By Brian Thompson, David Peterson, and Carolyn Shearman

Our mission is unique among the environmental groups in the state – Recreation, Conservation, and Education.  And, we fund that mission through our dues and contributions to our various funds.  We thank you all for your financial and volunteer support.  Recently we have lost some major supporters and we have been very grateful that their families have requested honorary donations to the Ozark Society in their names.   This month alone we have received substantial contributions from the friends and families of Dorothy M. Meyer and David Newbern.  Thank You immensely!

With these donations we have come to realize that many people may not be familiar with our funds or the purpose of each so we are trying to clarify them for you.  To help, we have added a short description of each on the website membership and donation forms and we plan to add longer descriptions in a reference page on the site.  In the meantime, here is a breakdown of the funds to help identify each of them and their purpose.

The Conservation Fund:

Along with membership dues, contributions to this fund support the routine expenses of running the Ozark Society and for 2021 those included – Pack & Paddle ($7,030), Marketing/Fulfillment ($1,900), Oral History Preservation ($1,600), Storage ($1,431), Stripe fee ($923), supplies ($922), Web site ($537).  In addition, we gave $5,000 to the Buffalo River Foundation for land acquisition in the Buffalo watershed and $1,000 to the Compton Peel Foundation.  

The Endowment Fund

This fund is a perpetual endowment fund with the Arkansas Community Foundation a unique non-profit specializing in servicing other Arkansas non-profits.  Though cash contributions are always welcome, the Endowment Fund was created specifically for donors who wish to contribute tax advantaged gifts benefiting the Ozark Society beyond their lifetime. Gifts will support a generational income stream, ensuring the Ozark Society mission continues in perpetuity.  Our plan is to only use interest generated from the fund to serve the goals of protecting watershed and wilderness areas in the Ozarks and Ouachitas.  Gifts to this fund can include any asset type including real estate, insurance, equities, etc.

The Legal Fund 

 This fund is earmarked for our Legal/lobbying expenses which in 2021 were $4,800.  We consistently have issues in state legislatures and agencies that we need to support and/or oppose to protect watershed and wilderness areas.  We share the expenses of lobbyists and lawyers when we can with other like-minded organizations and that keeps costs down but we have ongoing need to use these services over the years.

The OS Foundation

The Ozark Society Foundation is actively engaged in outreach.  In have a the very successful Youth Grant Program ($15,000), the Sassafras Literature Award ($3,000+), and the First River documentary ($6,000+ promotional expenses this year).  

The Compton Scholarship Fund

The Ozark Society in honor of the memory of Dr. Neil Compton, its first president and principal founder, established the Neil Compton Scholarship in the Natural Sciences at the University of Arkansas. The scholarship is awarded to students majoring in biological sciences or geosciences.

The Hedges Scholarship Fund

The Ozark Society in honor of charter members Harold and Margaret Hedges also supports the Hedges Memorial Scholarship at the University of Arkansas for students studying ornithology.