This week upon learning Shepherd of the Hills church listed a 2.2-acre portion of green space that has been used by the community for decades, an organization called “New Glarus Cares” was formed to raise funds and acquire the land. The community organization includes local citizens and former New Glarus alum who want to help fund projects and make improvements for the greater good for the community.

“We believe the green space now owned by Shepherd of the Hills Church is a valuable asset to the community,” said Shelly Johnson, a founding member of New Glarus Cares. “The large, beautiful green lawn by Candy Cane Park has essentially served as an extension of Candy Cane Park for more than 50 years, and we feel it should stay that way. In addition to being the only sledding hill in town, it is also used daily for many different outdoor activities by many different groups, and we don’t feel there is an acceptable replacement if this land is acquired and developed by someone from outside of our community.”

On Saturday, New Glarus Cares launched its website NEWGLARUSCARES.com, which is now accepting pledges to help purchase the property to maintain this irreplaceable green space.

“We hope that we can form a successful private-public partnership with the Village that benefits everyone in the community,” Johnson said.

Donations are not being accepted at this time, only pledges. The organization will begin collecting donations once an agreement can be reached between the Village and the community to acquire the land and keep it as it is and make it an official extension of Candy Cane Park. When they are ready to begin collecting funds, they will issue tax deductible receipts for everyone’s donation. Please note that you can choose to make your pledges and donations anonymous.

“Though we are not collecting money just yet, we need everyone’s pledges now. Pledges will show how serious the community is about keeping the large green space behind Shepherd of the Hills so it can be enjoyed by many more generations to come,” said Johnson.

Those wanting to join New Glarus Cares, volunteer to help, or simply make a pledge, please go to https://www.newglaruscares.com or email the organization at info@newglaruscares.com.