LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The Lake County Land Trust has received a bequest from the estate of the late John Graham and has decided to donate part of that bequest to the trust’s Big Valley Wetlands project, specifically the purchase of a 31 acre parcel on the shores of Clear Lake.
The parcel is owned by George Melo, who has entered into an option agreement with the Lake County Land Trust.
The trust has raised $66,000 towards the purchase price of $225,000 and the option is valid until March 2015 after an extension of the agreement was granted by Melo.
John Graham, who died Nov. 1, 2011, spent much of his life working to preserve and protect Clear Lake.
Those efforts were largely through his generous contributions of time and money to the Clear Lake Bass Masters and the Lake County Land Trust.
Graham was a founding board member of the Land Trust and served as the organization’s treasurer for a number of years.
He also worked for the Lake County Planning Department and served on the early county committees that addressed shoreline development around the lake.
Graham was an avid and successful fisherman who spent countless hours on the lake and knew it as well as anyone.
His passing did not end his love for the county or of the lake as he made the Land Trust one of the beneficiaries of his estate.
The Land Trust board of directors has chosen to use a large portion of Graham’s bequest to advance the trust’s primary Clear Lake project – the Big Valley Wetlands project.
The trust is applying $5,000 of Graham’s gift to the acquisition of the Melo property, a 31-acre parcel on Clipper Lane near Kelseyville, and another $2,000 to go towards the Big Valley Wetlands project in general.
The contribution will help the Land Trust purchase this key property, which is near the midpoint of the stretch of shoreline the trust is seeking to protect.
The amount of the contribution will secure Graham’s memory, as the trust will honor him with a plaque in his name on the property.
“The Land Trust is honored to have known John and is proud to be able to forever link him to protection of the lake that he so loved,” said Land Trust Board member Michael Friel.
Protection of the 31-acre Melo property is part of an ambitious effort to protect the remaining wetlands and riparian forests between Clear Lake State Park and the southern edge of Lakeport.
This keystone parcel includes beautiful, native wetland and shoreline forest as well as upland wet meadow, pasture and oaks.
If you would like to contribute to this effort, please contact the Lake County Land Trust’s executive director, Catherine Koehler, at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call 707-262-0707.