RELEASE: Packed Boundary Waters Gala featured keynote speakers Gold Medalist Jessie Diggins and Director of the Bureau of Land Management Tracy Stone-Manning
(ELY, MN) – Over 500 Wilderness supporters, including local businesses, conservation groups, youth, nonprofits, and individuals, attended Save the Boundary Waters’ annual gala last night at Minneapolis’ Nicollet Island Pavilion. The evening featured keynote speaker Jessie Diggins, Olympic Gold Medalist and World Champion cross-country skier, and Tracy Stone-Manning, Director of the Bureau of Land Management. The evening was the highest attended Save the Boundary Waters gala with over $300,000 raised to support the ongoing fight for the permanent protection of the Boundary Waters.
Jessie Diggins, Olympic Gold Medalist and World Champion cross-country skier said, “Most people don't know this, but I would not have a gold medal if it weren't for the trips to the Boundary Waters that my parents took me on as a kid (as well as the very obvious learning how to ski - starting off in my dad's backpack) but those trips really formed who I am today." Jessie Diggins later said, “when I got a little bit older, and I started really falling in love with skiing as well, I took all those lessons that we learned in the Boundary Waters, because those trips really shaped me in very important ways.”
Bureau of Land Management Director Tracy Stone-Manning: “We have few places left where we can find solitude, amidst the bustle and clamor of daily life. So few places where we can go and feel the enormity of nature of the universe. There's nothing like canoeing through the Boundary Waters to provide that experience.” Tracy Stone-Manning stated, “I was so grateful to be a part of the decision to withdraw more than 225,000 acres within the Superior National Forest from mineral leasing for 20 years,” and went on to say, “We have an obligation to pass on healthy rangelands, wildlife habitat, clean water, the promise of productive lands, to future generations, we have an obligation to protect our very best lands and waters like the Boundary Waters and to restore lands and waters that need it. That's our commitment to all of you.”
Jessie Diggins is an Olympic Gold Medalist and World Champion, and the first American cross-country skier to win two World Cup overall titles. She also recently won the 50th annual American Birkebeiner, or “Birkie,” race in Wisconsin. Originally from Afton, Minnesota, she has a deep personal connection to the Boundary Waters and is a passionate advocate for its preservation.
Tracy Stone-Manning, Director of the Bureau of Land Management has spent her career devoted to public service and conservation, bringing people together to solve the biggest challenges facing our lands and waters. She is the 19th Director of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), an agency within the U.S. Department of the Interior. Stone-Manning played a crucial role in the 20-year mineral withdrawal issued on January 26, 2023, which banned mining on 225,504 acres in the Boundary Waters watershed.