Increase Your Impact: Give at the Tiptop Level
Tiptop League members are committed to ensuring the stability and continuity of the San Juan Preservation Trust and our mission to conserve and care for the special lands and waters throughout the archipelago. With annual unrestricted gifts of $1,000 or more, Tiptop League members make certain the habitats, native species, water sources, and shorelines under our protection continue to thrive. As part of our thanks to you, you’ll receive invitations to exclusive events and adventures. We look forward to reaching for the peak with you!
Our annual lineup of Tiptop League events will provide you and your family with opportunities to tour SJPT-protected properties with staff naturalists and meet other like-minded Tiptop League members. These gatherings also provide us—SJPT staff and trustees—with a chance to get to know you better and thank you in person.
Why the Name “Tiptop League”?
“Tiptop Hill,” the highest point on Stuart Island, is a distinctive sentinel that stands at the entrance to the San Juan Islands and serves an important landmark for mariners who are approaching the United States from Canadian waters. The San Juan Preservation Trust has been working for decades on Tiptop—which had long been identified as a regional priority for conservation—to protect the old-growth trees, native grasslands, and Garry oak savannah that thrive on its undeveloped camelback-shaped ridgeline.
David Black, who served as an SJPT trustee for more than 20 years, had a special affinity for Tiptop Hill that began in his boyhood. With his wife Inez, David was also one of the Preservation Trust’s first loyal major donors. In addition to recognizing the importance of supporting the organization’s day-to-day operations with annual donations, he also provided the lead gifts that launched a number of SJPT’s earliest land acquisition campaigns. A gentle and generous man, David—who passed away in 2007 while still serving on our board—reveled in our efforts to permanently protect Tiptop Hill, and would often bid farewell to his conservation colleagues with a wave and a hearty “See you on Tiptop!”
