Little Creek Farm Conservancy

About The Conservancy

History

The Conservancy was formed in May 2004 to organize boarders at the barn to participate in developing programs and events that invited citizens of DeKalb County come enjoy Little Creek. These programs were presented to DeKalb County as it considered the purchase of the Little Creek Farm property. This initiative formed the basis for The Conservancy’s partnership with DeKalb County in 2005.

Since then the Conservancy has expanded to include citizens who do not ride or board horses at Little Creek Farm but value, as we do, the place the farm has in the community. Many more citizens are now visiting and enjoying Little Creek than ever before. They receive the benefits of interaction with horses and enjoy the beautiful green space that is Little Creek.

For the history of Little Creek Farm follow the link to the Conservancy brochure.

Meetings 2nd Saturday of the month at 10am in the Little Creek barn lounge. Please check the website for information on the meeting for the current month.

Goals:

Funding for a new outdoor arena at Little Creek and partnering with DeKalb County on this important project.

Continue to develop new projects for the public enjoyment of the Farm as well as nurture all existing public programs.

Continue to sponsor equine education and safety programs for boarders and others in the local equine community.

Accomplishments:

Partnering with DeKalb County, the Conservancy provides support to management for maintenance of the pastures at Little Creek. The Conservancy also assists with maintenance of the arenas, and routinely provides landscaping through special events. The Conservancy annually places Fly Predators in the pastures to control flies that cause diseases in horses. Through outreach The Conservancy provides community programs and field trips for children, seniors and special needs groups. The Conservancy also supports Stride Ahead in their Equine Assisted Therapy programs for adults and children.

Major Projects: Renovation of the Indoor Arena

We are so very happy to announce that our indoor arena renovation is complete and it has received rave reviews by all. Our total cost ended up being $49,000. It was a community effort and we had so many contribute to this massive project. President, Leslie Davis, and co-president, Donna Sayers, as well as the officers and chairs of LCFC put in unimaginable amounts of time to this project as did our barn manager and staff, Joe Magnusson and the Zavala family. We are also very thankful to our liaisons at Dekalb County who have gone to great lengths to ensure that this arena will be maintained and watched over properly. Furthermore, we had several members of LCFC who were extremely generous in donating their time to this project such as Diana Getz who headed the Capital Campaign and Nancy Woodley who assisted with research on the arena. Lastly, we were lucky enough to have worked with some wonderful arena and supply professionals including our contractor, Donnie Adamson of Adamson Grading, Inc., arena consultant Brian McNeil of E=mcEquestrian and lumber supplier, Cofer Bros.

The project, however, could not have happened if we did not have the funding! Thank you to each and every one of you who donated to the campaign. Many people made direct contributions to the Capital Campaign. This truly was a long-term community effort however, as funds for this project not only came from our Capital Campaign but from many, many fundraising events. Thus, if you ever attended an LCFC event, volunteered or donated to an event, you too have played a part in making this arena happen! Perhaps no one played a bigger part in accumulating the initial funds for this arena than our former LCFC president and chair of fundraising, Wendy Bowen who has created and run countless fundraising events prior to this past spring when she passed the torch on to the current chair of fundraising, Liz Gleim. So thanks goes to everyone---every current and former LCFC president, chair or officer, every LCFC volunteer, every LCFC donator and every LCFC member! As a community, we can accomplish great things!

Volunteerism:

The Conservancy provides many volunteer opportunities at Little Creek for its members and the public.

At the farm individuals and groups can volunteer for Special Events which include: Fall Festival, Pony Rides, Clean-Up Days, Horse Shows, and Conservancy-sponsored seminars. Many members also volunteer their services for Stride Ahead.

Individuals and groups help with special projects in areas that need maintenance, especially work with invasive plants and clearance of pathways and the Creek.

Officers and Committee Chairs: