D&R Greenway Land Trust will hold its traditional spring fundraiser as a “Virtual Gala” with a participatory afterparty on Saturday, May 9 starting at 5:30 p.m.
Princeton TV will broadcast a pre-recorded awards ceremony and tribute videos. The celebration will honor land preservation accomplishments of former Princeton mayor Phyllis Marchand and businessman John Rassweiler, co-winners of the Donald B. Jones Conservation Award.
“While it is not safe to gather physically, we will meet electronically to celebrate these two impressive pillars of the Princeton community,” says D&R Greenway president and CEO Linda Mead in a media release. “Both have contributed mightily to preserving New Jersey land: former Princeton Mayor Phyllis Marchand and John Rassweiler, who served longer than anyone else on D&R Greenway Land Trust’s Board of Trustees.”
Also winning a community service award will be the family and friends of the late Michael “Iron Mike” Snyder, for whom a new trail off Rosedale Road was built.
Virtual partygoers who support the gala will be able to connect with the honorees via Zoom, and sponsors will also be acknowledged in the film credits.
D&R Greenways says that funds raised from the event will be used, in part, to build two new habitats on D&R Greenway preserved lands. “Marchand Meadows” will be created on the footprint of the former St. Michael’s Orphanage in Hopewell, now on the St. Michaels Farm Preserve. It will be a pollinator meadow for songbirds, bees and butterflies full of blackeyed Susan, butterfly milkweed, little bluestem and other native wildflowers.
In addition, the Rassweiler Restoration Forest will fill in a major gap in the Sourland Mountain Ecosystem with a new planting of native black cherry, chestnut oak, flowering dogwood and persimmon to support neotropical migratory birds.
Honoree Phyllis Marchand served 23 years as an elected official in Princeton Township, including 12 years as mayor, before retiring in 2009.⯠She became involved with D&R Greenway when we preserved land in her community, namely Greenway Meadows and Coventry Farm.
She joined the D&R Greenway Board of Trustees in 2010 and served as chair from 2016 until she retired from the board in 2019.⯠An ardent advocate for preservation of open space and the environment, Marchand was appointed by the legislature and governor to the Delaware and Raritan Canal Commission.
An avid runner, Marchand has completed 18 marathons in New York, Boston and Philadelphia.
“I care about D&R Greenway because I care about the legacy I will leave to my grandchildren and to all future generations…take care of each other, take care of our planet and enjoy ‘Land for Life!’” Marchand said.
Honoree John Rassweiler is a long-time supporter of D&R Greenway, having served more than two decades, longer than any other board member.â¯Rassweiler was with American Cyanamid and Johnson & Johnson before founding his own company in 1982 and retiring in 1995.
He holds a bachelor’s degree from Amherst College and a doctorate degree from the University of Illinois. He has held leadership roles on many local boards including the Princeton Public Library Foundation, the Friends of the Institute of Advanced Study and the Friends of the Princeton University Arts Museum.â¯He owns and manages a registered tree farm in Vermont.
Rassweiler has donated time and money to the local land trust for many years. “D&R Greenway is one of my lead charities because its objectives have been consistent and are ones I strongly support.⯠Its organization and execution always have been at a high professional level,” Rassweiler said.
A special community conservation award is also being given to the friends and family of Michael Snyder, who embarked on a successful journey to envision, fund and build the new “Iron Mike Trail,” accessible from Rosedale Road and a favorite among dog-walkers like the Snyder Family.
More than 200 donors and a new wave of 40 young adult volunteers joined together to plant more than 200 native trees, shrubs and perennials.
To learn how you can participate in the May 9 event, or about the land trust and its many local preserves, visit the D&R Greenway website.
John Rassweiler and Phyllis Marchand will be honored at the D&R Greenway’s virtual gala on Saturday, May 9.,
