It was such a nice moment: I was in my kitchen in Europe cheering champagne glasses with four people sitting at a kitchen table in East Eden thanks to FaceTime. The Parysek farm is finally protected by a conservation easement, which means it will stay farmland forever.
As the phone was passed around the table, I was moved to see each face: Martha, the wife of the late Eddie, the bus driver who protected me during the vulnerable grade school years, who loved the land and the view because it represented peace on earth; Karen, their daughter who, with her sisters Linda and Marcia love the farm so much that they cannot envision another purpose for this spot, and whose down-to-earth voices remind me of their brother Kenny, Winkelman Farm’s first president; Lucille, the Notary Public, who is the mother of my best friend during those years that Eddie was protecting me; and finally Sam, who gives his time and energy to Winkelman Farm because he believes that this corner of the world is special and deserving of protection for the public’s enjoyment.
We can all celebrate tonight, for all those good people whose last glimpse of life would have been enriched by the thought that this view would last forever.
Thank you for your support!
Merry Christmas.
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