| | | | Hi Friend, June is a month of abundance. The dark-eyed Junco that frequents my home is sitting on her second brood, my backyard is thick with the smell of honeysuckle, and the eagles on the coast are feasting on midshipman. The rain and sun are both here in generous measure, and everything seems green and bursting with color! The natural world is giving us so much to celebrate—but so is our community! Last Thursday we gathered together and raised $290,000 for the lands and waters we love. Thank you for that incredible community support. Now, I'd love to invite you to something special: our Walk & Talk at Ueland Tree Farm on June 20th is going to be a great one, so bring your friends. This is the forest we're working to protect—a sprawling 1,200 acres with streams, wetlands, and trails. Come explore this place with us and imagine its future as a community forest. Here's to getting outside, | | | | | | | | Thank You for Celebrating With Us! | |  | A week later, and we're still feeling inspired by this year's Conservation Celebration. Seeing so many people (nearly 400 of you!) gathered in support of local conservation was a powerful reminder that protecting the Kitsap Peninsula is truly a community effort. Together, you helped raise an incredible $290,000—the most ever raised at a single GPC event. These funds will support the protection and stewardship of local forests, farms, shorelines, streams, and community greenspaces while helping connect more people to nature. To everyone who attended, volunteered, sponsored, donated, or cheered us on from afar: thank you for making this year's event such a success. We are grateful to be part of a community that cares so deeply about the place we call home. It was a joy to celebrate alongside you, to honor Judy and Don Willott and Tim Bell, and to share the evening with a community who cares about this place we call home. Photographer Tiffany Diamond documented the whole evening beautifully. Browse the full gallery.
If you were in attendance, we'd appreciate if you could fill out this short survey to help us make next year's event even better. | | | | | | | | In Remembrance of John Nelson | |  | John Nelson, a devoted conservationist and steadfast champion of Great Peninsula Conservancy (GPC), passed away on April 25, 2026. John served on the GPC board from 2004 to 2010, holding the roles of president, vice president, and treasurer at various times. He brought valued corporate experience and a genuine commitment to community-centered land conservation. In 2007, when GPC faced a serious financial crisis, John was one of three board members who each pledged $10,000 per year for three years — an act of leadership that inspired a matching response from the broader membership and helped set GPC on an enduring upward path. Beyond his own generosity, John's influence rippled outward. He introduced fellow Purdue alumnus Frank Stutesman to GPC, cultivating a relationship that grew into a transformative legacy. His partner, Linda Benedict, was also a significant supporter of GPC. John was known for his gentle manner, frequent smile, and the quiet way he brought others into the causes he cared about. Known by his friends as "Honest John," his nickname reflected the way he lived his life—with integrity, humility, and kindness. Memorial gifts for John can be made at greatpeninsula.org. Thank you for honoring his legacy and supporting the conservation work that was so dear to his heart. | | | | | | | | | | Marion Allen is a lifelong Pacific Northwest resident and naturalist at heart, with a background in biology and a career in clinical microbiology. Now retired, she finds joy in quiet moments, like being in nature or knitting with a cat on her lap and watching birds in the plum tree just outside her window. She stays deeply involved in the local environmental community working with Kitsap County Native Plants, and with Kitsap Environmental Coalition where she is currently serving as an education lead offering free environmentally oriented presentations to the public. Her passion for learning continues through volunteering with county parks, being on the Poulsbo Parks Pollinators committee, taking stewardship courses and participating in the Washington State Naturalist Program. Marion, you are impressive! Her journey with GPC began by attending Walk and Talks and restoration projects, eventually leading her to the Land Labs program, where she was interested in inspiring youngsters in the county! She found inspiration and joy in the GPC team and in helping spark curiosity and connection to nature in the next generation. An avid “tree hugger,” Marion has proudly called the Poulsbo area home for over 35 years.  Marion, thank you for your continual support. You help make everything we do possible, AND bring incredible energy with you every time! We feel very lucky to call you part of our team | | | | | | Advancing Community Forestry in
Kitsap, Pierce, and Mason | | | | What does it take to build a successful community forest? Earlier this year, GPC Stewardship Manager Micaela Petrini joined conservation leaders from across the Pacific Northwest at the Northwest Community Forest Coalition's biannual forum to explore community engagement, stewardship, governance, and forest management. The experience offered valuable insights that are helping shape GPC's work at Newberry Woods, The Divide, and the proposed community forest at Ueland Tree Farm. Read the blog to learn more about the lessons we're bringing back to the Kitsap Peninsula. | | | | | | | | Supporting Climate Resilience at
