

Platform is Android

paymentMethodType

checkoutType

Payment method type group to be vaulted on success

admin pr kit prod

EUR Donation Upsell

Share Text generation Skip Fundraiser

(prod) new funds eligible for amp12 (UGC gallery)

fintrac_cad_idv_form_v2 audience

paymentProcessorAccountId

fallback mode accounts

proCampaignId

p2p legacy startfundraising page

AMP24 New Funds Only PROD (DO NOT MODIFY)

countryCode

charityId

UKCharities

Federated Search Internal Testing

route.pathname community

US Donation Upsell audience 

Auto Thanks Feature Audience

Supporter Comments Eligible Funds

International Only

fundId

braze fundraiser group 

Payment Identity Transfers ATO Risk Check (Targeted) - Production

Fundraiser Saved Payment Method Rate Limit Bypass (Production)

leaderboard-partner-id-audience-givepanel

Version 9.2.1 and above

AUD Donation Upsell audience

fundraiserCountryCode is US/EN

Active Fundraiser - Smart Default Cadence

DAF Internal

Vault on success card payment method

Platform is iOS v11.0.0 and above

Desktop users

Person ids

United States (US) users

allow yuno fundraisers for test

Mexico country code

Posters INTL

NPO Profile Opted-In

iOS at or above 12.4.0

non-US recurring donors

Canada Campaign Owner Group

Fundraiser Without Meta Link

Scheduler payment tester gorup

charityCommunityId

Charities allow to be claimed unclaimed (PRD)

Canada (CA) users

UC Tipping v20250115 International

pymk_production_xplr_fe_team

Android at or above 12.2.0

Profile photo entry point audience

smart goals (fundraiser/manage) on test01

Activity Tracking v1 Beta Testing

start gfm intl allowed locales

Platform is iOS v11.2.0 and above

NPO upsell education category

unclaimed charities

prod_ach_audience

AI Chatbot Audience

amp13 only new funds (prod) (anyword auto)

UC Flow Enabled (Prod)

Payment Identity Beneficiary Verification - Production

shared notification bell audience

Custom users

ach frontend audience

Android v11.0.0 and above

Users Receiving Payments Paused Notifications

smart goals test01

Manage Coach - US English Organizers Only + new funds only

Team EGG - IP Address list

NPO recommendations prod

Fundraiser Without Instagram Deep Link

Native 11.4.0 and above

UC Tipping v20250107

Users Receiving Braze KYC Validation Failed

Native 11.3.0 and above

ai_title_page

anyword

openai

control

manual_entry

userEmail

template_id

userId

fundUrl

isCharityCo

email

appVersion

shouldBucketIntoExperiment

partnerId

donationCadence

isActiveFundraiser

isPartner

isMobile

npoProfileOptIn

fundIsLinkedWithMeta

hasSessionDonation

categoryGroup

isCampaignOwner

fundHasInstagramDeepLink

Native 11.4.0 and higher

New funds eligible - Video Sharing (PROD)

GB Donation Upsell audience 

Auto Thanks V3 Rollout Audience

Thank you V3 testing whitelist

isRecurringFriendly

Is Recurring Friendly

Excluded funds - Video Sharing

NPO upsell animals category

NPO upsell disaster relief category

Logged In Users

CH Donation Upsell audience

Android v10.6.0 and above

NPO upsell essential needs category

NPO upsell medical category

userCurrencyCode

Localized Currency

NPO upsell cancer category

v11.5.0 and above

testAudience

pathname

Survicate

appVersion is at or above 12.8.0

Non-charity fund

isChallengeFundraiser

challenge-fundraisers

Payment Identity Launch Verification - Production

New funds eligible - Posters v2

CAD Donation Upsell Audience

Braze Email Tester

NPO Profile Opted-Out

iOS App Version

hasKnownDonors

PYMK has donors

iOS v12.3.0 and above

A Forestry and Wildlife Sanctuary in Ohio

Still $15,580 to go. Help us build momentum.