Mendon Foundation Inc
Preservation • Recreation • Education • Since 1993
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
We address the desire for our community to preserve the open spaces in our area for the enjoyment of future generations.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Open space preservation
The Mendon Foundation exists, first and foremost, to preserve open spaces throughout the Town of Mendon by serving as a land trust. We are a member of the Land Trust Alliance (LTA), and we have a goal of being accredited by the LTA in the future. All of the locations where you can experience the legacy of open spaces provided by the Mendon Foundation are highlighted on https://mendonfoundation.org/public-land-trust-spaces/.
Lehigh Valley Trail
Beyond our land trust duties, we are perhaps best-known as the co-creators and maintainers of the Lehigh Valley Trail in the Towns of Mendon and Rush. The 16 miles of this trail are enjoyed by more people than all of our other properties combined. As opposed to our other properties, however, the Trail is owned by Monroe County, and is part of the Monroe County Parks system. The Mendon Foundation maintains a contract with Monroe County to help maintain the Trail, and to sponsor projects along its length, which are largely assisted with the help of Boy Scouts and a dedicated and organized core of Mendon Foundation volunteers. A significant percentage of the dollars donated to us go into the maintenance of the Trail.
Where we work
External reviews

Our Sustainable Development Goals
Learn more about Sustainable Development Goals.
Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
From 2020-2023, we will explore the following:\n\n- Work with Monroe County on further trail improvements/resurfacing critical areas.\n- Increase fundraising to underpin master plan projects at Rochester Junction and Mendon Station Park (including getting back to grant writing where relevant grants become available to us).\n- Improve core utility infrastructure at Rochester Junction, including electric, water, and security.\n- Revive Earth Day activities with the Scouts on the Trail and our properties.\n- Find a railroad car for Mendon Station Park tracks, restore boxcar and flatcar at Rochester Junction, and improve messaging in our Trail kiosks.\n- Continue to explore Land Trust Alliance (LTA) accreditation; review LTA Standards & Practices with all board members.\n- Reinvigorate our newsletter activities, at least through increased blogging on our web site, and hopefully with email newsletters if not print.\n- Increase volunteer base.\n- Renew our work to visit and inspect land trust properties on an annual basis, with all board members.\n- Explore ways to have volunteers assist with grooming portions of the Lehigh Valley Trail for cross country skiing.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
Fundamentally, we sat down and wrote these goals out at the end of our 2020 annual meeting. We are adding a project manager/fundraiser to our volunteer corps, who can help us reprioritize these things on an ongoing basis, and take steps toward getting there. Many of these projects are in various stages of progress already.\n\nSome of them involve Boy Scout involvement, and we have refreshed our relationship with the Scouts to make this more likely to happen. COVID restrictions are somewhat of an impediment as of early 2021, but we know things will improve as the months roll on.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
We already have a strong relationship with Monroe County for improvements to the Lehigh Valley Trail, especially with the new County Parks leadership that took over in 2020. We feel we have a fruitful dialog, and there is general agreement on the value of the work that we have planned.\n\nWe recently took ownership of our web site and domain after a few years of it not being under our control, and we launched an all-new web site in early 2021. This site includes a vastly stronger outreach capability, with a strong social media presence and a variety of ways for people to reach out to us, and to build stronger relationships with our community. This will be a powerful platform for invigorating awareness, donations, and volunteering.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
Since our inception, we have become stewards of 160 acres of open spaces, and continue to renew our 5-year contracts with Monroe County to maintain the Lehigh Valley Trail.\n\nBut of the goals stated above, we are already seeing increased fundraising levels that will help us with the maintenance of displayed railroad equipment at Rochester Junction; we are already engaged with Monroe County on electrical and water improvements at Rochester Junction; and we are seeing more people in the community step up to offer volunteer services; and we have formally begun restorative work on our Lehigh Valley boxcar at Rochester Junction. Last but not least, our new web site has created vastly greater visibility to our land trust duties, and serves as a handy reference platform for reviewing them on a regular basis.
How we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
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How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
To identify bright spots and enhance positive service experiences, To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve
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Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
Mendon Foundation Inc
Board of directorsas of 01/30/2023
Mr. Francis Celona
Mendon Foundation, Inc.
Term: 2022 - 2023
Blaine Grindle
Rodney Ham
John Farrell
Bonnie Coddington
Diane Ham
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
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