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Conservation Foundation of the Gulf Coast Celebrates Its 10th Anniversary

Sarasota's Conservation of the Gulf Coast celebrates its 10th anniversary with a celebration at black-and-white photographer Clyde Butcher's Venice studio.

By Megan McDonald September 2, 2013

Butcher3 ngdap5 — Casey Key Rainbow, courtesy of Clyde Butcher, ©2011. Acquired in 2005, this beachfront property provides critical nesting habitat for loggerhead sea turtles.

Since it was formed in 2003 to protect the character and beauty of the region’s bays, beaches, barrier islands and watersheds, Conservation Foundation of the Gulf Coast, one of only four accredited land trusts in Florida, has acquired 31 different properties comprising nearly 8,600 acres. The properties range from private homesteads to vast, scenic tracts the public can explore. From the beginning, legendary landscape photographer Clyde Butcher has been a passionate supporter, says president Christine P. Johnson, and he has photographed a number of the foundation’s properties, including those shown on these pages, to help in promoting its mission.

On Nov. 8 and 9, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., the public is invited to an open house to see those and other Clyde Butcher images. It’s at the Clyde Butcher Venice Gallery & Studio, 237 Warfield Ave. S., Venice. To learn more about the event or to join or support the foundation go to conservationfoundation.com.

Butcher2 n6xiyn — Pine Island Preserve at Matlacha Pass, courtesy of Clyde Butcher ©2011. The foundation purchased this 230-acre property with four distinct environmental habitats in 2009; it’s now creating a park and outdoor recreation resource area that will be open to the public in two years.

Butcher1 ec8idv — Bay Preserve at Osprey, courtesy of Clyde Butcher, ©2004. Acquired in 2004, the four-and-a-half acre Bay Preserve, site of a 1931 Greek Revival mansion, is now the headquarters of the foundation, home base for Sarasota Crew, and can be rented for weddings and corporate events.

Click here to read our 2013-2014 giving register.

Clyde Butcher, Casey Key, Bay Preserve, Conservation Foundation of the Gulf Coast, Osprey, Pine Island

Sarasota Magazine

Conservation Foundation of the Gulf Coast Celebrates Its 10th Anniversary

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