Acquire · Enrich · Preserve · Educate
The Westmoreland Sanctuary is a 669-acre nature preserve located between I-684 and Bedford Road, off Chestnut Ridge Road in Bedford.
In 1957, Helen Clay Frick, the daughter of the steel magnate Henry Clay Frick, dedicated 306 acres of her estate to create Westmoreland. She established the open space preserve with the direction to “Acquire, Enrich, Preserve, and Educate,” the requirement that Westmoreland be maintained “for the free use and enjoyment of the public,” and the mission of inspiring a deeper care for the environment through experience and education.
“What sets The Westmoreland Sanctuary apart is not just the outstanding ecodiversity and raw natural beauty of our vast property, it’s also how we’re utilizing the preserve to provide education for the public. We’ve been growing steadily and now have over 11,000 kids, adults, and seniors visiting Westmoreland each year!” declares Ann Paul, Westmoreland’s long-time Executive Director.
“Our property is extensive and is used as the cornerstone for teaching conservation,” Ann explains. “Steve Ricker, who’s been with Westmoreland for more than thirty years, is our Director of Conservation, and manages the other educators on our staff. Back in the early ’70s, Westmoreland was a pioneer in the region in introducing environmental education through bringing school classes for field trips. We’ve worked hard to train our teachers in New York State’s Next Generation Science Standards and to maintain an accredited curriculum. We host K through 12 school classes from every local town in addition to parts of New York City and the Bronx and have a robust high school and college internship program that provides academic credit. As part of our adult programming we provide nature walks and bird watching and banding and floral design. We have pre-K programming, a summer camp, orienteering meets, trail races, and even some outdoor summer theater. …And Westmoreland is a fantastic place to just come for a walk! We have rare specimens of American Elm trees and Goldenseal flowers, and a tremendous variety of birds, and seven separate ‘habitat islands’ to observe those distinct biodiverse ecosystems! …The Preserve is open to the public, 7 days a week all year long, dawn ’til dusk, and it’s free!”
“I invite everyone to come over, put your phone away, get outside, have a great time, learn something, and find some joy!”
“I grew up on Bayberry Lane and used to play in the adjacent woods and fields that have since become a part of Westmoreland,” Ann explains. “I met Helen Clay Frick and was friends with her grand niece and great grandniece, Helen Clay, and my dad was President for three years and helped to run Westmoreland. In 1973, the organization purchased a meetinghouse church that had been built in 1780, and re-erected it at Westmoreland, and it now serves as our Museum, open 9 to 5 every day for free. In 2001 Helen Clay asked me to join the Board of Directors and in 2016 the Board asked me to become the full-time Executive Director. I’d worked in Trusts and Estates at Chemical and then JP Morgan, and so besides my very personal love for the Westmoreland property and mission, I had experience in the kind of fiduciary and organizational management that Westmoreland needed.
“We’re now organized not just as a 501(c)(3), but as a ‘public charity’ rather than a ‘foundation’. We continue with acquisition to expand Westmoreland’s acreage, having most recently completed the acquisition of a key 28.8-acre parcel, including the highest point in Bedford at 815 feet above sea level, and allowing for the addition of almost a mile of new trails, called ‘Raptor Ridge’. And in Summer 2024 we opened the Environmental Education Center to facilitate growth in school visits and other programming. Among other things, the EEC showcases education-driven examples of geothermal technology, rain gardens, and greenhouses.”
“Of course, we can always use additional funding,” Ann implores. “We’re not a park, and aside from a relatively small amount of grant funding we’re awarded from New York State, we receive no public funding. We rely heavily on private donations!”
“I’m proud of how we’re living up to Helen Clay Frick’s original direction and purpose! The Westmoreland Preserve is a tremendous educational resource, with no barrier to entry!” Ann declares. “I invite everyone to come over, put your phone away, get outside, have a great time, learn something, and find some joy!”