2024-10-28T09:43:47-07:00 2023-12-31 990 2023-01-01 311434730 HIGHLANDS NATURE SANCTUARY INC HIGH 9373651935 7660 Cave Road Bainbridge OH 456129501 Nancy Stranahan Director 9373651489 2024-10-28 1 2023 2024-10-15 13:58:12Z ARC OF APPALACHIA Nancy Stranahan 7660 Cave Rd Bainbridge OH 456129501 4933533 0 X www.arcofappalachia.org X 1995 OH Our Mission: To protect the rich diversity of life within North America's Great Eastern Forest. Our Work: We acquire and steward wild lands in the Ohio region. We create sanctuaries where people can connect with the natural world. We teach about our forest heritage to inspire a global conservation ethic. We honor, in our work and our teachings, our Native American legacies. 14 14 15 400 0 0 6859725 4466901 308852 342697 42192 86738 0 0 7210769 4896336 7793 16196 0 0 549960 632448 0 0 50093 654071 540008 1211824 1188652 5998945 3707684 33120314 37271026 170654 321907 32949660 36949119 Our Mission: To protect the rich diversity of life within North America's Great Eastern Forest. Our Work: We acquire and steward wild lands in the Ohio region. We create sanctuaries where people can connect with the natural world. We teach about our forest heritage to inspire a global conservation ethic. We honor, in our work and our teachings, our Native American legacies. 0 0 508984 13196 7151 Land Acquisition & Nature Preservation - In 2023, the Highlands Nature Sanctuary, Inc. (HNS) (dba the Arc of Appalachia) expanded its preserve holdings by 319.013 acres, thus bringing the total natural project areas acquired by fee simple or conservation easement since the organization's inception in 1995 to 10,598.01 acres. These acquisitions further the nonprofit's mission of wildlands preservation. Natural area acquisitions over the organization's 29 year history through 2023 totaled 159 separate land acquisitions in 28 preserve regions, most of which remain actively monitored and managed by HNS. New land acquisitions that were purchased in 2023 with the aid of private donations and grants included a 5-acre expansion of the Highlands Nature Sanctuary in Highland County called Sycamore Springs, the 31.32-acre acquisition of Honeycomb Rocks in Hocking County, the 84-acre expansion of Tremper Mound in Scioto County known as Huckleberry Ridge, the 91.193-acre expansion of the Killbuck Swamp Preserve in Holmes County known as Bowfin Bottoms, and the 95-acre expansion of the Simon Farm Preserve in Scioto County known as Noel Hollow. One property was donated to HNS in 2023: the 12.5-acre Foster's Retreat in Hocking County, which provided a trailhead entrance for HNS' Resilience Woods preserve. Land Stewardship & Hiking Trails - A significant priority for the staff of HNS's Land Stewardship Team in 2023 was the development of hiking trails that were in large part funded by the Clean Ohio grant program. These included development of trails at Quiverheart Gorge, Killbuck Swamp, Huckleberry Ridge, Cliff Run, Gladys Riley Golden Star Lily Preserve, Sylvan Deep, and Tobacco Barn Hollow, which will add a total of nearly 20 miles of new hiking opportunities for our visitors when they are complete. Non-native invasive plant control is a year-round task across the preserve system, focusing primarily on bush honeysuckle, multiflora rose, autumn olive, and Chinese lespedeza. HNS staff continue to track and treat hemlock wooly adelgid, a non-native invasive insect, in five of our preserves with stands of Canadian hemlock. Efforts to release and expand the native prairie areas at Plum Run continued in 2023. HNS continues management of an Ohio History Connection-owned site, Fort Hill, in Highland County. Research - Arc of Appalachia staff and volunteers continued to engage in several research studies across its preserves. These included an annual week-long bird survey at the Highlands Nature Sanctuary; an on-going timber rattlesnake habitat study at its Tobacco Barn Hollow preserve; a two-week long biological inventory of Pickett Run Wetlands; and a three-day-long acoustic bat monitoring survey at its Tobacco Barn Hollow preserve. 540676 3000 335546 Education - In 2023 The Highlands Nature Sanctuary, Inc. (HNS) (dba the Arc of Appalachia) was committed to teaching the value of Ohio's natural landscapes through its outdoor education courses, through interpretive displays and staff contact at the Appalachian Forest Museum, and via nature immersion opportunities presented to visitors on HNS's nearly 70 miles of hiking trails. Calculated through head counts, registration data, and car counters, HNS attracted 96,564 visitors in 2023. Notable attendance includes: 11,631 visitors to the Appalachian Forest Museum, 16,545 visitors to Fort Hill Preserve, 24,079 visitors to Junction Earthworks, and 18,204 hikers at the Highlands Nature Sanctuary. HNS hosted four large annual events in 2023: Wildflower Pilgrimage, Mothapalooza, Tree People, and the John Roger Simon Sorghum Festival. 