Recap: Once in a Blue Moon 2025
Our community gathered for a night of good food, good company, and conservation support at The Land Trust for Tennessee’s historic Glen Leven Farm on Saturday, October 25, for The Land Trust’s annual Once in a Blue Moon event. The group was brought together for a mutual cause: conserving land important to the people of Tennessee. This year’s event was focused on the generational nature of land conservation and the importance of protecting beloved open spaces for future generations of Tennesseans.
Co-Chairs Trisha & Chuck Elcan and Lauren & Baxter Ingram went to great lengths planning and executing the finest details of the event, making this year’s Once in a Blue Moon a truly unforgettable celebration.
The evening began with a walk through the property’s historic barn, where guests were greeted with specialty cocktails, featuring Tito’s Handmade Vodka and Jack Daniel’s Old No. 7, a presenting sponsor of the event. Before the program began and dinner was served, guests enjoyed an acoustic set by Willie Pearl Band during cocktail hour.
As guests took their seats, Board of Directors member George Clements kicked off the program by welcoming guests and describing his deep involvement in restoring the office at The Land Trust for Tennessee’s Glen Leven Farm. He also told guests about how, when he took his teenage son to Glen Leven Farm a few months ago, he said “Dad, I don’t know what it is about this place, but every time I’m out here, my mind just tends to wander!” Clements then ended his remarks by proposing a toast to finding places that let our minds wander.
After a break for guests to enjoy a plated dinner by Flavor Catering, event co-chair and member of the Board of Directors, Baxter Ingram, called the attention back to the stage. He spoke to the generational theme of the event by describing growing up on his family cattle farm in Lebanon, TN, which has been in his family for generations. He also credited his father-in-law, Chuck Elcan, an event co-chair and founding Board member of The Land Trust, with seeing how much his family farm meant to him and introducing him to The Land Trust for Tennessee. Baxter then introduced The Land Trust’s Board Chair, Louise Beasley, who expressed gratitude to past and present Board members, landowners, and staff. She spoke about the exciting moment we are experiencing for conservation across Tennessee and emphasized that the future of land is directly related to the future of our humanity.
Louise then introduced a short film created by The Land Trust team that focused on the generational nature of land conservation and the importance of open space not just as a nice environmental cause, but as an actual health benefit to our children and future Tennesseans. It featured commentary from Dr. Linda Mayes, who is the Chair of the Child Studies Center at the Yale School of Medicine, as well as an adjunct professor at Sewanee: The University of the South. It also included an interview with Rutherford County landowner and retired teacher Steve Cates, who talked about his great-great-niece Mary growing up on the protected farm and how meaningful that is to him and his family.
The Land Trust for Tennessee President and CEO, Liz McLaurin, then took to the stage to thank guests again and encourage guests to enjoy their delicious desserts and enjoy the event’s iconic s’mores and bonfires. Willie Pearl Band then took to the stage for a lively performance as guests danced and celebrated land conservation for the rest of the evening.
This year’s Once in a Blue Moon was made possible by sponsors Jack Daniel’s, Tractor Supply Company Foundation, LP Building Solutions, Morning Pointe Senior Living, Pinnacle Financial Partners, McEwen Group, Riley & Jacobson PLC, Silicon Ranch Corporation, Vanderbilt University, Lipman Brothers and R.S. Lipman Company, Butler Snow, Clearloop, Colonial Pipeline Company, Davey Resource Group, First Horizon Foundation, Freeman Webb Company, Harvest Wine Market, HCA Healthcare and TriStar Health, and Tower Community Bank.
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