Minutes

Minutes of St. John’s Advisory Council Meeting

November 8, 2000 in the Sexton Commons, Room 213

Present: Bob Ellenbecker, John Geissler, David Hartwell, Linda Marrin, Scott May, Ron Weinhold, John Taylor, Linda Mock

Absent: Gordon Bailey, Larry Davis, Dorothy Johnson, Tom Kroll, Fr. John Kulas, O.S.B., Janette Monear, Peter Olin, Bob Thomsen

Acting Director, John Geissler called the meeting to order about 1:25 p.m. He asked the council members to look at the handouts in front of them. The first handout is the meeting agenda.

1. Newsletter

John reported that the next newsletter should be out by December 15, 2000. He expressed his desire to have members of the Arboretum Advisory Council and/or Arboretum members contribute articles for the Newsletter. His goal is to have a bank of articles on hand.

2. Oak Savanna Restoration

Work is continuing on the Oak Savanna Restoration. The Seppi Brush clearing machine, which was on loan to St. John’s by David Hartwell and the Belwin Nature Center, did a great job of clearing the five acres on the south end hills of the Oak Savanna.

**A special "thank you" to David and the Belwin for loaning the machine to the Arboretum.

3. Kiosk Signage

The eight interior panels of the Kiosk have been installed. They look great. If time allows after the meeting, the Advisory Council will take a field trip to the Kiosk.

4. Boardwalks

The Design Committee approved the design of the two boardwalks. The east boardwalk is 700 feet long. It will begin slightly north and east of the kiosk near the freeway and connect to Pine Knob Trail. It will be made of wood and expanded polystyrene. The other boardwalk is 350 feet long. It will begin southeast of the kiosk and connect to the Oak Savanna. It is a fixed boardwalk. The total cost of the boardwalks is approximately $60,000. This figure includes material and installation labor. Minnesota Tree Trust will be donating the construction labor. Larry Schwietz has begun fundraising in Omaha and hopes to raise approximately $30,000. That will leave approximately $30,000 to do fundraising for. There was discussion regarding the DNR Grant. One of the requirements to qualify for the grant is that the project has to be available to the public for use. This raised the question of Abbey approval and liability issues. The Arboretum may need to check with the Treasurer about these questions.

There was discussion about creating a pond area west of the boardwalk that connects to the Oak Savanna. Are there special procedures we would need to follow? Perhaps Tom Kroll would have information about this.

The Belwin Nature Center has a saw that will cut the lumber for the boardwalk. David Hartman offered to loan it to the Arboretum for our boardwalk project.

5. Father Paul Memorial Rock

The Design Committee has also approved the memorial rock in the oak savanna. The dedication site will be the same location of the St. John’s Arboretum dedication site. This is scheduled to take place the end of May 2001.

6. Membership

The current membership is 300. This figure does not include the individuals who gave memorials. The memorial money was designated to either Land Endowment or funding for the Education Coordinator position.

David Hartwell told the council about a membership data base program he found on the Internet. The program can be downloaded free of charge. He will locate the web address and forward it to the Arboretum Office. Thank you David! J

7. Second Notice Membership Renewal

The Fundraising and PR Committee members have volunteered to call the members who have not renewed yet. Calling lists are being sent out with these minutes.

There was discussion about giving a token/gift as acknowledgement to individuals who renew their membership. A suggestion was made to call the arboretum member and personally thank them. Then offer them the choice of a gift.

8. Writing to Foundations for Grants

A grant application to the Bell Foundation is currently in progress. The Arboretum is currently applying for funding for student workers for summer, 2001.

It was suggested that when apply for a grant make personal contact with the foundation, ask for an appointment and present the grant request in person rather than just mailing the application in. Foundations usually get many applications and personal contact is more likely to leave an impression over just reading the application.

9. Volunteer Activities

Several volunteers help collect grass seed and flower seed in St. John’s Prairie this fall. The seeds have been packaged into three different types, prairie grass seed, prairie flowers and a combination of both. These have seeds are being sold as part of the Arboretum fundraising. Some of the volunteers are planning to start native prairie flowers from seed. The Science Department Greenhouse Manager has offered the Arboretum space for the project. Ron Weinhold offered to help with the project.

10.  Fundraising Dinners

Linda Marrin reported that the fundraising dinner held at her home went well. The people who attended were excited and receptive to St. John’s Arboretum.

