We are all deeply saddened by the passing of David Sobey and express our most heartfelt condolences to his family and many friends and colleagues. He will be sorely missed.

David Sobey and Bonnie Sutherland by the St. Mary’s River in September 2023.

“I feel honoured and grateful to have had the chance to know Mr. Sobey and to work alongside him to realize a shared vision for protecting his beloved St. Mary’s River. Just a few weeks ago, we celebrated the announcement of the Archibald Lake Wilderness Area together. I am so grateful for that day, to have had that opportunity to thank him, to let him know what an impact he has had on protecting Nova Scotia’s natural legacy and how transformative his support has been for the Nature Trust. It was a joy to have had one last chance to listen to his memories of days on the river and stories of his early years with the family business – funny little anecdotes from a humble, kind and caring small-town Nova Scotian who loved his province, his family and lived his life with generosity and purpose. In his presence, it was easy to forget what a giant he was, an outstanding leader in business and philanthropy. We sat on the deck of his camp, sharing a simple lunch and drinking in the beauty of the deep blue river and the lush ribbon of green along its shores. The memory is a gift I will hold close to my heart. 

Through his very generous support and as an ambassador who inspired many landowners, donors and volunteers to help, David Sobey has left an indelible mark on protecting the St. Mary’s River, a treasured place where future generations can experience the same wonder and joy that captured his heart when he was just a boy. 

The incredible $1 million gift he and his family provided for the Nature Trust’s Twice the Wild campaign has been transformative for the pace and scale of saving wild, endangered spaces all across Nova Scotia. The natural legacy David Sobey leaves behind is an irreplaceable gift – for nature and for us all. A gift that will last forever. Mr. Sobey, our most profound admiration, respect, and gratitude.”

~ Bonnie Sutherland

David Sobey’s Nature Legacy

The story of David Sobey and the Nature Trust began on the shores of his beloved St. Mary’s River.

Two decades ago, David Sobey was already a keen supporter of salmon conservation and friend of the St. Mary’s River. Like many Nova Scotians, he had a deep connection to the land, steeped in precious family memories. He began visiting the river with his family as a child, and the river grew to be a significant part of his life.

“In the late 1930s my father began taking my older brother Bill and I and my younger brother Donald, down to the St. Mary’s River. “As a youngster, at college, this was a great place for my buddies and me to come. And way back in 1953, Faye and I had even our honeymoon here at Mitchells Pool. We went fishing in some of the pools I went to as a boy. It was a little embarrassing for me because she ended up catching more fish than I did! But that was just part of the fun. And we’ve kept coming down here over the years with our family. So, the river has always been a part of my life.” 

~ David Sobey

Envisioning a Ribbon of Green

In 2005, Mr. Sobey heard tell of a big, bold plan to protect the river’s shorelines by a small, fledgling nature conservation group he’d never even heard of. But being kind and of big heart, he came to meet us anyway, to listen to our story, at a gathering of fellow river-lovers hosted at the home of Dr. Hardy and Elizabeth Eshbaugh. We pored over maps and talked about our vision of a ‘ribbon of green’ – a contiguous corridor of protected riparian habitat, linking together significant and rare ecological gems, from habitat for endangered turtles, Atlantic salmon, and birds to provincially rare old-growth forests, and some of the last intact Acadian floodplain forests in Nova Scotia.

Mr. Sobey took a chance on us, planting the seeds that ultimately made our St. Mary’s River Legacy Campaign flourish. Through the David and Faye Sobey Foundation, he provided critical funding to launch our conservation efforts on the river. He instilled confidence in our organization and inspired other financial support for the campaign.  

David Sobey and the Foundation stepped in again over the following years, helping fund major land acquisitions as the campaign evolved.

David Sobey envisioning a “ribbon of green” on the St. Mary’s in 2005.

Past Nature Trust president Corey Miller honouring David Sobey for his contributions in 2009.

A Special Gift of Land

As his trust in our work and commitment to our vision grew, Mr. Sobey moved beyond financial support. He took note as friends and neighbours on the St. Mary’s took action to protect their lands with the Nature Trust.

“Sandy Cameron, who many people in Nova Scotia know – a favourite son from the village of Sherbrook – gave his land as a gift to the Trust. One of my neighbours just upriver from us, Hardy Eshbaugh, he’s had a farm there in his family since way back in the ’20s and they made a donation of their lands, and I found that quite a thing to do.”

~ David Sobey

View of David and Faye Sobey’s Mitchel Pool property, donated to the Nature Trust in 2017.

In 2017, wanting to ensure his treasured piece of land at Mitchells Pool, just north of Sherbrook Village, would remain just as it was for generations to come, Mr. and Mrs. Sobey generously entrusted their beautiful shoreline property to the care and stewardship of the Nature Trust through a land donation. 

The Mitchell’s Pool Conservation Lands is a unique ecological site, also steeped in memories for Mr. Sobey and his family, who have been visiting this part of the river for over 80 years.

