Our Crowdfunding Groups
Dear Friends,
Thank you for your support of Tumamoc Hill and the Desert Laboratory. With your overwhelming help, we were able to reach our funding goal and raise a total of $200,052 for the new road! Over $50,000 of that support came from nearly 275 individuals.
I hope you have had a chance to be back on the Hill and enjoy the workout, views, and community. As Friends of Tumamoc, you will continue to receive updates on our events, and we have a busy Spring in store including the following y más:
the Cuéntame Más project (similar to "StoryCorps")
our Spring lecture series on the Vaquita (http://tumamoc.arizona.edu/tumamoc-lecture-series)
a new art-science course (http://tumamoc.arizona.edu/art-and-science/course)
a series of events for the Agave Heritage Festival
Thank you for being the founding Friends of Tumamoc. I look forward to seeing you soon and staying in touch.
Sincerely,
Ben Wilder
Director, Desert Laboratory on Tumamoc Hill
P.S. See below for an image from Saturday’s ribbon-cutting ceremony. UA College of Science Dean Joaquin Ruiz, Tumamoc Hill Advisory Council Chair Russell Long, and Tucson City Councilmember Regina Romero joined me to do the honors. In the following image of the new road, the white line is intended to keep walkers safely on the side of the road as researchers drive up the Hill to the Desert Lab.
Friends of Tumamoc,
We received official word this afternoon that the Hill will be open to the public starting at 5 p.m. tomorrow, February 6th. We wanted you to be the first to know!
Feel free to stop by the Desert Lab and join us for our public art and science lecture at 6 p.m. tomorrow with members of 6&6, artists and scientists collaborating to explore the patterns and processes of the Sonoran Desert. (To learn more about this partnership, visit ngen6and6.com.)
Mark your calendar to join us on Saturday, February 9th at 10 a.m. at the bottom of the Hill to celebrate the road’s completion.
See you on the Hill,
Ben Wilder
Director, Desert Laboratory on Tumamoc Hill
I don’t like rooting against the rain, though yesterday's great moisture event (ca. 0.3 inches) has heavily saturated the soil and subsequently delayed the re-opening of Tumamoc Hill. As our Friends of Tumamoc Hill, you will be among the first to know the exact opening date and time when we have that information.
In the meantime, we are thrilled that new Friends of Tumamoc Hill continue to join our ranks—we are now up to 233 donors to the project and are pushing towards 92% completion.
We will keep the campaign open through Saturday, February 9th when we eagerly look forward to a ribbon cutting ceremony. Please join us, fellow Friends of Tumamoc and other community members at the bottom of the Hill at 10 a.m. Some of our favorite desert creatures will be in attendance, so we encourage you to bring the whole family!
Hasta pronto,
Ben Wilder
Director, Desert Laboratory on Tumamoc Hill
My guess is that you are all missing Tumamoc as much as we are! The good news is the crew is making solid progress and we are on track to re-open on Sunday, February 3rd.
Thanks to you and 197 other Friends of Tumamoc Hill, we now have 88 percent of the funds needed to cover the road re-pavement costs. Your support and generosity have been wonderful!
We hope you’ll mark your calendar and plan to join us on the Hill mid-morning on Saturday, February 9th for a community celebration of the new road. Stay tuned for more details.
Thank you for your being a Friend of Tumamoc,
Ben Wilder
Director, Desert Laboratory on Tumamoc Hill
P.S. Don’t forget to share the https://crowdfund.arizona.edu/tumamocroad link with your friends and family who want to become Friends of Tumamoc. Ask them to join you in supporting this project with a gift of any size. All gifts continue to be matched dollar-for-dollar so their gift will have twice the impact!
THANK YOU!
We are grateful for the outpouring of support that we have seen since announcing this project ten days ago. Thank you for your early investment in this project.
With your generosity, we have raised $34,830 from 121 donors since our first day! All gifts continue to be matched dollar-for-dollar by Edith Sykes Lowell & David Lowell.
If you’re feeling inspired, we encourage you to share the https://crowdfund.arizona.edu/tumamocroad link with your friends and family via email, in person and on social media and ask them to join you in supporting this project with a gift of any size. Be sure to tag @desertlaboratory in any social media posts.
And don’t forget, January 22 through February 1 are the dates for the road closure!
See you on the Hill,
Ben Wilder
Director, Desert Laboratory at Tumamoc Hill
With a gift of any size, you can become a Friend of Tumamoc. With a gift of $25 or more, you will receive a thank you note from the Director of the Desert Laboratory on Tumamoc Hill and a Friends of Tumamoc sticker.
Friends of Tumamoc who give $100 or more will also receive invitations to lectures and workshops as well as an annual report from the Director of the Desert Laboratory.
Friends of Tumamoc who give $500 or more will also receive an invitation to an annual Friends-only behind-the-scenes tour of the Desert Laboratory.
Did you know that “Tumamoc” is the O’odham word for “regal horned lizard?” Friends of Tumamoc who give $1,000 or more will also receive an invitation to exclusive events held on the Hill.
For seven people who give at this level, an elevation and mile marker along the Tumamoc Hill road will be dedicated to you. Your gift will inspire other supporters during this campaign and forever motivate walkers on their trek up the Hill.
