Rockfall Awards Dinner May 6th

The Rockfall Foundation to Honor Four County Environmentalists at 75^th Anniversary Celebration

The Rockfall Foundation will recognize the outstanding volunteer service of four Middlesex County residents at its 75^th Anniversary dinner celebration, “75 Years Green.. and Growing,” to benefit the Green Grants Program on May 6^th at the RiverHouse at Goodspeed Station in Haddam. Katchen Coley, Raul de Brigard, Jeanne C. Dilworth and Tom ODell will each receive a special Rockfall 75^th Anniversary President’s Award for life-long dedication and exceptional contributions to the natural environment.

“These remarkable individuals are well known to many of us not just in the county but statewide for their creative, sustained and effective efforts,” according to Rockfall President Brian McCarthy. “They have given selflessly over the years to help protect our natural heritage while personally urging us to be involved and committed in our towns and neighborhoods.”

Katchen Coley, local and state-wide environmental advocate and catalyst for open space preservation, has served for more than 20 years on the Middletown Conservation Commission, where she has helped establish open space protection for more than 15,000 acres of land. She has been recognized for her service on the Conservation Commission of the Middletown Garden Club by the Garden Club of America. She has served on the Long Hill Estate Parkland Committee in Middletown, has been an active member of the Connecticut River Watershed Council, and an effective advocate for preservation of the Maromas section of Middletown. At the state level, Coley currently serves on the Steering Committee for the CT Land Conservation Council, a state-wide coalition of land trusts and other conservation organizations dedicated to preserving open spaces throughout the state.

Raul de Brigard, of Higganum, will be honored for his contributions to land conservation and river protection. He has served on the Boards of many conservation organizations, including the CT River Watershed Council, Trust for Public Land, the CT River Assembly and the CT River Gateway Commission. De Brigard is currently on the Steering Committee for the CT Yankee Conservation Project, which is working to have up to 500 acres of the site of a recently decommissioned nuclear power plant placed into conservation.

Portland resident Jeanne C. Dilworth will be recognized for her leadership in development, preservation and revitalization of the Brownstone Quarries and the Town of Portland. A founding member of the non-profit Brownstone Quorum, she played a major role as President in establishing the Portland Brownstone Quarries as a National Historic Landmark and as a park linking Portland’s downtown to the Connecticut River. She served as Chair of Portland’s Brownstone Festival, Vice-Chair of Portland’s Ethics Commission, and Portland’s representative on the Connecticut River Assembly.

Tom O'Dell of Westbrook will be honored for his leadership in environmental protection and education in both Westbrook and throughout the county. He is founding president of the CT Association of Conservation and Inland Wetland Commissions and has been chairman of the Westbrook Conservation Commission since 1972. ODell is currently chairman of the CT River Coastal Conservation District and represents this organization on several organization Boards, including the CT Land Conservation Council.

”Friends, family and colleagues can express their appreciation while raising funds to help support and grow Rockfall’s annual Green Grants Program,” says foundation Executive Director Virginia Rollefson. The Rockfall Foundation’s environmental education and planning grants to organizations and towns have been helping to green and grow Middlesex County since 1972. “This event marks the beginning of a multi-year campaign to raise awareness and support for the grants.”

75 Years Green…and Growing, a Celebration to Grow Our Grants cocktail hour and dinner buffet, will begin at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, May 6 at the Riverhouse at Goodspeed Landing in Haddam. Tickets are $75 each. Corporate and table sponsorships for ten guests per table are $750. Additional Patrons’ donations are being accepted in honor of the four award recipients, as well as donations from those who wish to support the evening but are unable to attend.

Reservations and as well as Patrons’ donations can be made anytime before April 29. Details are available on the News and Events page of Rockfall’s website www.rockfallfoundation.org. You can also call the office from 8:30 am to 2:30 pm; or email Claire Rusowicz, crusowicz@rockfallfoundation.org.

The Rockfall Foundation supports environmental education, conservation and planning initiatives in Middlesex County. Founded 75 years ago by Middletown philanthropist Colonel Clarence S. Wadsworth, Rockfall is named after the falls in Wadsworth Falls State Park. In addition to its grants program, the foundation sponsors educational symposia, and preserves and manages open space property, and maintains and operates its headquarters – the historic deKoven House at the foot of Washington Street - as a community center with meeting rooms and office space for locally-based environmental groups.

Contact: Virginia R. Rollefson, Executive Director, The Rockfall Foundation

(860)340--0340; vrr@rockfallfoundation.org