Conserving Carolina receives $1.75 million gift from the late Vivienne Jordahl

Although Hendersonville's Vivienne Jordahl left this earth on Feb. 1, 2022, at the age of 78, her deep love of nature will carry on.

Conserving Carolina announced in a March 6 news release that when Jordahl died last year, she left a generous gift of $1.75 million to the land trust based in Hendersonville.

“We are so grateful that Ms. Jordahl acted out of her great love for nature with this outstanding legacy gift, which has opened doors for us to protect more land and to strengthen our restoration and stewardship work," Conserving Carolina Executive Director Kieran Roe said in the release. "We are already seeing great benefits from her gift, which has been invested to continue supporting conservation well into the future.”

Born in Leicester, England in 1943, Jordahl studied special education, moving to the United States to work as a tutor, and met her husband Bernhard in Washington, D.C. They lived in the Washington area for many years, and Jordahl participated in tea and garden clubs for British women there.

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She did volunteer work, including maintaining bluebird boxes. Her niece, Kathryn Brue, trustee of her estate, remembers that her Aunt Vivi often had a bird in her home. She said the colorful pet birds would fly through the house and land on her finger.

“Vivi seemed to speak their language,” Brue said in the news release.

The Jordahls retired to Hendersonville in the late 1990s. After her husband died in 2009, Jordahl continued to maintain warm relationships with family and friends. At the time of her death, she had seven nieces and nephews located around the globe, a number of British second cousins and a circle of close friends. As she aged, her garden and steep lot were too much for her and she employed three landscapers who she regarded as family, the release said.

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Brue said she remembers her aunt as quiet, reflective and thoughtful.

“Her heart was for the outdoors — birds, animals, gardens, flowers. Vivi didn’t have any children of her own, but she gave a lot of love to the earth and its inhabitants in many ways. She cared deeply about the land,” Brue said.

Conserving Carolina, has helped to protect over 48,000 acres in Transylvania, Henderson, Polk and surrounding counties and has invested much of this bequest in an endowment and the interest from that investment is making it possible to hire much-needed staff to support land conservation and habitat restoration, the release said. Another portion of the bequest was placed in a revolving fund to help purchase additional conservation properties.

“This gift demonstrates the transformative impact that legacy gifts can have. The truth is that we’ve struggled with capacity challenges for some time, but it was only because of this generous bequest that we were able to hire much-needed staff," Roe said. "More land will be protected and more animals will find habitat, thanks to Ms. Jordahl’s thoughtful legacy. I hope that other people who love this wonderful region will feel inspired by her example.”

Conserving Carolina is planning to create a pollinator garden in memory of Vivienne Jordahl as part of the Las Flores project near her neighborhood in Haywood Knolls. Las Flores will be an outdoor gathering space for the local Hispanic community and neighbors, including a community garden and the memorial pollinator garden. Conserving Carolina envisions the pollinator garden full of beautiful native plants, providing vital habitat for bees, butterflies, birds and other wild creatures — an ongoing tribute to a woman who loved the living world.

Conserving Carolina is a local nonprofit that has helped to protect over 48,000 acres in Henderson, Polk, Rutherford, Transylvania and surrounding counties. Anyone interested in making a legacy gift or wishing to discuss planned giving options can contact Conserving Carolina’s Development Director, Jenn Tutor, at 828-697-5777 ext. 209.

Dean Hensley is the news editor for the Hendersonville Times-News. Email him with tips, questions and comments at DHensley@gannett.com. Please help support this kind of local journalism with a subscription to the Hendersonville Times-News.

This article originally appeared on Hendersonville Times-News: Conserving Carolina receives $1.75 million gift from the late Vivienne Jordahl