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From the President by Chris Powell

For man, autumn is a time of harvest, of gathering together.
For nature, it is a time of sowing, of scattering abroad.

—Edwin Way Teale

For the Committee for Green Foothills, Autumn is truly a time of harvest. Many of this year’s efforts have come to fruition, allowing us to protect and preserve our local resources, views and open space on the Peninsula and Coast.

We are now harvesting the coordinated work of new leadership, including President, Executive Director and Board Officers. I assumed the reigns as the new President after serving on the Board for the past 6 years, which I spent learning about the issues that are important to you. I am truly committed our mission of protecting the foothills, and will strive to continue the work of Wallace Stegner, Lois Crozier-Hogle and others. I live on the San Mateo Coast, where I directly view the results of CGF’s efforts as work progresses on the Devil’s Slide Tunnel. Preservation of our green spaces carries over into my work in public and congressional affairs with the Golden Gate National Recreation Area.

I am taking over the Presidency from Peter LaTourrette, who put his stamp on all facets of the organization during his years in office. He not only led the Board, but also was key to the success of our first Nature’s Inspirations fundraiser as well as serving as one of our web gurus! Peter will continue to serve on the Board while resuming his pastimes of bird watching and wildlife photography.

We are all very excited to welcome Holly Van Houten as our new Executive Director. Her expertise and reputation as a leader in the environmental community will move us forward to protect the last remaining open spaces on the foothills. She knows many of the nonprofit and governmental leaders on the Peninsula and in the San Jose/Santa Clara area through her last position as Executive Director of the Bay Area Ridge Trail and previously as a planner with the Rivers and Trails program for the National Park Service. If you haven’t had the pleasure to meet Holly yet, we hope you will do so at one of our upcoming events, trail walks or picnics.

New Board officers have begun working with Holly and me to carry out our mission. I’m happy to welcome a very competent, skilled team that has had years of CGF Board experience: Vice-President April Vargas; Secretary Sue LaTourrette and Treasurer Jeff Segall. I’d also like to introduce new board members Jennifer Hagan, Matt Burrows, Bill Whitmer, and Margalynne Armstrong, who come to us with many years of experience in open space issues and a variety of skills. I also welcome back past-president Mary Davey, who has agreed to serve another term on the Board.

We’re also harvesting the efforts our knowledgeable and hard-working advocates, Lennie Roberts and Brian Schmidt. With your support and assistance, they have been working on many important issues, which you can read about on the following pages. As we move forward this coming year, we need and want to hear from you. Please don’t hesitate to call or email us with your thoughts or ideas. We can only reap our harvest by all working together to establish and maintain land use policies that protect the environment throughout San Mateo and Santa Clara Counties.

Published October 2006 in Green Footnotes.

Page last updated September 13, 2010.