0 0 0 1049660 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 22 0 1 15 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 X 14 14 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 OH X X Kathleen Bruns 9373651935 7660 Cave Road Bainbridge OH 456129501 Nancy J Stranahan Director 50 0 X 80580 0 0 David Baker Trustee 1 0 X 0 0 0 Brian Blair Trustee 2 0 X 0 0 0 Randy Carmel Trustee 1 0 X 0 0 0 Jean Farkas Trustee 1 0 X 0 0 0 Martha Fikes Trustee 1 0 X 0 0 0 Hazel Morrow Jones Trustee 1 0 X 0 0 0 Michael Rigsby Trustee 1 0 X 0 0 0 Jenny Sadler Trustee 1 0 X 0 0 0 Jim Silver Trustee 1 0 X 0 0 0 Lewis Ulman Trustee 1 0 X 0 0 0 Rick Perkins President 4 0 X X 0 0 0 Marilyn Welker Vice President 1 0 X X 0 0 0 Dave Todt Secretary 1 0 X X 0 0 0 Kathleen Bruns Treasurer 8 0 X X 0 0 0 80580 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1441482 3025419 400425 4466901 Education, events, and lodging 813312 335546 335546 0 0 Miscellaneous related to program services 813312 7151 7151 0 0 0 0 0 0 342697 79777 79777 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 44158 0 37197 0 6961 0 6961 6961 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4896336 429435 0 0 16196 16196 0 0 0 0 0 0 80580 44319 24174 12087 0 0 0 0 495244 444445 36987 13812 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 56624 47439 6668 2517 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 5276 0 5276 0 3788 600 3188 0 1620 1620 0 0 54042 29424 5060 19558 7316 3173 2115 2028 0 0 0 0 127105 127105 0 0 27951 27308 552 91 0 0 0 0 571 282 289 0 1377 1377 0 0 0 0 0 0 131141 131141 0 0 28783 24213 4570 0 Events and workshops supplies 30959 30939 20 0 Non-capital special projects 120079 120079 0 0 1188652 1049660 88899 50093 88456 290559 1180070 977168 64240 66135 0 0 0 0 0 0 133024 1334284 17850 46882 33317308 1581440 29571430 31735868 36971 0 2028273 2820130 33120314 37271026 109376 90278 0 4813 28751 31339 0 0 0 0 0 0 32527 21569 0 173908 0 0 170654 321907 X 30921386 36949119 2028274 0 32949660 36949119 33120314 37271026 X 3707684 1831 0 0 -183 290127 X 0 0 0 X 1205845 3770447 4112543 6859725 4466901 20415461 503621 372772 233952 308852 342697 1761894 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1709466 4143219 4346495 7168577 4809598 22177355 8750 17685 14921 15160 27715 84231 65286 51442 11739 644860 49190 822517 74036 69127 26660 660020 76905 906748 21270607 16424 22587 26057 42192 79777 187037 519 0 0 0 0 519 16943 22587 26057 42192 79777 187556 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1726409 4165806 4372552 7210769 4889375 22364911 0.95107 0.95018 0.00839 0.00613 X RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED X 5 394 0 0 0 1 1 14 225 0 0 28981644 28981644 0 3940725 1503466 2437259 0 0 0 0 0 237355 70394 166961 0 157584 7580 150004 31735868 Beneficial interest in endowment funds held at community foundations 2820130 2820130 Schedule D, Part II, Line 5 The Board approved a Conservation Easement policy on 05/27/2020 which states that monitoring should occur no less than annually by a staff member, Board member, or trained volunteer. The policy also provides enforcement and notification procedures should a violation be detected. Schedule D, Part II, Line 9 Conservation easements are carried on the Balance Sheet at a nominal value of $1.00. The costs associated with acquiring, maintaining, and/or modifying easements are generally expenses as incurred. 1 Wilderness East 7660 Cave Road Bainbridge OH 456129501 200223486 501(c)(3) 6658 0 payment of real estate taxes for land currently owned by entity. 1 0 Schedule I, Part I, Line 2 Highlands Nature Sanctuary, Inc makes a grant each year to Wilderness East, Inc to pay for real estate taxes incurred on land during the period of ownership by Wilderness East. Nancy J Stranahan Director 12336 See Part V 0 Schedule L, Part I, Line 1 On July 26, 2010, The Highlands Nature Sanctuary, Inc (HNS)entered into a purchase agreement with Nancy J Stranahan, Director of HNS, for a house located at 6636 SR 753, Hillsboro, Ohio. The house is situated next to an existing preserve and is secured with a mortgage note. The 15 year 5% note had an initial balance of $130,000 with annual principal and interest payments of $12,336. The liability balance on the note as of 12/31/23 was $21,569. X 2 390500 FMV X Supplies and furnishings for preserve lodges 1 9325 donor's cost 1 0 0 0 Form 990, Part VI, Section B, Line 11b The Form 990 was prepared by the Finance Director and reviewed by the Executive Director. A draft copy was then made available to all Board members for review. Board comments or edits were communicated back to either the Executive Director or Finance Director and if appropriate, incorporated into the final document. The Board voted to accept the completed document during a regularly scheduled meeting. Form 990, Part VI, Section B, Line 12c During the first Board meeting of each calendar year and after a verbal discussion of the purpose and intent of the Conflict of Interest Policy, each Board member is asked to complete and sign the written Conflict of Interest form listing any past, current, or future business dealings with the organization. The Executive Director avoids doing business with any Board member. Form 990, Part VI, Section B, Line 15 The organization's Executive Director and other employees are modestly compensated and enjoy no fringe benefits other than those mandated by law. Full time staff are awarded holiday, sick, and vacation leave according to the employment policy set by the Board. During 2023, the Executive Director's salary was determined by Board action after a Board personnel evaluation and after a comparative review of salaries for similar positions. All other staff member salaries were set by the Executive Director and approved by the Board via the submission of the annual budget. Form 990, Part VI, Section C, Line 19 All governing documents, conflict of interest policy, and financial statements are made readily available to anyone requesting such documentation. State registration documents are available on the Ohio Secretary of State public website. Form 990, Part XI, Line 9 Change in beneficial interest of endowment funds held at community foundations. Charitable Remainder Trust #1 7660 Cave Road Bainbridge OH 45612 000000000 Irrevocable remainder interest OH N/A T 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0