If interested, here is a note from Ebirds Yahhoo groups moderator Phil Jeffreys:
Make checks payable to THE CENTRAL PARK CONSERVANCY
with the memo line "in memory of Marty Sohmer, park bench”
and mail it to:
Marty Sohmer Park Bench
c/o Chris Cooper
619 E 11th St 5A
New York, NY 10009
Be sure to include your RETURN ADDRESS. And please be as generous as
you can. With everyone’s help, I’m sure we’ll be gathering around
Marty’s Bench in no time!
From Chris Cooper:
It's official: The fundraising campaign for a memorial to the late
Marty Sohmer, one of the best beloved birders in the metro area and an
all-around fine human being, starts here.
Many of you remember Marty, a warm, generous, one-of-a-kind character
who frequented both Central Park and Prospect Park, taught a lot of us
so much of what we know about our birds, and played a big part in
fostering the community atmosphere that prevails in our metro birding
circles. This lifelong blue-collar Brooklynite (with the accent to prove
it!) mingled with birders of every stripe, high and low, and shared his
knowledge and love of the birds so freely that it made us all feel rich.
Now's our chance to pay him back. In his honor, we plan to
"adopt" a bench in Central Park in or near the Ramble, through
the Central Park Conservancy, which oversees the bench program.
We've all seen the park benches with plaques commemorating people
and events; we're overdue for one dedicated to a birder, and
there's no finer representative of what's best about birders than
Marty.
Our goal is to raise $7,500—the cost of adopting a bench--by
November 1. Contributions are tax deductible, and what's more, every
penny is a contribution to the park, to help keep it a green oasis we
can return to year after year. If you were planning to donate to the
Central Park Conservancy anyway, this is a great way to do it.
Plus—since we have a pledge to match contributions up to the cost of
the bench—every dollar you give is worth TWICE as much, giving you
even more bang for your buck.
