Sisters of Charity of Cincinnati Gift 73 Acres to Western Wildlife Corridor
(From left) Sister Patricia Hayden, Sisters of Charity president, and Jeff Ginter, president of the Western Wildlife Corridor Board of Trustees, sign the official paperwork to transfer 73 acres of property from the Sisters of Charity of Cincinnati to the Western Wildlife Corridor, Inc.
The Sisters of Charity of Cincinnati are pleased to announce the gifting of 73 acres of the Bender Mountain Nature Preserve (located west of the Mount St. Joseph Motherhouse property) to the Western Wildlife Corridor, Inc., a Cincinnati-based nonprofit nature conservancy land trust. It is the single largest gift received by the organization in its history.
“The Sisters of Charity are delighted that Western Wildlife Corridor has accepted this gift and agreed to ensure that this special property will remain undeveloped and available for people and wildlife to enjoy into the future,” said Sister of Charity Joanne Burrows, who is a member of the SC Leadership Team and has been working with the organization throughout the process. “Their generosity ensures that a valuable wildlife throughway from the Mill Creek to the Indiana border remains unimpeded. The gift flows from the Sisters of Charity mission to care for all creation and reflects our ongoing commitment to live into the challenges articulated by Pope Francis in Laudato Si. Western Wildlife Corridor has been a wonderful neighbor and we are confident that they will love and protect the land as we have.”
The Sisters of Charity have been walking with Western Wildlife Corridor (WWC) since the 1990s. Western Wildlife Corridor, Inc. is a nonprofit, tax-exempt charitable organization under Section 501(c)(3) of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code. Founded in 1992, and accredited by the Land Trust Accreditation Commission, the mission of Western Wildlife Corridor is to protect, restore and preserve natural habitat, and provide education to foster connections with nature. WWC is focused on the west side of Cincinnati and with this land donation manages nearly 400 acres of nature preserves, mainly forested hillsides, of the Ohio River Valley. Bender Mountain Nature Preserve is the biggest nature preserve WWC manages, and with this donation, the Bender preserve now exceeds more than 130 acres of protected habitat.
“We are so very grateful to the Sisters of Charity of Cincinnati. Their remarkable stewardship of this property extends back to the mid-19th century,” says Jeff Ginter, president of the WWC Board of Trustees. “Now well into the 21st century, we can say with confidence that this beautiful, undeveloped land will remain permanently protected. The mission statement of the Sisters of Charity includes the lovely phrase ‘to care for all creation.’ Permanently protecting this property certainly honors that and is an incredible legacy.”
To learn more about the Western Wildlife Corridor, Inc., visit the organization’s website at www.westernwildlifecorridor.org.