Grey Towers has new support group

MILFORD — The Grey Towers Heritage Association, a newly formed community organization that focuses its efforts on supporting the public programs at Grey Towers National Historic Site is officially “up and running,” according to its president, Barbara J. Buchanan. A brochure and Web site have been developed to help spread the word about the organization’s mission and goals. You can visit www.greytowers.org to learn more about the association and about the national historic site and to contact the organization to get involved or provide support. “Grey Towers is not only a national treasure but a community jewel,” said Mrs. Buchanan, who has been involved with the historic site for nearly 20 years. “This new organization will act as the conduit between the community and Grey Towers. Not only can the community help support this wonderful asset, but the association will really enhance that connection.” “Community, Culture and Conservation,” is the focus of the association’s mission and they have ambitious plans for programs and projects. “Having a local organization in a support role for Grey Towers has so many benefits, to the site as well as to the community,” said Grey Towers Director Richard Paterson. “We encourage the association activities to help promote a stewardship ethic and a sense of pride in what Grey Towers represents, right here in Milford.” Grey Towers, former home of Cornelia and Gifford Pinchot, two-term governor of Pennsylvania and founder and first chief of the USDA Forest Service, was donated to the Forest Service by the Pinchot family in 1963. Today the estate is a model for historic preservation and stewardship for the Forest Service, an educational resource and a center for natural resource leadership development. The Forest Service offers a variety of public programs that continue the Pinchot legacy, which includes a tradition of inviting the community into the home.