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2008 Hunting Habitat Conservation Award Presented to Genesee Valley Hunt
and Genesee Valley Conservancy
Foxhunting and land conservation cannot be belligerent, it
cannot be myopic, and most importantly, it cannot be exclusive,” said Eric
Grace, executive director of the Genesee Valley Conservancy. Grace’s remarks
were made upon the Genesee Valley Hunt and the Genesee Valley Conservancy
being named joint winners of the 2008 MFHA/Chronicle of the Horse Hunting
Habitat Conservation Award. The award was presented for outstanding
achievements in the preservation of open space and habitat in the beautiful
Genesee Valley of New York State. J.W.Y. “Duck” Martin, MFH and Chronicle
publisher Rob Banner presented the prestigious award to Joint-Masters Martha
Wadsworth and Marion Thorne, representing the Hunt, and to Grace,
representing the Conservancy, on the occasion of the MFHA Annual Meeting in
New York City on January 25. The Genesee Valley Hunt, established in 1876 by
Major W. Austin Wadsworth, is one of the oldest hunts in North America. The
Hunt has a rich tradition of providing superb sport, and two of its Masters
—founder W. Austin Wadsworth and his son, William P. Wadsworth—have served
as MFHA presidents. Fittingly, the conservation award was presented to the
Genesee Valley Hunt at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel, the very hotel where W.
Austin Wadsworth was elected as the first president of the MFHA in 1907.
On Community
Eric Grace—a foxhunter all his life—is comfortable in a hunt cap, but said
the most important hat he wears is that of a community member. “And I mean
community in every sense of he word—not just the foxhunting community, but
all that surrounds us, all that we interact with, intentionally or
unintentionally, pleasantly or unpleasantly, every day,” he said. “Each
community is part of a larger one and is interconnected. We must recognize
the need for working with, not against, seemingly different people,
passions, and ideas.” With the Hunt’s long presence in the Valley, the Hunt
and the community have become one and inseparable, and the community has
been influenced by the hunt’s presence. When that influence is positive, and
foxhunters demonstrate by their deeds that they are good neighbors in their
community, they do more to protect and defend our sport than any number of
speeches, statutes, and lobbying efforts can possibly accomplish. “The
shires of England assumed that their stewardship of the countryside would
not change and would never be challenged,” said British-born John Perkins, a
GVH member. “They forgot that they needed to involve everyone who lived in
the countryside if they were to protect the cultural heritage of farming,
foxhunting, fishing, and shooting. They thought they were above political
machinations. Consequently they lost a big battle.”
A Hunt-Wide Culture of Activism
The Genesee Valley Hunt has not forgotten its ties and responsibilities
to the community, nor has it allowed the political process to be highjacked
by commercial interests. Hunt subscribers comprise over sixty percent of the
board of directors of the Genesee Valley Conservancy; seventy-five percent
of Hunt subscribers provide financial support to the Conservancy; foxhunters
comprise roughly thirty-five percent of all Conservancy donors; twenty-two
hunt members have donated conservation easements; and other foxhunters host
events for local landowners at which the Conservancy makes educational
presentations.
Protection of the land began with the Wadsworth family and
other large landowners. Increased pressure for development prompted hunt
subscribers and other concerned citizens of the community to incorporate the
Genesee Valley Conservancy in 1990. For ten years, in recognition of the
need to get the Conservancy on a sound financial footing, the Hunt named the
Conservancy a beneficiary of their annual race meeting. Today, the
Conservancy protects more than 8,300 acres of open space, 6,000 acres of
which are hunting country, and is actively working on the purchase of
development rights for an additional 6,000 acres.
The Conservancy also seeks other ways to expand its mission. It has
partnered with the State University of New York at Geneseo to create a
permanent research and education facility. This six-hundred-acre parcel,
placed in permanent easement, is used for cattle pasture, is open to the
Hunt, and is open to students and faculty for educational and research
projects.
The Conservancy is also facilitating a project between several landowners
and the federally sponsored Natural Resource Conservation Service. The plan
is to place conservation easements on certain wetlands, then restore and
enhance wetland features to improve the wildlife habitat. The plans also
include trail design for equine use.
Grace also serves on the Advisory Council for the Land Trust Alliance of New
York, which championed state income tax credits for lands placed in
easement. Land conservation is a common denominator of many disparate
groups, Grace said, including the National Rifle Association, Sierra Club,
Ducks Unlimited, bird watchers, hikers, foxhunters and farmers.
“All share a need for undeveloped land,” he continued. “We, as foxhunters
and land conservationists, must capitalize on this common ground. This may
require compromise and sometimes sacrifice. It requires patience and
persistence. And most certainly, it requires understanding that we cannot
operate in a vacuum. “I know that what we do [foxhunting] can never be
explained to the unknowing. However, what we do fits into the larger
picture. Understanding this is how we can be effective and successful.
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