Flathead Land Trust
“Conserve the landscapes, water, and way of life of northwest Montana.”
The work
What they do
Land conservation and easements adjacent to Glacier National Park and Flathead National Forest. Protects wildlife corridors and working lands.
Every year they sign one sentence and file it with the federal government: “FLATHEAD LAND TRUST IS DEDICATED TO THE CONSERVATION OF NORTHWEST MONTANA'S LAND AND WATER THROUGH VOLUNTARY AGREEMENTS WITH PRIVATE LANDOWNERS.”
Where the money went, FY2024
The work, and what it cost
Reading every lease sale
$9.6MA. IN JANUARY, WE PARTNERED WITH CHARLES AND RENATE JAQUETTE TO PLACE THEIR 497-ACRE FARM JUST EAST OF KALISPELL UNDER CONSERVATION EASEMENT.
Read it as they filed it
CONSERVATION:A. IN JANUARY, WE PARTNERED WITH CHARLES AND RENATE JAQUETTE TO PLACE THEIR 497-ACRE FARM JUST EAST OF KALISPELL UNDER CONSERVATION EASEMENT. CONTAINING SOME OF THE RICHEST TOPSOIL IN THE VALLEY, THE EASEMENT ADDS TO A GROWING NETWORK OF CONSERVED FARMS IN THE HIGHLY PRODUCTIVE CRESTON AREA. ENCOMPASSING OVER A MILE OF EGAN SLOUGH, THE PROPERTY PROVIDES EXCELLENT BIRD HABITAT AND IS STRATEGICALLY LOCATED FOR BOTH BIRDS AND WILDLIFE AT A LANDSCAPE SCALE.B. IN FEBRUARY, WE COMPLETED A CONSERVATION EASEMENT WITH MONTANA DNRC TO PERMANENTLY PROTECT THE 405-ACRE OWEN SOWERWINE PROPERTY EAST OF KALISPELL. THIS BELOVED BLOCK OF SCHOOL TRUST LAND, WITH ITS INTACT FORESTED RIVER BOTTOM AND RIPARIAN HABITAT, HAS BEEN A COMMUNITY TREASURE ENJOYED BY THE PUBLIC FOR DECADES. C. IN APRIL, WE PARTNERED WITH LUCI YEATS TO PERMANENTLY PROTECT 76-ACRES OF HER FAMILY'S AGRICULTURAL LAND NEAR THE BAD ROCK CANYON WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT AREA EAST OF COLUMBIA FALLS. THE "HEART ROCK RIDGE" CONSERVATION EASEMENT SAFEGUARDS A VITAL WILDLIFE CORRIDOR AS WELL AS SCENIC OPEN SPACE AND A LONG LEGACY OF WORKING FARMLAND.D. ALSO IN APRIL, A 122-ACRE RANCH AND WILDLIFE HAVEN IN THE MISSION VALLEY, ONCE PLATTED FOR SUBDIVISION, WAS PROTECTED IN PERPETUITY WITH A CONSERVATION EASEMENT. JOHN WEAVER, DISTINGUISHED RETIRED CONSERVATION BIOLOGIST AND LAND STEWARD, PARTNERED WITH FLT BY ADDED THIS PARCEL ALONG MISSION CREEK JUST EAST OF THE NATIONAL BISON RANGE TO HIS CONSERVATION PORTFOLIO WHICH IS ADJACENT TO ANOTHER 159-ACRES OF PROTECTED LAND. E. IN AUGUST, A 51-ACRE PRIME PARCEL OF FORESTED LAND WAS PROTECTED ALONG SWAN LAKE. FLT PARTNERED WITH PAUL JOHNSON AND CANDICE GREENE TO PLACE THE ECOLOGICAL GEM UNDER A CONSERVATION EASEMENT, FOREVER PROTECTING HABITAT FOR BIRDS, WILDLIFE AND SCENIC VIEWS AS WELL AS THE EXCEPTIONAL WATER QUALITY OF SWAN LAKE. F. IN NOVEMBER, FLT PARTNERED WITH TWO LANDOWNERS TO PROTECT A TOTAL OF 66-ACRES OF IMPORTANT RIVERFRONT LAND NEAR WHITEFISH. SALLY ERICSSON AND TOM GARWIN PLACED THEIR 36 ACRES ALONG THE STILLWATER RIVER UNDER CONSERVATION EASEMENT, FOLLOWED BY MARK SCHMIDT, WHO CONSERVED HIS 30-ACRE PARCEL ALONG THE WHITEFISH RIVER. BOTH PROPERTIES PROTECT PRIME AGRICULTURAL LANDS AND RIPARIAN HABITATS, PROVIDING WILDLIFE HABITAT SECURITY AND CONNECTIVITY.
