This special guest blog was written by Dixie Resnick, CEO of Crowley Museum & Nature Center.
The Crowley Museum & Nature Center (CMNC) is a 191.5-acre non-profit located along the Myakka River in east Sarasota County. A hands-on and immersive hub for education in Florida’s natural and cultural history, CMNC welcomes thousands of visitors per year, many of whom are school children. Our free Title 1 and special needs services ensure that no child is denied our interesting and educational field trips.
Within several habitats, Crowley has hiking trails and a boardwalk, historic buildings, a museum, rescued heritage breed animals, wild animals, and historical reenactments. Throughout the year, we offer a wide variety of important and unique experiences for the community to enjoy.
The Crowleys were among the first tough and intrepid families that settled in the “Old Miakka” area in the 1800s. The homesteaded land was passed down through generations, slowly acquiring more acreage. Its last private owner, Jasper Crowley, was an agriculture teacher who had no children of his own. He was well known for welcoming and educating his community about agricultural and environmental stewardship. Students regularly came out to the Crowley Farm to learn from their beloved teacher. His forethought and generosity led to the decision to keep the property that he owned open for all to enjoy, long after his passing. Making Crowley a 501c3 non-profit was the way that he chose to do this. Since his passing in 1976, the board of directors, staff, and volunteers have worked for decades to see his visions to fruition. As times changed, his ideas have been expanded upon and developed further.
In a rapidly developing Florida, it has become painfully clear that protecting natural lands is paramount. Unfortunately, preservation is frequently ignored in favor of greed and rampant capitalism. Many people in the community incorrectly assumed that the Crowley property was protected from development or irresponsible agricultural practices as a preserve. This could not have been further from the truth. Had the Crowley non-profit dissolved, the fate of the land could have gone in many directions. If the land selling around the property was any indication, the outlook was not good for conservation. The current board of directors and CEO set forth to remedy this situation and protect this unique natural and cultural resource forever.
It was no easy task. The current property was divided among multiple deeds, and additional gifts of acreage had been acquired over the years following the original homesteading. At the helm of this project was Crowley board member and president of Conservation Foundation, Christine Johnson. She and her staff took on several advisory positions, aiding us through this often difficult, multiple-year process. Their patience and thorough explanation of every step of the journey made it much easier and more comfortable for all involved. After years of work, many meetings, hundreds of pages of paperwork, site visits, emails, phone calls, planning, and more, on August 31, 2022, the agreement between CMNC and Sarasota County was finalized. Conservation Foundation’s assistance was absolutely paramount in this accomplishment.
There is a distinct comfort in knowing that when those of us who championed this effort are not even a memory, this natural and historical resource shall persist. Our small but important puzzle piece of conservation is now included in a permanent corridor boasting thousands of acres. These natural lands will forever be a safe harbor for native flora and fauna. We are part of protected watershed that will clean and process storm water through its marshes, as nature intended. This land will be kept natural for the wild world and the people who want to immerse themselves and learn from it. We are sure that Jasper Crowley would have fully supported these efforts to protect his legacy and we will always be grateful for the tremendous volunteer efforts provided to us by Conservation Foundation. Their work is invaluable and we are forever grateful.
To learn more about Crowley Museum & Nature Center, visit crowleyfl.org.
