Greetings Everyone,
As the song goes “Oh the weather outside is frightful…” Mother nature has certainly put a crimp in our plans the past two months. Our January unit meeting had to be cancelled due to treacherous ice and snow. We postponed the February meeting due to impending snow. And then it was also cancelled by snow.
We were, however, able to gather most of
the Spring Education Day Committee chairs, vice chairs, and program committee members on the last day of January.
Preparations for our big event are going ahead thanks to the efforts of all of these dedicated women. I am going to use this space to update all of you on their progress, just in case the weather interferes again.
All speakers are confirmed, bios and photos received. Save the date and event flyers posted on our website and Facebook. We have a fantastic line-up of speakers who will present on herbal topics ranging from gardening and cooking, health and wellness, to decorating with herbs. Truly fulfilling the promise of providing “Pearls of Herbal Wisdom.”
Deb Slentz agreed to develop the flyer. This
was no small feat. Deb is working with a new computer and updated software. I think we can all relate to the frustrations inherent in this situation. Dee Dee Nunn has taken on the distribution of the flyers. Finding and converting email lists and navigating g-mail’s limitations and appeals process, Dee Dee has sent out hundreds of save the date emails, 91 snail-mailers and over 1,300 digital flyers! Jett started getting registrations in the mail within days.
Maggie Oster has the centerpieces well in
hand and within budget. Lorraine Hughes is
gathering goodies for the giftbags. If you
know any businesses that would like to put
freebies in the bags, please let her know.
Deb Knight has scoured local art/craft fairs
over the past year for new and diverse vendors. She has sent out eight vendor packets and, to date, five have confirmed their participation. Donna Poe and Susan Hart, chairs of the Raffle and Marketplace Committees respectively, are organizing their volunteers and planning for another year of productive fundraisers. We owe all of these members a huge debt of gratitude. Spring Education Day is our major community education effort. It takes all of us to pull this off.
On a different note, I would like to tell you
about another community organization that
some of our members are involved with. Let
Us Learn is a local non-profit dedicated to
increasing access to healthy food through
education, school gardens, affordable meal
prep classes, and local farm partnerships.
Members Donna Poe and Mike McKinley
volunteer at the Fairmont Elementary school garden. My partner and I support the organization with various volunteer projects. They will be holding a fund-raiser, Tastebuds Throwdown, on March 10th at 6:00 p.m. at The Mansion, 1866 in New Albany, Indiana.
If you have grandchildren, or other youngsters in your life, check out their new Earth Stewards Camp. Contact information for both programs can be found in Potpourri. It always makes me proud to see the impact our members have in the larger community.
