The following is an unedited report from Chris Evers of Animal Embassy. Chris has worked with the Access Nature programs as one of our naturalists, for several years now, helping people with various disabilities gain the benefits of nature.

”Today was a magical day at Muscoot Farm. Thanks to the Lewisboro Land Trust, and their Access Nature initiative, I had the pleasure of leading my second hike for the Westchester Jewish Community Services' Sunshine Social Club. 
Many of the participants deal with the challenges of depression, anxiety, self doubt and isolation. The smiles on their faces were priceless. I look forward to seeing them all again soon.
A great big thank you to Bonnie Robbins, and the rest of the great folks at Lewisboro Land Trust, for their vision, and dedication to the preservation of open space, and as their tagline states: "linking people to the land". 
We all have our challenges and struggles in life; nature can be an amazing elixir. Get outside:)”

And Steve, a Sunshine Club participant, summed it all up towards the end of the program: “I feel very amazing. The animals, the surrounding, being in nature...I feel very amazing!”

Dear Access Nature,

I am the director of the Fellowship Program for Pathways Inc. in Greenwich, CT.  We serve adults with various levels of mental health concerns.  Over the past two years, we have been invited to participate in several programs run by Access Nature.  Our clients are constantly talking about how much they enjoyed each of these adventures and are looking forward to the next outing.  The programs are nice healthy walks/hikes in beautiful settings followed by a picnic lunch.   The benefits of these programs are endless and everlasting.

It is a pleasure working with Bonnie and Deanna setting up these programs.  They understand our needs and limitations and are very flexible with scheduling dates that fit best into our calendar.   Their Naturalist, Chris Evers, is fantastic.   His compassion, knowledge and style is perfect for our group.   We even had 28 people participate in a recent outing Access Nature provided and that is the largest group we have had for any outing.  

I cannot speak highly enough of how wonderful the program is, how fabulous the people involved are and mostly, how much it benefits the people we serve.  I guarantee any group that has the opportunity to participate in one of these programs that they will be very happy they did. 

Sincerely,

 Ron Kalban

Fellowship Program Director

150 DISABLED PEOPLE WILL GAIN THE BENEFITS OF NATURE THIS FALL. NEW RESEARCH SHOWS THAT EVEN 20 MINUTES IN A NATURAL SETTING REDUCES STRESS HORMONES

This Autumn we will reach out to our seven partner organizations and create safe enjoyable nature experiences for their clientele. Peoples with intellectual challenges, brain injuries, autism, chronic mental illness, visually impairment, and developmental disabilities will enjoy our naturalist led outdoor programs.

Our followup questionnaire, created this year, is clearly showing that those who partake in our programs experience a decrease in  depression, anxiety and stress. They feel better about themselves, are more calm and have better cognitive function following the outdoor program.

We will turn our focus to supporting the organizations to become self sufficient with the nature experience. Imparting knowledge and confidence, we will work closely with each group to support them to enjoy natural settings on their own. Our goal- a 20 minute walk in a park or preserve three times a week...for maximum Benefits.

THANK YOU FOR HELPING TO MAKE THIS A REALITY. SUCH A SIMPLE, BUT POWERFUL LIFETIME TOOL, FOR THOSE WHO NEED IT MOST.

IF YOU HAVENT ALREADY MADE A DONATION, PLEASE DO SO TODAY, SO WE CAN CONTINUE OUR WORK.

The Lewisboro Land Trust Access Nature Committee:

Bobbe Stultz

Deanna Novak

Dr. Andrea Synder

Bairbre Hanson

Professor Regina Toolin

Krista Munger

Bonnie Robins