Northwest Connecticut Land Conservancy’s Annual Midsummer Party for Conservation

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Arriving at Maywood

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Guests mingled for cocktails in the gardens

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Jonathan Opdyke, NCLC Executive Director Catherine Rawson, Kelly Opdyke

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Author William Kinsolving, actress Christine Baranski, NCLC Director of Philanthropy Katy Kinsolving

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Hostess Leni May

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Host Peter May And daughter Leslie

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New York Philharmonic President Deborah Borda and Wendy Rothman

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Board Members Mark Duvall Gude and Hiram Williams

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Kim Smith, David Faren, Board Member Andrew Gordon, Julia Janes

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Congresswoman Jahana Hayes, Milford Hayes, State Representative Maria Horn

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Richard Ziegelasch, Carolyn Klemm, Patrick Campion

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Tom & Abbey Rosenwald and Bob & Karen Dinerstein

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Andrea Derwin, Diane Meier

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Catherine and Donald Heald

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Sunset reflections in the greenhouse panels

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Dinner tables set up beside the pond

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Sarah Blank, Washington First Selectman Jim Brinton, Tracy Brinton, Charles Karas

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Anne Sutherland Fuchs

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Senator Richard Blumenthal at the podium

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Board President Margery Feldberg

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Drying party chairs after the rain

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Dinner was enjoyed before—and after—the storm

Over 200 supporters of Northwest Connecticut Land Conservancy (NCLC) gathered on the grounds and gardens of Maywood at the annual Midsummer Party for Conservation. Leni and Board Member Peter May host the affair on their Litchfield County estate with views over the Roxbury hills. Following cocktails on the terrace, guests dined lakeside under a festive tent.

Dignitaries US Senator Richard Blumenthal and US Congresswoman Jahana Hayes honored the work of previous Board President Hiram Williams and reminded the assembled guests that “to drive through any part of Northwest Corner Connecticut becomes a vacation.”

Midway through the evening, an unexpected deluge with constant lightning flashes, sheets of rain, and gusting winds sent guests to the refuge of the greenhouse. The storm soon passed and undeterred party goers returned to their tables to dine and enjoy a video describing the significant goal of protecting 30 percent of the land by 2030.

NCLC permanently protects 13,000 acres of vast connected natural areas in Litchfield and northern Fairfield Counties.  In concluding remarks Board President Margery Feldberg noted that the evening’s extreme weather underscored the importance of the Conservancy’s efforts to build climate resilience and protect biodiversity by conserving the rolling hills, valleys, and iconic farms of Northwest Connecticut.