Cloverlea Foundation Vision

Vision:  With the help of the Cloverlea Foundation, the Claytor Nature Center will become a recognized destination for environmental education and sustainability offering meaningful connections to people and the planet.

We serve as a community friends-of organization that advocates for the Claytor Nature Center, offering programmatic and tangible support through volunteering, special projects, and partnered events.

Mission: We are a non-profit organization whose mission is to advocate for the fulfillment of A. Boyd Claytor III's legacy by helping Claytor Nature Center connect and engage with the Bedford community, and beyond, through mutually beneficial partnerships and programming.  

• We hope to share Boyd Claytor's vision, by reviewing the fundamentals of his significant financial contributions, his preserved resource donation, and his lifelong purpose for the Nature Center.   This includes telling the history of the land and the Claytor's contributions to the community and their love of nature.

• We want to take action to help fulfill those intentions, in compliance with his gift agreement and the conservation easement terms, especially given the willingness of capable and dedicated volunteers and community members.

• We are separate non-profit entity made up of stakeholders and community members who are passionate about Claytor Nature Center.  We aim to serve as a friends-of organization to support and volunteer there, with programming and activities.

Since the gift of the property and endowment to Lynchburg College in 1998, the University of Lynchburg has done impactful work over the last 25 years to build an infrastructure and to introduce and implement some of the possibilities for the Claytor Nature Center in Bedford County, while tied and aligned with the University goals and mission.  In this time of reorganization and re-prioritization, the opportunity for strategic partnerships and collaboration is more important than ever.

Those who have been a part of Claytor Nature Center's history in various capacities are eager to help bring the dream that Boyd Claytor had for his farm and estate to fruition.  If you want to contribute time or join our efforts, please connect with us either by joining the email list, learning about other ways to Get Involved, or by reaching out to us at info@cloverleafoundation.org.

Our community has asked for transparency about the future plans for Claytor Nature Center.  At Cloverlea Foundation, we value transparency and open collaboration and are advocating for those, and we want to offer some insight into what we are proposing.  We are still working to understand the University of Lynchburg's perspective and hoping to work alongside them in a mutually beneficial way, although we have yet to come to a finalized agreement.  We are working towards a strategic long-term partnership to help steward the Claytor Nature Center, in which Cloverlea Foundation will help in the following proposed ways:

• As a separate nonprofit entity, the Cloverlea Foundation will partner with the University of Lynchburg for the efforts of maintaining and operating Claytor Nature Center, in alignment with Boyd Claytor's gift agreement establishing the center.

• Continue to offer educational programming and access to the property to explore and appreciate nature and the impact of human interactions.

• Promote the Claytor Nature Center as a place for academic and research opportunities for local schools and institutions.

• Share with the community about the history of the property and the Claytor family's contributions to Bedford, including Boyd's intentions for his Cloverlea estate, through interpretive signage and displays at points of interest on the trail system and at the Cloverlea Farmhouse.

• Build community by offering memberships in several forms catered to different interests and levels of contributions and benefits.

• Develop and foster mutually-beneficial, mission-aligned partnerships with local companies and organizations to offer programs and care of the property.

• Expand upon Boyd's vision, to include aspects contributed by other benefactors, with the future goal of the center becoming widely-known as a place for nature-immersive experiences for all ages, focused on sustainability in its many forms.  Future ideas for this expanded vision could include:

  • • Corporate board retreats for companies across our nation to convene with their environmental consultants to make a plan for decreasing their environmental footprint, while learning about and seeing building practices as examples on-site.

    • Eco-conscious special event weekends and corporate conferences with an educational 'living building' event space on the grounds of Cloverlea Farmhouse.

    • Solar energy demonstration systems with a round sun-themed outdoor learning classroom pavilion, and other educational planet stations at the Belk Observatory that incorporate NASA science information about space weather and climate change.

    • Ecotourism opportunities with an expanded EcoVillage, including a communal composting bathhouse and several smaller cabins uniquely-designed with innovative eco-mindful build plans.

    • Astrotourism opportunities with stargazing camping sites at the Belk Observatory that have solar-powered red lighting and powered telescope piers for private overnight observing and imaging setups.

    • Regenerative and sustainable agriculture programs and teaching-learning opportunities.  We will be exploring other nature programs and agricultural opportunities on an adjacent farm, Peaksville Place, as well.

We envision Cloverlea Foundation and its partners as the organized group of people behind this work, and the land and facility resources as the places where the work is executed:

• Claytor Nature Center - Environmental and Nature Education and Research

• Belk Observatory - Astronomy and Planetary/Climate Science

• Cloverlea Farmhouse - History, Cultural Stewardship, and Sustainable Hospitality

• Peaksville Place - Regenerative Agriculture and Sustainable Tourism

These are ways that we are hoping to help at Claytor Nature Center, and our big visionary ideas for the future there.  Many of them are far-future ideas, but having something to look ahead to will help us carve a path to get there.  We welcome anyone who wants to be a part of this vision to join us in our efforts.  Be sure to join our email list to stay updated, and feel free to reach out at info@cloverleafoundation.org to connect with us!