Keith Laughlin at Flat Branch Park in Columbia, Mo.

Now More Than Ever

To paraphrase Charles Dickens, these are best of times and the worst of times for trail advocacy.

On the one hand, public support for building trail and greenway systems has never been stronger. Hundreds of communities around the country are eager to build more safe places to walk and bicycle, and we learn about promising new trail projects every day. But on the other hand, the United States is experiencing the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression.

How do we reconcile the growing demand for trail systems with the current financial crisis? At Rails-to-Trails Conservancy we have been even more careful than usual in our planning and spending. We are looking closely at which projects will give us the greatest return on investment now, and which will place us in the best position for greater momentum when the economy recovers.

At the same time, we recognize that some of our funders—foundation and corporate partners and individual donors—will need to reduce or even discontinue their giving in 2009. To meet our programmatic goals, we will need to rely more heavily on those of our contributors who are in a position to continue their support through this difficult time.

You have been there for us in the past, and we will need your support in the future more than ever. Because of you and our other 100,000 members and supporters, we now have more than 15,000 miles of rail-trail enjoyed by millions of Americans every year. With your continued loyalty, our future progress will be just as striking, and we will reach our goal of ensuring that 90 percent of Americans live within three miles of a trail system by 2020.

In 2009 I hope we can count on you to renew your membership and, if at all possible, even dig a little deeper. The trails movement is most powerful when it is supported from the ground up—and that strength comes from you, our members. Together, we can seize this opportunity to create a lasting legacy of trails and greenways connecting America's communities.

Happy Trails!

Keith Laughlin
President

Spring/Summer 2009