11.  Deciduous Tree Walk

There was discussion about developing a self-guided deciduous tree walk brochure. Ron Weinhold has offered to help with the project. Because there are more than 40 varieties of deciduous trees at St. John’s, it was suggested to have two different brochures. It would a lengthy walk if the all of the deciduous were included in one walking tour.

12.  Father Paul Memorial Card Set

Fr. Fran Hoefgen and Greg Becker have taken photographs that they are offering to the Arboretum to be printed into cards. The thought is to make a memorial series of cards. Fr. Fran will get reduced printing costs. The Arboretum already has envelopes and boxes on hand.

13. Activities for Next Year

The development of the High School Environmental Camp has been started. Bob Ellenbecker’s sister, Mary will work with this program. A proposal for a waterfall to be placed in the Inner Campus Rock Garden was presented to the Design Committee. They would like us to continue to work on ideas. Larry Davis is aiding in the Natural History Museum Renovation

14. Schedule of Events

Saturday, December 9, 2000 at 2:00 p.m. Christmas at Saint John’s Concert will be held in the Great Hall. The Arboretum will sell 40 tickets. The hot tickets will be sold at $8.00 for members and $10.00 for nonmembers. A reception for Arboretum members will follow the concert.

Wednesday, January 10, 2001 at 6:00 p.m. a free guided moonlight snowshoe trek through St. John’s woods.

Tuesday, January 16, 2001 at 2:30 p.m. a bonfire Wolf Howl at the Wildlife Science Center.

15. Schedule of Advisory Council Meetings in 2001.

The Advisory Council Meetings for 2001 are scheduled start at 2:00 p.m. and end by 5:00 p.m. The dates are as follows:

FEBRUARY 7, 2001

MAY 2, 2001

AUGUST 3rd and 4th – RETREAT (3rd is Dorothy Johnson’s birthday)

NOVEMBER 7, 2001

Please mark these dates and times on your calendars.

There was discussion about the Retreat. The previous ones have been held in Nisswa and were overnight. The Retreat gave the Advisory Council members an opportunity to get to know each other better. There was discussion about changing the location and the length of time. No decisions were made.

16. Proposed Changes to Saint John’s Arboretum Advisory Council Structure

Please reference the enclosed handout titled "Saint John’s Arboretum Advisory Council-Background Information and Proposed changes.

Linda Marrin presented the proposed changes to the council members. The committee thinks it is important and is recommending that a list of skills, knowledge, area of influence and demographics be considered when recruiting new council members. Fr. Paul’s thought processes automatically did this.

Up to this date no terms of office are in place. The enclosed handout lists suggested terms.

Forming a Leadership Committee is recommended. One of the duties of this committee would be to help plan for the quarterly Advisory Council Meetings.

Currently, Fundraising and Public Relations are one committee. Because these are two different skill areas, it is recommended that they be two different committees.

It was noted that an individual could be a committee member without being on the Advisory Council. An Advisory Council member does need to be a member of a committee. Each committee will be responsible for its own committee charter, outlining the committee’s goals and objectives.

It was suggested that Arboretum develop a contact in the St. Cloud School District. This person could be part of the Outreach Committee and possibly contribute thoughts about how the Arboretum can be used.

Arboretum Consultants were discussed. It is important to keep in contact with the consultants to have their expertise available.

17. Scott May made a motion to accept the Saint John’s Arboretum Advisory Council-Background Information and proposed changes. David Hartwell seconded the motion. It passed Unanimously.

18. Scott May made a motion to accept the SAINT JOHN’S ARBORETUM STRATEGIC PLAN-FISCAL YEARS 2001-2005 (July 2000 through June 2005) Adopted in principle – August 2, 2000 with the exception of staffing position changes to be made on Page 12, V. Goals (continued) E. Administration (continued). Linda Marrin seconded. It passed unanimously.

19. Arboretum Council Member Questionnaire

The enclosed Arboretum Council Member Questionnaire was distributed at the meeting. Everyone was asked to complete the questionnaire while at the meeting. If you did not have an opportunity to complete it, please complete the enclosed one and return it to the Arboretum Office by November 27, 2000.

20.  Status of the Director of the Arboretum position.

The position is titled Land Manager/Director of Arboretum. It is being actively advertised in related trade publications/magazines. The Personnel Office has sent copies of the job description to educational institutions and individuals that have affiliations in this area for posting.

Respectfully submitted,

Linda D. Mock

 

_____ Enclosures