Staff Spotlight: Sarah Wolpow

Occasionally, we ask a staff member to share a bit about themselves and what they do each day at BTLT. We hope that this gives our readers some insight into the great people that are involved with the organization, as well as all the work that goes into strengthening our community through conservation.

Sarah Walpow is a part time, seasonal staff person, helping with administrative tasks.

Sarah writes, “I have a garden design & install business, which keeps me busy March through November.  Come December I’m always on the lookout for jobs to fill in the dark, snowy months.  The first place I call every winter is the Brunswick-Topsham Land Trust.  Of course I love that they protect many of the special places in our neighborhoods, but I especially love their commitment to building community and encouraging engagement with the natural world.

“This winter I had a stroke of luck because I called just two weeks after the land trust’s Development Assistant had given notice, and just as the busy end-of-year fundraising season was ramping up.  And ramp up it did!

“My first few months I did nothing but help enter data and generate thank you letters for the flood of donations.  Among other types of gifts, I processed community garden plot payments, memorial gifts, grant awards, and piles of membership renewals.  Each donation has a different processing protocol, depending on its purpose, how it was paid (cash, check, stock, paypal, etc), and its size (our pals at the IRS ask for more copying & filing for larger donations).  Coding all this correctly in the database turned out to be a far bigger job than I’d anticipated.  Nevertheless, it was gratifying to go into work and spend the day immersed in this generous outpouring of support from our community.

“It has been great fun working with the dedicated folks at the Land Trust, and seeing firsthand the incredible amount of work that goes into keeping things running smoothly.  I will soon be winding down my time with them, but I hope they hold a spot for me next winter!  Oh, and, if you happened to get a thank you letter that was printed up-side-down, with donut crumbs on it, I had nothing to do with it.”