The People of the Land Trust: Lisa Gelfand

Lisa at Point Maria, part of Royal Gorge on Donner Summit.

With a love of the outdoors set at an early age – taking Greyhound buses from Long Island to Stowe Vermont to get out into nature – Lisa Gelfand spends as much time at her Donner Summit home as she can. A successful sustainable architect with an award-winning practice in San Francisco, her explorations on the summit and in the Land Trust’s Royal Gorge property led her to connect with staff looking for ways to help.

“My husband and I have been getting out into the woods for a decade for skiing, hiking and mountain biking. We have been noticing how much healthier the forest feels and discovered that it was Land Trust stewardship that was making the difference,” Gelfand said. “The Land Trust has exemplified both fine-grain care for the environment that manifests in the care of each land acquisition, but also a systemic approach to consolidating conservation ownership. That systemic approach amplifies the impact of each individual project, and each act of support.”

When Gelfand’s brother passed away unexpectedly, he left his estate to her with the directions to “do something good” with it. Lisa picked the work of the Land Trust because, “not only does it do something good now, but it will continue doing good in the future,” she said.

Beyond her generous gift, Gelfand has also volunteered with our Truckee Springs committee.

If you’re interested in supporting the Land Trust, click here.