This text was taken from an email alert sent out on March 17, 2020:
Dear Supporter,
Like all of you, we are monitoring the rapidly evolving COVID-19 response and guidance at the local, state and federal level. I am sure it is impacting your daily lives and future plans. As well, it is impacting PEC operations and our upcoming events.
Ultimately, we have a responsibility to respect the directives and recommendations of our public health officials. We are providing specific guidance to help PEC board members, staff, volunteers and partners be as safe as possible, while continuing our work and programs. Thanks in advance for your patience, understanding, and compassion as we navigate this challenging time.
As of Monday, March 16, we closed our physical offices until further notice. However, our staff are all working remotely and look forward to connecting with you by email, phone, and other digital means. View our staff listing for full contact information and please stay tuned for opportunities to participate online!
In addition, all planned and advertised events for the next 8 weeks are either canceled or postponed as in-person activities. We will be working on ways to provide programming by webinar, podcast and other digital means.
Specifically, the following planned and advertised PEC events are canceled or postponed until further notice:
- March 19: Webinar Viewing Party – Trails Move People. Watch it from home >>
- April 4: Annual Bluebell Walk on Cedar Run
- April 5: From the Rappahannock, For the Rappahannock
- April 11: Loudoun Nature Days at PEC’s Community Farm
- April 16: Fauquier Farm and Land Conservation Workshop
- April 18: Clarke Stream Team Workshop
- April 19: Public Art Bike Ride
- April 22: Earth Day Ice Cream Social
We will continue to monitor local, state and federal guidelines for events and other public gatherings and will notify you if anything changes.
Supporting Local Emergency Funds
Each of our communities is finding ways to support each other through organizations like the PATH Foundation and Charlottesville Area Community Foundation. PATH has made an initial funding grant to the Northern Piedmont Community Foundation of $100,00.00, and this and other donations are funding sustaining drive-through food delivery services for school-age children during the school closures, and supplies and food for local free clinics and food pantries.
All of these organizations in PEC’s member counties are working to relieve the human suffering the pandemic has and will continue to cause:
- Community Foundation for Loudoun and Northern Fauquier Counties:
Community Emergency Relief Fund - Northern Piedmont Community Foundation (serving Culpeper, Madison, Fauquier and Rappahannock Counties):
Now and Forever Emergency Response Fund - Charlottesville Area Community Foundation (serving Albemarle, Greene, and Orange Counties as well as the City of Charlottesville):
Community Emergency Response Fund - SupportCville.com
A list of other local nonprofits that you can support in the Charlottesville area
Let us know if you come across other resources to share.
I encourage you to take care of yourself and your family and do what you can to limit your person-to-person contacts. We can all do our part to help overcome this crisis.
Sincerely,
Chris Miller, President
The Piedmont Environmental Council
cmiller@pecva.org
P.S. If you are a PEC member, you should be receiving our quarterly newsletter in the mail this week. If you have not yet become a member, but would like to learn more about what’s happening throughout the region, we’ve also posted it online.