Forever Grateful

From Tim Glidden, Maine Coast Heritage Trust president

“Those who contemplate the beauty of the earth find reserves of strength that will endure as long as life lasts.”
— Rachel Carson

When I left State service to join Maine Coast Heritage Trust in 2011, I didn’t know the coast like I do now. This job drew me in and drew out of me things I didn’t know I cared about. There is an intimacy in the relationship between land and sea that is incredibly powerful. We respond to it instantly. We want to share in that relationship, and we are willing to work hard to sustain and protect it.

Over the ten years I’ve served as President of Maine Coast Heritage Trust, I’ve developed wonderful relationships with so many of you and, even with those I’ve not had the privilege to meet in person, I feel the strong connection that comes from a shared passion for the common cause of protecting Maine’s incredible coast. MCHT is a place where, for more than 50 years, people have come together for the coast, to accomplish so much more than any of us could individually.

We’ve accomplished a great deal together over the past ten years. The mark of a truly great organization is one that can do well in the most challenging times. Most recently, this organization powered through the Great Recession, an onslaught of anti-conservation vitriol, and a global pandemic. We had a successful Campaign to raise over $130 million for the Maine coast and forged ahead with record levels of achievement and deep investment in community-centered conservation.

Working at MCHT has given me an appreciation for the rich range of views you all have shared on the importance of our work. I have learned with every visit and every meeting, something new and important about conservation and the land and its unique ability to inspire and nourish. Your stories enlightened me and, taken together, pointed the way to MCHT’s success.

There are certain qualities that are part of MCHT’s DNA, qualities that I’m confident will remain intact as this organization continues to grow and evolve—and, soon, under new leadership.

At MCHT, we are patient. We learn. We take our time to get it right. Rachel Carson, who knew the Maine coast intimately, famously wrote: “Those who contemplate the beauty of the earth find reserves of strength that will endure as long as life lasts.”

This job gave me that chance to stand at the edge of sea and learn the truth of which she spoke. And I will be forever grateful for that.