The Westerly Land Trust CCC volunteers help maintain Westerly Land Trust properties every Tuesday morning for about 9 months of the year. They do important work like clear out brush and remove invasive species, pick up litter, build bridges and clear the trails that meander throughout acres of Land Trust property.

I initially pitched The Trust about a photography project that depicts land stewardship and their Stewardship Manager, Mark Doherty, keyed me in on the CCC program.

Their self applied CCC name is short for the Coffee and Clearing Committee, as the original group of volunteers that started the program would meet at a local coffee shop before setting out on their work. CCC is a play on FDR’s Civilian Conservation Corps, an entity worth studying in its own right.

The Westerly CCC has since built their own barn on Trust headquarters and coffee is still served. Because it can be COLD out there.

It was a wonderful few months photographing this group. Most didn’t understand what I was doing or why, but they let me in anyway. I think because I just kept showing up.

Volunteering for your local land trust is a great way to learn about your town and connect with your community. You learn all about who’s doing what and where, as well as the history of the land you live on.

Westerly had some Major industry throughout the 19th and 20th centuries that shaped our economy, town and the land itself. Volunteer, and Take a look for yourself.