Press Release
For immediate Release (3-20-16)
Contact: Jim Dow or Chrissy Allen, Blue Hill Heritage Trust, 374-5118
Dow to Step Down as Land Trust Head
Jim Dow will be leaving his position as Executive Director of Blue Hill Heritage Trust at the end of 2016, after more than 15 years as head of the local land trust serving the Blue Hill Peninsula.
Dow was selected as the Trust’s first Executive Director in 2001 following a nationwide search. He had previously served on the Trust’s Board of Directors for seven years after moving to Blue Hill in 1993.
Dow came to the Trust from The Nature Conservancy’s Maine Chapter, where he was a senior staff member for 13 years. Previously he had served as a staff attorney at the Natural Resources Council of Maine and as an attorney with a small law firm in Belfast, where he was born and raised.
“Although I will be 66 years old this year, I am not thinking of this as retirement”, said Dow. “It is just a good time for a change, for me and for the Trust. Our organization is in great shape, and I am still in decent shape myself. Change can be good.”
Under Dow’s leadership, the Trust has developed into a successful and valued community institution that is also one of the most respected local land trusts in Maine. The Trust has worked with willing landowners to conserve over 7200 acres of land throughout the Blue Hill Peninsula, has over 25 miles of public walking trails and offers an annual series of outdoor educational programming for people of all ages. In 2013 it became nationally accredited and in 2014 it absorbed the operations of the neighboring land trust based in Castine.
“It has been an enjoyable and intrinsically rewarding 15 years”, said Dow. “I am very proud of what we have accomplished with the help of many, many fine people. Our remarkable landscape plays a central role in the quality of life here as well as in our local economy. It is gratifying to know that the product of my work will endure for the long-term benefit of our community. I am sure that the Trust’s good work will continue. There is more to be done.”
Dow plans to remain in Blue Hill. ‘”I am not going anywhere, at least not for long. This is my home. I look forward to enjoying the Trust’s trails without having to worry about their care. I just might spend some time with my friend Pete Clapp out cutting wood, and there always seems be a grade school basketball team that needs a coach.”
The Trust’s Board of Director has commenced a search for the next Executive Director. The job description can be found on the Trust’s website at www.bluehillheritagetrust.org/employment