The Happy Trails Jamboree netted a tickle over $10,000 in 2010. For the communities and agencies getting the bill for the Calumet-Sag Trail, ten large will match another $40,000 in federal grants.

The money brings closure to the funding question for the Calumet-Sag Trail’s $260,000 wayfinding and amenities plan, which will allow the finished trail to connect Cal-Sag residents, businesses and transit to the trail. The local communities had to find 20% of those dollars—$52,000— themselves in order to get the rest from federal grants. Now they won’t have to: FOCST awarded $32,000 to the coalition of towns and the Cook Co. Forest Preserve District this past spring. The Jamboree and our other fundraising efforts easily close out the remaining $20,000.

Because of your and our wonderful sponsors and donors’ support at the Happy Trails Jamboree, and thanks to Rails to Trails Conservancy, The Coca-Cola Company, and U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (who provided the federal trail grant), the towns and agencies picking up the bill for Trail won’t spend one dime to finish that plan. That means the plan gets done faster, and leaves more cash in town coffers for construction.

It’s worth celebrating. And we’re clearly pretty good at that.