Partners in Place: An Evening at Perkins Coie
On November 19, Perkins Coie generously hosted an early-evening gathering of Forterra donors and special guests, with Board member Mike Dunning, welcoming everyone to Perkins Coie’s magnificent offices.
Guests heard powerful stories from three partners – Naomie Chamberlain of the Environmental Science Center, Bonnie Hilory of Friends of Wenatchee Y Camp, and Jamie Michel, Habitat Manager for the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe.
Each shared the powerful impacts of their work and how Forterra’s support and collaboration help them go further. Forterra President and CEO Michelle Connor spoke movingly about her “why,” weaving together a sense of shared purpose that continued into a lively Q&A.
Over good food, including salmon from the Elwha River, new connections were sparked, existing partnerships deepened, and the room carried a tangible sense of mission and hope for the lands and communities we serve together.
Watch the highlight reel
When the Work Steps Forward
Some years are about putting stakes in the ground – protecting land, building programs, trusting that what you’re building will matter in seasons you can’t yet see.
That’s the story last year told: new acres protected, young programs such as the Community Restoration Grant developed and Forterra Nature Discovery™ launched. It felt like drawing the map and circling the places where change could happen next.
This year’s Impact Report 2025 reads like the moment the map comes to life. The land at Frog’s Home has not only been saved, it has been fully returned to the Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation.
Properties once held in trust through the Strong Communities Fund now belong to community partners in Hilltop, Tukwila, and Rainier Valley. What was once described as future potential is now visible as keys changing hands, stories returning to their original storytellers, and neighbors shaping the places where they live.
Threaded through it all is a surge of people power. Volunteers are showing up in greater numbers to support, to plant and to learn. Evergreen Restoration Program events, Forterra Fridays, and Community Restoration Grants are cultivating a wider circle of care, while more than 18,000 acres are now under Forterra’s stewardship with a pipeline of new projects on the horizon.
The overall arc is clear: Forterra is not just conserving land, but sharing power – moving from holding places for the future to helping communities claim, restore, and reimagine them today.
Conservation with Room to Roam
Drawing on our conservation real estate expertise, Forterra helped secure 113 acres of forest and wetlands in the Frederickson area of Pierce County on behalf of the Tacoma Sportsmen’s Club Conservation Land Foundation.
The $3.49 million purchase from Tacoma Water (City of Tacoma) was made possible with a $2.7 million grant from Pierce County Conservation Futures – a win for clean water, wildlife, and a fast-growing community.
The land includes more than a mile of the headwaters of Clover Creek, an urbanized stream corridor whose cool waters and tree-lined banks are vital for wildlife. Five distinctive wetlands shelter a beaver lodge, dams, and ponds that help filter water, reduce flooding risk, and support a rich web of habitat.
In a part of Pierce County where forests and open space are disappearing, this project offers something rare: conservation that also honors long-standing community traditions. The land will continue to host outdoor rifle, pistol, and archery ranges, while plans are underway for new public trails with interpretive features that invite visitors to explore and learn.
Forterra is grateful to Pierce County Executive Ryan Mello for his conservation vision, to Tacoma Water, Tacoma City Council and the Tacoma Public Utility Board for their steadfast support, and to the Tacoma Sportsmen’s Club Conservation Land Foundation and Tacoma Sportsmen’s Club for their long-term commitment to stewardship.
Thanks to this collaboration, these forests, and the wetlands around it, will continue to serve both people and wildlife for generations to come.
‘Land for Good’ takes many forms
It turns out Forterra’s ‘Land for Good’ ethos can sometimes show up in unexpected ways.
A particularly creative form was how we addressed the future of Kachess Lodge off I-90 near Swamp Lake.
Before it was removed for an envisioned wildlife crossing under the I-90, Cheri Marusa, Forterra’s Senior Director of Community came up with an ingenious idea for how to use it.
Read about intriguing partnership
One Spirit That Makes Hard Days Lighter
In the quiet, steady rhythm of our restoration work, there are people who shine simply by showing up. This month, we’re celebrating Michelle – a former teacher turned “super volunteer” whose curiosity, warmth, and tireless spirit have become a bright thread in the fabric of our Evergreen Restoration Program.
She reminds us that giving isn’t measured only in hours or dollars, but in the energy we bring, the laughter we share, and the way one person’s enthusiasm can lift an entire field crew.
Read Michelle’s story, and perhaps feel a spark of your own?
Windows into the Unseen Wild
There are places where the world moves in whispers – where hooves brush through shadowed grass, and the dusk chorus belongs to creatures we rarely see.
Our new wild cam webpage opens a window into that unseen realm, offering fleeting moments when the land unveils its private rhythms. If your curiosity tugs at you, come stand at the edge of this hidden world and take a look.
Explore wild cam>
‘The Trees Are Speaking’ – Save the Date
Mark your calendar for Forterra’s spring fundraiser on Wednesday, March 11, 2026, at Fremont Foundry in Seattle. This special evening, “The Trees Are Speaking – An Evening with Lynda Mapes,” features award-winning journalist and author Lynda V. Mapes, whose work illuminates the deep connections between forests, salmon, water and people in the Pacific Northwest.
Join us from 5:30–8:00 PM for thoughtful conversation, delicious food, and a talk that explores what binds tree to stream, salmon to soil, and people to place.
Registration opens January 2026 – stay tuned for details.
More about our headliner, Lynda Mapes
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