Wow. Just, Wow.

Thank you to the Rye Community who came out in droves today to help with the Town of Rye's Community Cleanup Day. We feel lucky that our properties were chosen as the Rye City location for this first annual multi-municipality effort. There were also cleanup sites in Mamaroneck, Rye Town, Port Chester, and Rye Brook. And we would like to thank the Rye Sustainability Committee and Conservation Commission for all their organization and support.

When our trustees came together shortly after the work was complete, our collective response was, "Wow. Just, wow." Of course, we are so grateful for each and every volunteer who showed up to rake, plant, trim, bundle, sweep, hedge, whack, lift, bag, pile, drag, cut, and prune. The property looks amazing. But even more than the aesthetics, the feeling of coming together as a community to take care of nature is where the "wow" truly comes from. I can't really explain how it felt, other than to say it felt good and it felt right. There are so many things that we, as humans, share an appreciation for and every single one is a more fun and enriching than any of the stuff we fight about. For one thing, we all love this community and coming together to make it an even better place can only be a good thing.

Inspired by today, we are already thinking of more ways to bring the community together. Healthy landscapes. Live music. Nature hikes. Field trips. Let us know about any experiences you've had where you experienced the wow of collectively caring about something. Doing something not for the money, but doing it because it feels good and feels right. Together with family, neighbors, and friends you haven't met yet.