29/06/2024
Growth of the Board & the Sale of Sargent Center
Dear Friend,
If you are reading this, I can only assume that Sargent Center holds a special place in your heart. Whether you’ve attended camp, worked at the Center, or have spent time recreating on this beautiful property, I urge you to read on!
A key role for Friends of Sargent has always been to monitor changes to Sargent Center, knowing it was never truly secure. We now have the chance to facilitate a more secure outcome for both land conservation and outdoor education opportunities for future generations. Our organization recently learned that Sargent Center is up for sale. Boston University has listed the property as available to buyers for the purpose of land conservation and, hopefully, for educational purposes. The realtor has reached out to a number of organizations that may be interested in preserving its land.
Those interested parties have turned to Friends of Sargent for ideas about other organizations that might be interested in using the property for educational purposes. We are reaching out to YOU for help, guidance, and ideas! While the property is for sale, it has not been sold yet. This means there is still time to brainstorm and game plan how this special place and its legacy can be saved by you!
We are asking that if you know any camp programs, school programs, universities, nonprofit organizations, or individuals who are in sync with our mission of keeping this property used for outdoor experiential education to please reach out to the Friends of Sargent board of directors.
As the valuable alumni and supporters of the Sargent Center we value your thoughts and feedback as Friends of Sargent determines the next steps forward to preserve the legacy of this place we all love.
You can reach me at [email protected] or our board in general at [email protected] (Please do not reach out to Boston University directly.)
With your help and connections we can direct potential leads and future owners to the right people.
Concurrent with this news of Sargent’s impending sale, our board is growing! Right now is a pivotal time for Sargent Center and we have two new board members who are particularly qualified to serve as a brain trust for what could be coming down the pipeline.
I would like to welcome Marijean “MJ” Legnard Parry to the board and Kobe Biederman, Ph.D. back to the board.
MJ began working at Sargent in the fall of 1992. She expected to stay for one year and instead stayed for 15 years, serving as the School Program Director, Adventure Camp Director, and Associate Director. She led development of the summer Adventure Camp program. MJ also spearheaded the first American Camp Association accreditation of Sargent Camp and has continued to work in the summer camp field.
Kobe was Sargent Center Camp Director for ten years, from 2008 to 2018, and pivotal in creating the Friends of Sargent organization. He teaches in the Master of Education with an Emphasis in Environmental Education program at Prescott College and recently founded the Western Slope Institute to pioneer educational program designs for young adults that contribute to multi-scale regeneration in Southwest Colorado.
With urgency and optimism,
Matthew Allen, President
Friends of Sargent
[email protected]
[email protected]
