Dear Friend,

Whoever thought that our community would still be affected so deeply by the Covid-19 pandemic, even two years on? Yet despite continued difficulties, the Buckingham Pond Conservancy has continued work to make our pond and park a place all of us can enjoy with our friends and families, a place of respite, joy, and wonder. We are pleased to report that with the help of volunteers, the City of Albany Department of General Services (DGS), your generous donations, and membership fees, we oversaw the completion of several projects, some of which we’ve been planning for a long time:

• Educational tree tagging for 23 species of trees around the pond
• Spring and summer cleanups featuring invasive bittersweet removals
• Continued efforts towards garlic mustard removal near Rafts Way & Milner Avenue
• New fall planting of tulip bulbs in the parking circle (thanks once again to DGS/Jess Morgan for the bulbs)
• Completion of the 2021 CSLAP water testing program—a.k.a. Citizens Statewide Lake Assessment Program
• Outreach to Albany Water Department for coordination of planned shoreline improvements and native plantings along the pond’s north shore.

We’re proud of our 2021 accomplishments and are looking forward to 2022. We aim to share social media posts about the trees around the pond. We hope to launch the new BPC website, providing more education and insights into what makes the pond such a special place in the City of Albany. And of course, we continue to foster strong relationships with City departments and the Pond’s neighbors.But we can’t do it without the support of the people who care about the pond. How can you help?

• Get Informed / Get Connected – Join us at the Virtual Annual Members Meeting* on Sunday 3/27, 1:00 – 1:30 p.m. via Zoom, or attend our next monthly Virtual Board Meeting on the fourth Monday of every month. Please let us know at [email protected] if you would like to join, and we will send you the meeting link.  *If you’re not currently a member and would like to attend the Annual Members Meeting, you may sign up for membership and pay dues via Paypal or check. See www.buckinghampondconservancy.org under Donate, for details.
• Share Your Skills / Join a Work Day / Join the Board – We can use all kinds of help and are particularly looking for people with skills in social media, marketing, ecology, environmental engineering, grant writing and web development. If you’re more comfortable around plants, we need your help planting and removing invasive species; consider volunteering for socially-distanced Spring Clean-up, to be announced sometime in May.
• Join or Renew – We hope that you believe in what we are doing and will support the Conservancy with a $25 per person tax-deductible annual membership donation (or more if you can!). Our membership year runs April 1 to March 31, so if you are a current member, it’s time to renew. You can join or renew online at www.buckinghampondconservancy.org/join or you can mail in a check and renewal slip.

All Board Members whose terms expire in 2022 are running for re-election. Thank you to Grace Bennet, Felton McLaughlin, Marsha Penrose, Anne Savage, and Mark Schlessman for their continued willingness to serve. In addition, Jenny O’Neil is running for a three-year board term this year. The Board anticipates appointing Jenny as Treasurer if she is approved by the membership to replace current treasurer Jeanette Carioto who will be stepping down from the treasurer position but continuing on the board.

As ever, your contributions of time and of money are the key to keeping Buckingham Pond thriving for generations to come. If you have any questions, please contact me at [email protected]. I look forward to working with you to help our pond.

Thanks for your continued support!

Gabi Sarhos
President
Buckingham Pond Conservancy