IRS Form 990 Part III, fiscal year 2024, signed under penalty of perjury.
Guarding the water
$37KOUR EDUCATION AND OUTREACH PROGRAMS WERE ESPECIALLY POPULAR AND REACHED MANY ACROSS THE FLATHEAD VALLEY.
Read it as they filed it
EDUCATION AND OUTREACH:OUR EDUCATION AND OUTREACH PROGRAMS WERE ESPECIALLY POPULAR AND REACHED MANY ACROSS THE FLATHEAD VALLEY. THE BIRD EDUCATION PROGRAM HELPED TO EDUCATE OVER 300 7TH AND 8TH GRADERS ABOUT BIRDS AND CONSERVATION FROM WEST VALLEY, BIGFORK, EVERGREEN AS WELL AS TWO EAGLE RIVER SCHOOL IN THE MISSION VALLEY.
IRS Form 990 Part III, fiscal year 2024, signed under penalty of perjury.
Boots on the ground
$22KMONITORED ALL 79 CONSERVATION EASEMENTS (ENCOMPASSING 15,162 ACRES) AND ONE RESTRICTED COVENANT.
Read it as they filed it
STEWARDSHIP:MONITORED ALL 79 CONSERVATION EASEMENTS (ENCOMPASSING 15,162 ACRES) AND ONE RESTRICTED COVENANT.
IRS Form 990 Part III, fiscal year 2024, signed under penalty of perjury.
Follow the dollar
98 cents of every dollar goes to the work
That ratio is a good sign, not a scorecard. Plenty of great groups run leaner and lumpier. What matters is the extremes, and Flathead Land Trust is nowhere near one.
$9,687,166 programs, $114,061 management, $39,435 fundraising. Form 990, FY2024.
The people
Who does the work
Honesty note: leadership comes from each year’s federal filing, so it can run a year behind. Orgs that claim their page can update it same-day. Work at Flathead Land Trust? Claim this page.
Those 25 volunteers are people who decided this ground was theirs to defend. If Flathead Land Trust is fighting for your place too, the matchmaker will find your way in.
Make it 26The filings
14 years of filings
14 years of filings
Total revenue by fiscal year, as filed. Point at the line for any year.
| Year | Revenue |
|---|---|
| 2011 | $767,261 |
| 2012 | $710,469 |
| 2013 | $318,158 |
| 2014 | $227,014 |
| 2015 | $597,099 |
| 2016 | $656,748 |
| 2017 | $533,323 |
| 2018 | $2,095,655 |
| 2019 | $364,075 |
| 2020 | $1,859,146 |
| 2021 | $1,601,887 |
| 2022 | $6,809,562 |
| 2023 | $3,424,830 |
| 2024 | $9,415,179 |
From $767K in 2011 to $9.4M in FY24, with no missed filing in 14 years. The 2024 peak of $9.4M reads like one-time gifts, so trust the line, not the peak.
The Montana congressional delegation averages 7 of 100 on public lands. See the full scorecard
Ways in
How to help
98 cents of your dollar goes straight to the work above.
Give on their site ↗Show upVolunteer with themFind their volunteer door on their own site.
Find it on their site ↗SpeakComment and callOpen comment windows and call scripts for fights like these, ready to send.
Public Lands Action NetworkFollowWatch the mapEvery threatened place in the country, tracked, with who stands for each.
Threatened Lands MapStand with Flathead Land Trust
41 years on the ground, 25 volunteers, 98 cents of every dollar on the line. That is who is holding it. There is room for one more.