Grovers Creek Preserve | | | | What does it take to protect Puget Sound for future generations? At Grovers Creek Preserve, the answer involves dedicated volunteers, curious students, and a forest full of newly planted grand fir and western white pine. Thanks to a $35,000 grant from Puget Soundkeeper Alliance and the Rose Foundation, GPC spent the past year restoring over 8 acres of climate-resilient forest, improving water quality in the Grovers Creek watershed, and bringing 151 students into the field to collect real conservation data. Read the full story to see how this community-powered project is helping protect clean water and healthy habitat for generations to come. | | | | | | | | Stillwaters Online Book Sales | | Want to expand your library in an environmentally friendly way? Shop Stillwaters’ online used book sale at AbeBooks. Stillwaters Environmental Center's long-running online book sale has continued, thanks to dedicated volunteers, through the transition to GPC. You can shop for our books online, all year round at AbeBooks! Click HERE to browse our online books for sale. If you are interested in donating books, we accept them all year long. Contact us at [email protected] for more information. | | | | | | | | | | June Clear Creek Trail Work Party Join us for our monthly work party on the Clear Creek Trail! Together, we’ll tackle trail maintenance tasks like removing invasive species, repairing boardwalks, cleaning up litter, and more. It’s a great opportunity to connect with fellow trail lovers, give back to your community, and help preserve this natural sanctuary that stretches through the heart of Silverdale! When: June 13th, 9:00am – 12:00pm Where: Silverdale, WA | | | | | | | | Walk & Talk: Community Forests at Ueland Tree Farm What is a community forest, and how can you include your voice in the conversation about GPC’s protected lands? Join us at Ueland Tree Farm as we consider the future of this important green space and discuss the many ways our local community forests contribute to the health and vitality of the Peninsula. GPC is working to acquire a majority of Ueland Tree Farm—over 1,200 acres of forest that includes 50 acres of wetlands, 8 miles of streams, and over 9 miles of non-motorized trails for recreation. There's no attendee limit on this month's Walk & Talk - bring your friends! When: June 20th, 10:00am – 12:00pm Where: Bremerton, WA | | | | | | | | Stewardship Work Party: Weed Removal at The Divide Community Forest Come out to The Divide Community Forest, north of Poulsbo, to remove ivy and scotch broom! We will be focusing on a strip of forest that was retained during the 2019 harvest, leaving it as a priority area to manage for invasive species. The Divide is GPC’s newest community forest, spanning a huge 467 acres. Protecting this property in 2024 was a major win since it connects to other large, protected greenspaces to build an expansive greenway in North Kitsap that is highly beneficial to wildlife. GPC’s primary management goals for The Divide are to create an ecologically diverse, healthy, and climate-resilient forest ecosystem that provides opportunities for public recreation, environmental education, and sustainable revenue generation. When: June 27th, 10:00am – 12:30pm Where: Kingston, WA | | | | | | | | Creekside Guide Training If you’re looking to volunteer as an environmental educator, this event is for you! Creekside Guides is a new, hands-on volunteer opportunity with GPC that invites you to connect people with nature right where they are. Working along the Clear Creek Trail in the heart of Silverdale, Creekside Guides engage families and passersby in fun, informal conversations about local native ecology—pointing out plants, wildlife, and the vital role this creek plays in our community. It’s a meaningful way to spend time outdoors, share your curiosity and love of nature, and help inspire a sense of conservation in youth and families. If you enjoy being outside, meeting people, and making learning feel accessible and welcoming, this is a wonderful way to get involved with GPC. Join us for a short presentation and a walk-through of the various crate materials, and for an opportunity to mingle with other Guides. When: June 30th, 4:30pm – 6:00pm Where: Silverdale, WA | | | | | | | | Green Crab Molt Search at Misery Point Join Great Peninsula Conservancy for a shoreline molt survey at Misery Point on the Kitsap Peninsula. As a small group, you’ll walk the intertidal zone searching for shed crab shells and collecting any molts found. As a large group, we will sort and report our findings in the MyCoast app for real research data. European green crabs are an aggressive invasive species threatening Puget Sound’s native crabs, eelgrass, and shellfish. Early detection is one of our best tools and every molt volunteers find and report adds to a real dataset used by scientists and resource managers. Wrap up the morning by staying for a bring-your-own picnic on the beach. When: July 3rd, 10:00am – 12:30pm Where: Seabeck, WA | | | | | | | | Friends of Miller Bay Upcoming Work Parties | | | | | | | | | | Like what we're up to? Our work is made possible by generous donors like you. | | | |  | | | | | If this email was forwarded to you, you can join our e-news to receive your own copy in the future. | | | | | | | |
