Membership
What is an LTC member? You can be with any donation of $1 or more annually! Your tax-deductible donation makes possible the protection of sensitive lands, the caretaking of more than 100 miles of trails, and environmental education programs for all ages.
We receive no government funding to preserve the land we all love forever.
In return for your generous gift, you receive:
- a copy of the Featured Nature Preserve Guide;
- up to 15 free summer programs;
- first notification of free community field trips;
- quarterly newsletters and annual reports.
By joining us, you become part of a community that treasures northern Michigan and is committed to ensuring the land will be here for future generations to enjoy. Your contribution, no matter the size, is a significant step towards this shared goal.
Want to donate via check? Please mail your gift to Little Traverse Conservancy at 3264 Powell Road, Harbor Springs, MI 49740.
Want to Learn More? Please Contact:
Emily Hughes
Chief Development Officer
Current Projects
Little Traverse Conservancy is working on several exciting land protection and stewardship projects throughout our five-county service area. Click below to explore current and recently completed projects
Want to donate via check? Please mail your gift to Little Traverse Conservancy at 3264 Powell Road, Harbor Springs, MI 49740. Please please include a note of which project you would like to contribute to.
Want to Learn More? Please Contact:
Emily Hughes
Chief Development Officer
Memorial & HONORARy Gifts
Remember or honor someone you care about while protecting land in northern Michigan through an honorarium or memorial gift. Your gift will help protect the North Country you love and inspire the next generation of land stewards.
The honoree or their family will be notified of your gift, and we will also send you an acknowledgment of the donation for your tax records. All honorariums and memorials will be listed in our quarterly newsletters unless indicated as anonymous.
If you prefer to donate via check, please mail your gift to Little Traverse Conservancy at 3264 Powell Road, Harbor Springs, MI 49740. Please include a note of who you would like to honor or remember and who we should notify of your gift.
Suggested Obituary Language
Little Traverse Conservancy recommends the following language for obituaries:
The family of [Name of Deceased] requests donations be made to Little Traverse Conservancy. Checks payable to “Little Traverse Conservancy” and mail to Little Traverse Conservancy, 3264 Powell Road, Harbor Springs, MI 49740. Please indicate “In memory of [Name of Deceased]” on the gift. www.landtrust.org to learn more or give online.
Want to Learn More? Please Contact:
Emily Hughes
Chief Development Officer
Endowment
Living Legacy
Little Traverse Conservancy has been focused on protecting northern Michigan’s natural diversity and beauty for more than 50 years, and it will continue that mission for the next century and beyond, with your help. That is why gifts of endowed funds are so important. Our endowment supports land protection, stewardship, and education today and far into the future. With each new land project or conservation easement accepted, the Conservancy is responsible for stewarding these places…forever.
An endowment is a perpetual fund established to benefit Little Traverse Conservancy. Rather than using a gift immediately, the Conservancy invests these funds. Each year, a portion of the investment earnings is used to support the program or area designated by the endowment donor, and the remaining income is reinvested. The original gift—the principal—remains intact and continues earning interest. This ensures that the endowment and your contribution will continue to make a difference for the Conservancy forever.
Endowments may be established in a donor’s name or honor a family member or loved one. The fund will bear the name designated in perpetuity, creating a lasting legacy.
Little Traverse Conservancy gratefully holds the following named endowment funds:
- Andreae-Brown Family Environmental Education Endowment Fund
- Conservation Easement Endowment Fund
- Delia Fritz Endowment for Accessibility
- Jerry and Eileen Fhaner Endowment
- Joan R. and Charles M. Taylor II Memorial Endowment Fund
- Les Cheneaux Endowment Fund
- Liesel Litzenburger Meijer Endowment
- Martha and Michael Cameron Endowment Fund
- Patricia and Thomas Jeffs Family Fund
- Roney Family Endowment
- Sowing the Seeds Education Endowment
- Stewardship Endowment Fund
- Vermilion Endowment Fund
Want to Learn More? Please Contact:
Emily Hughes
Chief Development Officer
Gift Planning
You may choose to live in northern Michigan or spend time here because the land inspires you. Maybe you feel connected to the land through family memories, a hiking trail, a pristine stretch of river, or your favorite stretch of shoreline.
As you reflect on the past and envision the future, you might consider how you can play a significant role in preserving northern Michigan’s unique essence—its matchless lakes, undulating hardwoods, picturesque highways, and blue-ribbon trout streams.
Planned gifts take many forms and are the result of careful planning and an intention to make a lasting gift. These could include bequests made in a will, naming the Little Traverse Conservancy as a life insurance beneficiary, or using tax-wise giving options such as charitable gift annuities or remainder trusts.
Conservancy supporters who have made planned gifts have had an extraordinary impact on our work. Proceeds from planned gifts fund our endowment, ensuring our continued long term success and stability. Planned gifts help ensure that the Little Traverse Conservancy is stable and equipped to steward our many nature preserves, monitor our perpetual conservation easements, and continue to preserve significant natural and scenic lands in northern Michigan.
Want to Learn More? Please Contact:
Emily Hughes
Chief Development Officer
Charitable Gift Annuities
Through a charitable gift annuity, you can support Little Traverse Conservancy’s mission and be assured of a dependable stream of income in retirement.
A charitable gift annuity (CGA) is a contract that pays a set percentage semi-annually, tailored to the donor’s age and gift amount. Thanks to a provision in the SECURE 2.0 Act, individuals ages 70½ and older can make a once-in-a-lifetime distribution ($53,000 as of 2024) directly from their IRA to one or more CGAs, which will be treated as a qualified charitable distribution (QCD). This IRA distribution can also count towards your required minimum distribution (RMD).
How does a charitable gift annuity work?
- Contribute a Charitable Gift Annuity to LTC and become a Legacy Member.
- The Conservancy pays a fixed annual income to the beneficiary.
- The remaining balance protects the North Country we all love, forever by a distribution to our unrestricted endowment fund.
Want to Learn More? Please Contact:
Emily Hughes
Chief Development Officer
Gifts of STOCK
Stock gifts can be donated and may qualify for both state and federal tax deductions. If the stock has appreciated in value, you may avoid paying capital gains upon transferring it to the Conservancy. In some cases, giving stock can even be more beneficial than giving cash.
Instead of cash, you can gift appreciated stocks, bonds and/or mutual funds you’ve held for more than one year. You will be able to claim a federal income tax charitable deduction for the full, appreciated value of the securities, not the lesser amount you originally paid for them. In addition, you will pay no capital gains tax on the transaction. This means the after-tax cost is less than a gift of cash.
You or your broker can contact us for instructions on how to make a stock gift to the Conservancy.
Want to Learn More? Please Contact:
Emily Hughes
Chief Development Officer
Qualified Charitable Distributions
If you are 70½ years of age or older and have an Individual Retirement Account (IRA), you can take advantage of a simple way to benefit the Little Traverse Conservancy and potentially receive tax benefits in return. You can distribute up to $100,000 annually from your IRA to LTC as a Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD). Also known as IRA Charitable Rollovers, QCDs allow you to give generously without having to pay income taxes on the money. And, for those who are at least 73 years old, QCDs count toward your required minimum distribution (RMD) for the year.
To give a QCD, contact your financial professional and direct your IRA account manager to make a QCD to Little Traverse Conservancy EIN# 23-7267810.
