Jack White (right) and Carly Sherman (left) of Westport, Massachusetts share your dedication to caring for the environment.
What has been your favorite part of the BayCoast Bank Outreach and Stewardship Summer Internship?
My favorite part has been visiting new and beautiful parts of Westport that I never knew existed. Despite having spent every summer of my life in Westport, I had never known about places like the Herb Hadfield area, or Dunham’s brook, both of which I plan to visit for years to come.
My favorite part of the BayCoast Bank Outreach and Stewardship Summer Internship has been the chance to make a positive impact on my community. I have enjoyed the landscape in Westport my whole life, and I’m thankful to have even a small part in keeping that land beautiful.
What is the most important thing you’ve learned/gained from this internship program?
This internship program has granted me an appreciation for my town that I didn’t previously have. Working for the land trust has allowed me to see how much planning, consideration, and hard work goes into maintaining the public trails and properties around town.
I don’t honestly know if I can isolate the most important thing I’ve learned. Coming in with little to no knowledge of the intricacies of farming and/or land stewardship, I have learned an unbelievable amount about both. This information has come through a combination of spoken word from Brendan, Ross, Carly, and plenty of others, as well as from hard lessons, that I have learned on a daily basis through my work with the land trust.
Why is it important to support your local land trust?
It’s important to support your local land trust not only because they work hard to conserve land in town, but because they preserve the history of the town as an agricultural community. The WLCT extends beyond just its employees, and has a network of volunteers who recognize their responsibility to act as stewards to land in Westport, ensuring that this land will continue to be well-maintained for years to come.
Supporting your local land trust is important for far more reasons than many people think. Apart from preserving and maintaining already protected land, the land trust works with local residents and officials to ensure that more and more land is protected from degradation. As someone who has always enjoyed swimming in the Westport river, these efforts are particularly important, as they directly help prevent further pollution and biodiversity loss in the river, as well as in other ecosystems throughout Westport.
The Westport Land Conservation Trust, Inc. Outreach and Stewardship Summer Internship Program is made possible, in part, by our friends and sponsors at BayCoast Bank. A community bank serving Massachusetts and Rhode Island, BayCoast provides personal and business banking services, insurance and investments.