A Gift to Share the Richness of Nature

Avid outdoorsman Steve Sansola hiked to the top of
Mount Kilimanjaro in 2019.

Appreciating the environment has been a thread throughout Steve Sansola’s life. His first outdoor childhood adventure was going fishing with his dad and uncle at Lake Kitchawan in northern Westchester County, 40 miles north of their home in the Bronx. He has stayed connected to nature ever since.

Throughout his 35-year career as an administrator at Marist College, in addition to carrying out his responsibilities in the Student Affairs office, he led numerous initiatives on campus to promote sustainability and help preserve the environment. Now retired, he has planned a gift to Marist that will support the College’s nature preserve, Fern Tor.

In his youth, going to summer camp in the Catskills and joining Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts kept Steve happily immersed in the outdoors. In college he studied recreation and outdoor education. He was the first SUNY Cortland student to do a winter internship at Raquette Lake Outdoor Education Center in the dead of winter, where in January it snows an average of 21 days and average temperatures are a high of 22 and a low of 10.

“I remember driving trucks on the ice across the lake between the Center’s facilities,” he says.

He was very active in the New York State Outdoor Education Association, serving as a member of its board. After graduation in 1977, he worked with a group called the Student Conservation Association at Arches National Park in Utah—a rafting and mountain biking mecca where he lived for three months.

Steve joined Marist in 1985 as director of housing. He was grateful to colleagues Jerry Cox ’55 and Deb DiCaprio for their willingness to give him access and time to initiate sustainable projects on the campus in addition to his workday duties.

“Marist is a place where if you have an interest or a talent, you are encouraged to pursue it for the betterment of the College,” he says.

Steve Sansola and Killy visit Fern Tor

Projects he energized or initiated included recycling paper, glass, and plastic; working with the campus publications center to buy recycled paper; and starting an annual campus sustainability day featuring workshops, vendors, and guest speakers for members of the College community. During his tenure at Marist as assistant dean of student affairs and then associate dean of student affairs, Steve oversaw Dining Services, Housing and Residential Life, Upward Bound, and the Liberty Partnership Program. One of the programs he launched focused on reducing food waste and composting within Dining Services. The compost was used across the campus, including in a vegetable garden cultivated by students. Part of the produce was donated to City of Poughkeepsie food banks. Steve also began a program of purchasing food for Dining Services from local and regional farms.

One very successful initiative was electronics recycling. From 2013 through 2019, more than 56,259 pounds of electronic equipment were recycled. Another successful program was cardboard collection on Opening Day. From 2008 through 2019, more than 49,310 pounds of cardboard were collected.

“Many tons of material were diverted from the waste stream to recycling,” he says.

Steve has maintained his connection to nature through not only his education and career but also in his leisure time. He has a passion for running and runs five or six days a week, mixing it up on road and trail. He’s run 15 marathons and numerous trail races, including a 50-mile ultra-race. He also enjoys kayaking, gardening, biking, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, and hiking. In August 2019 he and four friends hiked to the top of Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania—at 19,341 feet the highest peak on the African continent. He enjoys indoor pursuits as well such as cooking, reading, and visiting with family and friends.

“I've been so fortunate to be a part of the Marist community,” he says. “Marist became a great place to be a part of. The wonderful people, the philosophy of the College, and the [Marist] Brothers, it just resonated with me—who I was as a person, my own values growing up in a Jewish household about caring for others, doing no harm, repairing the world—those were sacred values that are important to me.”

Steve continues, “We had our challenges, but every day was unique. I don't think there was a single day in my 35 years at Marist that I did not look forward to going to work. There were just so many opportunities, and I'm just so grateful to Marist for giving that to me. The decision to leave a gift back to Marist was easy for me. It’s a way of continuing my connection to the College.”

Steve chose to leave a planned gift that will enhance opportunities for students to enjoy Fern Tor, the 13-acre nature preserve at the north end of Marist’s campus.

“I hope over time, more and more students will venture to Fern Tor and find it as a place for reflection, solitude, and healing. College can be stressful, particularly for students, and it’s important to have a place for them to go to be by themselves.”

To read more about Fern Tor visit https://www.marist.edu/-/fern-tor-environmental-science