President's Trailhead - January 2025

Dear Hiker,

Happy New Year!

Winter's cold, stillness, and sometimes white snow blankets our hiking trails. Consider joining a winter hike with a hiking group near you and check out the wonders of this season. It's during this period that the plants and animals that we enjoy on our spring hikes rest and prepare for it's arrival. Seeds and buds are dormant and will become the flowers of spring and summer and the fruits of summer and fall.​

We also have the opportunity to plant the seeds for our organization's future success and "hiking fruits."  Continuing to grow our endowment fund is essential to providing long-term financial stability to our organization.  

Please consider donating to The Keystone Trails Endowment Fund sometime this year as a lasting legacy to the mission of KTA.  KTA organizational member clubs and other groups may also contribute to the fund. Consider donating in honor or memory of a club member who has made a difference in your club or the hiking community.  

An application is available at the KTA website; linked here. Even if you can't donate to a set giving level, all contributions to the fund add up over time.  The principal remains in the endowment fund.  The earnings from the fund investments are used to support KTA's mini-grants to clubs and the organization's general operations. 

Consider KTA in your estate planning to positively impact Pennsylvania Trails for future generations.

Donors will be recognized at the awards presentation this fall.  The Board thanks you for your contribution to this important fund.

Plan your hikes for 2025 to earn one of the year's many hiking awards.  Check out our website for the details regarding each hiking award.  In addition, throughout the coming year, please consider your fellow hikers and clubs for nomination for Certificates of Achievement, Volunteer of the Year, Club of the Year, and the KTA Citation Award for Lifetime Achievement.    You can also plan to take on a 100-mile Trail Challenge during the year.

See you at the trailhead and on the trail.

For the trails and those who wander on them!

Thanks
Wayne E. Gross
President, Board of Directors 
Keystone Trails Association
​The Statewide Voice of Pennsylvania Hikers