ConnectingCalifornia.org

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Redwood Forests Foundation Now Owns 50,000 Acres in Mendocino County Between Coast and 101 Freeway; Bought from Timber Company with Help from Bank of America

• Read letter from Art Harwood, President, Redwood Forest Foundation, Inc. (PDF)
• Read press release announcing transaction (PDF)

11-2007

Dear RFFI Supporters,
Thank you for your interest in the Redwood Forest Foundation, Inc. (RFFI), and to those
of you who were able to join us at our annual meeting in June and celebrate our exciting
acquisition of the Usal Redwood Forest. As you know, RFFI, with financial support from
the Bank of America, now owns over 50,000 acres of forestland on the north coast of
California. Our long-term objective is to restore this beautiful forest over time and to keep
it in production for the benefit of the citizens of Mendocino County and California. The
RFFI board is busy with many aspects of this project, but we wanted to let you know of
some of our most recent efforts.



At the annual meeting we discussed how important it is to develop community support for
this project. To accomplish this we are currently developing tours of the property, which
we expect to be able to offer in the spring. We will let you know as soon as these tours are
available. We are also developing outreach materials, which will enable all of us to share
information about this innovative project. Some of these materials are currently available
by request, if any of you wish to spread the word.


Finally, we are currently focusing on raising the operating capital necessary for RFFI to
manage this huge acquisition. Our loan from the Bank of America provided the acquisition
funds for the property, but it is up to us to finance our own operations and infrastructure,
especially during this early period. This complex project demands coordination at many
levels from community groups, to government resource agencies to the timber industry. As
our all-volunteer board has reached the limits of its capacity, we urgently need to hire staff
to assist and coordinate these activities. This is a critical piece of the project’s success and
is urgently needed. As we speak we are pursuing foundation grants and other donations
to develop these operating funds. Fundraising is also one of the important goals of our
community outreach program.


In the meantime, we are reaching out to all RFFI supporters to help us during this startup
period. The Board of Directors and Advisory Committee members are digging deeply
into their own pockets to help make this effort a success. Financial support is of vital
importance right now and we urge all supporters to consider a donation at this time. All
gifts are tax-deductible.


As the season of holiday giving approaches, please consider a year-end gift that is truly an
investment in your community, the forest and the region’s economic foundation. It is a gift
that will generate returns for all of us for generations to come.
Art Harwood
President, Redwood Forest Foundation, Inc.


PO Box 523 • Philo, CA • 95466
(877) 707-9990 • rffi@rffi.org • www.rffi.org