Everyone who knew Mike Keady has at least one great story about him. About his courting of and marriage to Bella…his frustration with the cell phone reception at his home… his dedication to his beloved Holland Township and to the New Jersey Highlands… his steady friendship and his engaging storytelling. Many of those stories will invariably include mention of how persistently he advocated for what he believed in.

I had the great fortune to work closely with him in his capacity as a Trustee for the New Jersey Highlands Coalition and Chair of the Small Grants Committee. Mike’s positive impact on the program over the years cannot be overstated. Every group that applied under his watch found a thoughtful and consistent advocate. I heard him say many times: “If only we could fund them all.”

These grants made by the Coalition have funded groups all over the Highlands who otherwise have very few grant opportunities (grants from foundations are a funding source for any IRS-designated nonprofit). These small grants offered by the Coalition help launch campaigns and oppositions, enable groups to seek matching funds, provide emergency funding, and serve to build capacity. These grants directly protect the water resources that 70% of New Jersey residents depend on everyday for some or all of their water and protect the region’s extraordinary cultural resources.

As founder and president of Friends of Holland Highlands, Mike understood the importance of these grants. The Friends worked hard to protect the resources of Holland Township, particularly it’s open space and agricultural lands. It’s fair to say the Friends had a lasting and very positive impact on the community. Many groups feel overwhelmed when they face a major developer or a project budget they believe is beyond their capacity. Not only does this Coalition grant provide funding, but Mike understood that these grants provide a confidence boost that lasts beyond the grant period, because they know the grant means the Coalition is on their side.

We lost Mike in July, just a few weeks before the New Jersey Highlands Coalition awarded the 2025 Small Grant awards. There could be no better testament to his leadership and devotion to the program than this: including the 2025 Small Grants, over half a million dollars have been awarded since the program’s inception to small groups and organizations working to protect the natural and cultural resources of the New Jersey Highlands. For a small environmental nonprofit, that is an incredible achievement.

Many of these groups had no idea of Mike’s individual dedication to the program and his investment in their success. Yet he quietly and consistently championed each group’s  success.

The Small Grants Committee is proud to announce that the following organizations have been awarded Small Grants, as part of the 2025 Small Grants Program: Skylands Preservation Alliance, Sparta Responsible Development, Boonton Main Street, Inc., Help Our Preservation Effort (H.O.P.E.), Concerned Citizens of Frelinghuysen NJ, Mountain Lakes Concerned Citizens, Hardyston Responsible Development, and Preservation of the Terhune Historic Settlement, Inc. “We are proud to support these organizations as they protect, educate about, and defend the Highlands on a local level,” said Michael Henderson, trustee and now Chair of the Coalition’s Small Grants Committee. “We are only able to be effective as an organization because of the strength of our partners and the support of our individual members whose donations help fund our programs—including the Small Grant Program. These small member organizations and volunteer groups are crucial to the continued viability of the State of New Jersey for generations to come as an environmentally healthy place that protects its myriad resources and where people want to live and play.”

We invite our members, partners, conservation allies, and fellow friends of Mike’s to join us as we award the 2025 Small Grants at our Annual Meeting on October 8, 2025, starting at 3 PM, in the Darlington Schoolhouse in Mahwah, NJ (headquarters of Coalition member, NY-NJ Trail Conference). These grants will carry on Mike’s legacy of preservation for years to come.