Pathways to Civic Engagement

A Q&A with Barbara Linell Glaser EdD

How did you become engaged in Adirondack philanthropy?

I was born and raised in Minnesota and grew up loving the freshwater lakes and the forests of the North.

I moved to the northern Adirondacks with my first husband in the early 1970s, where we ran an educational conference center in Upper Jay. In the mid-70s, it was a privilege to help save Great Camp Sagamore from being torn down when Syracuse University sold the property and the 1,500 acres around it to the State of New York. I was recruited by Gary Randorf to join the board of the newly formed Adirondack Council, and I served on that board for 25 years. In subsequent years, I was privileged to work on the board of the Adirondack chapter of The Nature Conservancy, and I currently serve on the board of the Adirondack Land Trust.

You’ve also been involved with Adirondack Community Foundation for many years. How do you see the role of community foundations in the regions they serve?

Cali Brooks approached me to help her support the establishment of small fledgling accounts at the young Adirondack Community Foundation — the acorn funds. In later years I was asked to serve in a regional advisory role before being asked to join the board.

I grew up in a family and a city that valued civic engagement, service, and “giving back.” Adirondack Community Foundation and later the Community Foundation for the Greater Capital Region provided the vehicle for learning how to do this strategically and effectively in my communities in upstate New York.

I grew up singing in choirs. I have always appreciated being one voice in a larger chorus, producing something bigger than ourselves. Participating in these Adirondack organizations gave me that opportunity.

I have established my donor advised fund through Adirondack Community Foundation because I trust how the monies are invested and value that Adirondack Community Foundation, unlike commercial DAF entities, works full time to understand the changing needs of the communities they serve.

You were instrumental in the creation of the Generous Acts Fund for the Central Adirondacks. Why do you think it’s important to have a fund devoted to this particular region?

So much of philanthropy in the Adirondacks has been focused in the High Peaks area around Lake Placid, Saranac Lake, and Keene.

Being that I have spent over 40 years in the Raquette Lake area, I have come to believe it’s important that we strengthen philanthropic engagement in this central region — including Old Forge, Inlet, Raquette Lake, and Blue Mountain Lake — to ensure that the unique needs of this part of the park have an opportunity to be addressed through the engagement of this region’s people.

Why did you choose to include the Foundation in your legacy plans through the Pathways to Opportunities Campaign?

I have a charitable remainder trust which, upon my death, will distribute its assets to Adirondack Community Foundation to continue supporting the regional organizations that my donor advised fund, the Northern Lights Fund, has traditionally supported.

In this way I can “keep on keeping on,” supporting the work of the organizations that I have been part of and that are so vital in serving the region.