“As you look out here you can see upriver a half mile and downriver a beautiful stillwater. You can walk all around along the river. On the opposite side (is) a beautiful hill of evergreens—there for years, never been cut there in my lifetime. You can see a lot of ducks and birds, and big oak trees. Just at the bottom of the property there’s an island where the river splits into two and drops off into faster water. It used to be a spot where you’d throw a fly out there and see the salmon move. It was beautiful in the fall. My wife Faye and I enjoyed it very much.” 

~ David Sobey

Asked about what he hopes for the Mitchells Pool property he entrusted to the Nature Trust, Mr. Sobey replied, “It’s not just my time as the caretaker of the land that matters, or my son Paul’s time—it’s in perpetuity. And I feel the property is in good hands with the Nature Trust. They are committed to looking after it, forever. The Mitchells Pool lands are going to be a part of Nova Scotia that keeps its natural beauty forever. I hope that my children and grandchildren and other people too, will enjoy visiting this land like I have since I was just a young fella.”

Inspiring Land Conservation

David and his son, Paul pose for a photo on the river in 2018.

In 2018, inspired by his conservation leadership and generosity, David’s son Paul and Paul’s wife Marsha stepped forward to donate their own family lands on the river by Cochrane Hill, to the Nature Trust.

This 230 acre gem, donated by Paul and Marsha Sobey, encompasses almost three kilometres of pristine river shoreline featuring rare old-growth hemlock and Acadian floodplain forests with massive oaks, maples and yellow birch. Stillwaters and pools provide habitat for diverse wildlife, from endangered turtles to frogs and salamanders. Songbirds, including imperilled Wood Pewees, Canada Warblers and Barn Swallows, find refuge on the lands. The protected riparian habitats help to keep the river healthy and viable for Atlantic salmon and trout. 

Paul Sobey noted that the St. Mary’s is rich in memories from when his grandfather first brought his father and uncles to camp and fish. He and his siblings, and now their children and extended family, have all come to know and love the river. 

“Our family’s connections to the river and to conservation run deep. My dad was our inspiration, but the Nature Trust has given us a way to act on that connection and to leave a lasting natural legacy.”

~ Paul Sobey

The family’s generous financial support and land gifts drew significant attention and spawned new energy and momentum for protecting the river. Spurred by the Sobeys, owners of other properties on the river stepped up to protect their lands too.

An Impressive River Legacy

Combined with provincial parks and protected areas, the ‘ribbon of green’ currently extends over 52 kilometres of the river’s shores, creating an increasingly interconnected, ecologically rich wildlife corridor. The protected lands encompass over 9,500 acres of outstanding forest and freshwater wilderness, diverse species and habitats, and unique ecosystem services that help to keep the river cool, clear, fast-flowing and healthy. 

This success of St. Mary’s would not be possible if David Sobey hadn’t taken a chance on our young but endlessly passionate team with big dreams and invested so generously. 

The Sobey family accepts the 2018 Conservation Award for their conservation efforts on the St. Mary’s River. Photo by Jenn Nauss of Cooked Photography.

The Sobey family’s connections to Nova Scotia’s wild places are strong, as is their dedication to its conservation. David and his family’s engagement has been transformative for the Nature Trust and the St. Mary’s River. For their belief and investment in our vision for the river, their generous land gifts, their inspiration to others, and the new conservation action they made possible, we were delighted to honour David Sobey and his family with the 2018 Nova Scotia Nature Trust Conservation Award.

Twice the Wild: Leading the Way

In response to the need for urgent action to stem alarming biodiversity loss and provide nature-based solutions to climate change, the Nature Trust launched an ambitious new campaign, Twice the Wild, in 2020. The campaign aims to double the land the Nature Trust protects and stewards across the province, bringing our conservation lands from 15,000 to 30,000 acres. To make these gains possible, we launched a four-million-dollar public fundraising campaign. Thanks to the campaign’s unprecedented leveraging opportunity, every dollar donated unlocked four more, for a total of twenty million dollars to save Twice the Wild.

We were thrilled when the Sobey family stepped up with a transformational leadership gift for the campaign. The David and Faye Sobey Foundation donated $900,000, with Paul and Marsha Sobey adding another $100,000 to bring the total family gift to $1 million.

The Sobey family’s Twice the Wild leadership support was game-changing. Combined with the confidence and generosity it inspired in others, we met our $4 million campaign goal in under a year. Their gift helped unlock over $16 million in matching federal, provincial and other funding, making huge wins for nature possible.

We are pleased to report we are on track to meet Twice the Wild’s land targets by 2024 – a network of Nova Scotia’s most essential and treasured natural areas, protected forever. We are so grateful for all David Sobey and the Sobey family have done for nature conservation in Nova Scotia. 

It has been a joy and a gift to know David Sobey and to work alongside him to protect Nova Scotia’s natural legacy. We hope he is smiling down on the river, watching anglers delight in seeing salmon jump in clean, cool waters, his children and grandchildren wandering beneath the towering oaks and hemlocks, endangered turtles nesting, and birds singing joyfully, safe in the natural haven he did so much to protect.