The latest addition to our collection of audio tours of Ivy Creek Natural Area is a family-oriented geology and water tour led by geologist and ICF volunteer Marilyn Smith. Go on an adventure on the Red Trail with Marilyn as she covers topics from continental drift to what the creatures who live in streams can tell us about water quality. Find this tour here; for a full list of audio tours of ICNA, go here. All of our audio tours use izi.Travel and can be followed with a phone app or from your computer at home.

Photo: Catherine Boston

On September 17 we received the wonderful news that River View Farm, the historic farm that became Ivy Creek Natural Area, has been named to the Virginia Landmarks Register. The 102-page nomination form was the product of many, many hours of dedicated work by our volunteers. It is now being sent to the National Park Service for nomination to the National Register of Historic Places. Listing will help us obtain funds for further preservation and interpretation of the historic structures that once housed and served the Carrs and Greers. For more information about this extraordinary African-American family, visit our River View Farm page.

Photo: Aerial photo of River View Farm ca. 1979

A hearty welcome to our four new board members, elected at the Annual Meeting on September 26.

Cecil Banks is the Director of Donor Relations for University Advancement at UVA, a position he has held since June 2020. In this role, Mr. Banks leads a team of advancement professionals charged with planning and implementing strategic stewardship and high-level engagement opportunities for University donors.

A native of Richmond, Virginia, Mr. Banks earned a bachelor of arts degree from the University of Virginia in 2003. Mr. Banks is an engaged member of the University and Charlottesville communities. He currently serves on the Western Commonwealth Region Interview Committee for the Jefferson Scholars Foundation and the Community Engagement Committee for the Memorial to Enslaved Laborers at UVA. Mr. Banks is a community fellow of the International Residential College, as well as chair of the steering committee for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation’s "Charlottesville’s Finest and Brewer’s Ball."

Cecil and his wife Shannon have two sons, Edward and Aiden, and an extremely spoiled dog, Sabre.

The Annual Meeting was the last official meeting for three of our board members: Diana Foster, Liz Sargent, and Jørgen Vik. We owe each of these a great debt of gratitude.

Diana Foster has served 2 terms, 6 years, on the Board and is or has been our Secretary, chair of the Education Committee, instigator and leader of many projects that continue to reinvent the way we reach out to the public and our members. As a member of a group that began with rethinking entrance signage five or six years ago, Diana helped develop a Landscape Improvement Plan, which led to the Foundation partnering with Albemarle County on plans for the rehabilitation of the Farmhouse and assuming responsibility for future interpretation of the Farmhouse. There are so many educational programs and land management efforts she has either initiated or been involved in that they cannot be listed here. Diana also walks the land virtually every day and is a great steward in every way.

Liz Sargent has also served 2 terms, 6 years, is our outgoing Vice President and has been instrumental in bringing River View Farm, and especially the Farmhouse, into prominence. Like Diana, Liz was part of those who had that vision of a more welcoming and protected landscape. More recently, she, leading a team of energetic volunteers, wrote the nomination form for the Virginia Landmarks Register/National Register of Historic Places mentioned in the article above. This recognition and protection of the farm is of huge importance, especially in terms of future improvements, uses and fundraising. Liz, too, has been very successful in improving ICF's governance and vision, and in recruiting excellent volunteers and Board members by leading our Nominations Committee.

Jørgen Vik has devoted his 3-year term to very important aspects of our sustainability: our financial oversight and fundraising (aka development). With his skills honed in the financial world, he has worked with our Treasurer Phil, Sue, and the Financial Committee to recommend financial policies and oversight procedures that are needed in today's complex nonprofit financial world. Also, as chair of the Development Committee, Jørgen has helped guide more effective fundraising efforts, especially critical in this time of a pandemic economy.

New officers were also elected at the Annual Meeting. Our officers for 2020-21 are:

President: Lorna Werntz

Vice-President: Tom Wild

Treasurer: Phil Stokes

Secretary: Sarita Herman

We really appreciate their willingness to serve!