Dear Friend of Orion,
This is a fundraising letter.
These are dreadfully difficult times for non-profit organizations devoted to
healing human relations with the natural world. At a time when they are
needed most, we hear from one fine organization after another that they are
being forced to close up shop. Just today I received word that two
exemplary initiatives, Northern Lights magazine and the Sitka Symposium, are
about to shut down operations, the former after eighteen years of
publication, the latter after twenty years of summer programs.
Also today I received a note from one of Orion's long-time friends, writers,
and advisors Terry Tempest Williams, who was also well known to Northern
Lights readers and Sitka Symposium students. She writes, "It just all seems
so overwhelming, the populace too complacent...I do wonder what it's going
to take to wake people up, as if the erosion of three decades of
environmental policy isn't enough."
Precious things are being lost from under our noses. Civil liberties,
decades of environmental protections, the crucial support services and
safety net for our children and the elderly. And we are losing those few
independent, noncommercial voices and educational forums that are offering a
clear alternative to the entertainment that passes for corporate news and
the fear- and greed-based dogma of the powerful few.
Don't let it happen. Independent media is one of the greatest hopes for the
future of democracy - don't let the few remaining forums for independent
thought die.
In over twenty years, Orion has never once published a single advertisement
from an outside source. Not once. Not in our magazine, not on our website,
not in our books. Never. How rare is that?
For nearly two years, as part of our Thoughts on America Initiative, we have
tried to provide a wide audience to brave citizens who recognize the
historic nature of the times and the true threats to our planet and our
country. Our newest book, Citizens Dissent, is an example.
And through the Orion Grassroots Network, we have attempted to celebrate and
empower hundreds of visionary organizations and initiatives (Sitka Symposium
was one of these) to flourish.
Please help us continue to do this. Don't let the flame of hope go out.
Please consider a gift to our Annual Fund or Thoughts on America Initiative..
Please help us wake people up.
https://ssl.crocker.com/orionsoc/supportjoin_os.cfm
$25. $50. Any amount will be gratefully received. If you can possibly send
us $100 or more, we will send you a limited-edition poster of our recent
full-page New York Times statement, "A Citizen's Response to the National
Security Strategy of the United States of America," by Wendell Berry.
Thank you for considering this request. And please pass it along to anyone
else who might be willing to help.
Sincerely,
Mr. Laurie Lane-Zucker
Executive Director
The Orion Society
187 Main Street
Great Barrington, Massachusetts 01230
USA
(413) 528-4422
(413) 528-0676 (fax)
http://www.oriononline.org
