We are excited to announce that in just seven months we have successfully raised the funds needed to purchase 100 acres encompassing Bundy Hill in western Isabella County, south of Lake Isabella. At 1,270 feet, Bundy Hill is the highest point in the county. And now all of the pledges are in.
Bundy Hill has been owned by the Wakelin and Kathleen McNeel Family since the mid-1950’s. Our aim has been to buy the land and create a preserve that will be permanently accessible for recreation and nature education.
At our fall fundraiser hosted by Dianne and Mike Morey in October 2015, we launched a campaign to raise $240,000 to cover acquisition costs, create new trail signage and provide an endowment for stewardship. Little did we know at the time how popular this project would be.
We received matching challenges from Isabella Bank, The Carls Foundation, the Rollin M. Gerstacker Foundation and the J. A. Woollam Foundation totaling $100,000.00. Several local businesses and more than 150 individual donors contributed another $143,000.00 to meet the challenges and then some.
We are especially pleased with how quickly the public got behind this project. It has been clear that Bundy Hill has touched the lives of many people from all walks of life. We look forward to inviting visitors in the very near future.
The purchase is expected to be complete by the end of June. It may take some time to get the new signage installed, but we plan to open the property to visitors as soon as the paperwork is complete.
