Chapters Check In
In January Austin Chapter #10 printed its first issue of a quarterly newsletter. Still searching for a novel name for community identification, the newsletter contains chapter meeting dates, Board of Directors' meetings, project status and monthly program information. Ramona Swenson has taken on this task and is encouraged by the local interest. She is pleased that the six page newsletter is off the press and hopes for additional improvements and newsletter name suggestions.
Submitted by Terry Dorsey.
Minnehaha Chapter member Anne Harvell gave a power point presentation at the January meeting relating her experiences as a member of the United Methodist Disaster Response Team in post-hurricane Mississippi. In addition to graphic pictures of total destruction of Gulf area towns, Ms. Harvell stressed the unseen environmental impacts, i.e., toxins from chemical and gasoline spills, rotting carcasses of animals, molds and parts of cars, TVs, computers and other devices that will take years, if ever, to remove from the environment.
A new Minnehaha Chapter member Dr. Amy Gilbert will be one of two activists representing the Izaak Walton League at the second National Population, Health and Environment Conference March 15-17 in the Philippines. The IWLA trip is sponsored by the Sustainability Education Program (SEP) and Jim Baird, National Director of SEP will also attend. Upon her return, Dr. Gilbert will be available to visit chapters and share her experience. Contact Person is Ruth Saari - 952-926-5587.
There are 24 pristine and undeveloped roadless areas totaling 90,000 acres in the Superior National Forest. Breckenridge Chapter is actively protecting these important acres. The chapter has partnered with the Friends of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness to produce a video to highlight this wilderness. Many Minnesota Ikes are featured in the video including: Ruth Saari, Dave Zentner, John Rust, Dick Brown, Kevin Proescholdt, Darby Nelson, Dell Erickson along with environmentalists from other organizations. "Protect Superior National's Roadless Area" will be aired across the state and on public TV. Breckenridge Chapter will let you know when the video is ready to be edited and aired.
The Bush Lake Chapter and the Minneapolis Chapter are joining a larger partnership for a Trout Stream restoration project in the Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge. This stream was the fresh water supply for the fish rearing "B ass Ponds" that early Ikes built and maintained in the 1930's - 1940's for fish stocking programs. From preliminary stream quality and chemistry investigations by the USFWS, DNR and Trout Unlimited, it appears very likely to be capable of supporting brook trout again. The stream is located just a few blocks south of the Mall of America and is fed by groundwater. The Ikes chapters will be teaming up with 10 other partners, including a nearby school. The Bass Ponds have become a youth-fishing pond and the Ikes chapters have sponsored fishing blocks, through the DNR's Fishing in the Neighborhood Program, to provide low-impact shoreline fishing access.
Those of you who attended the October 2005 Rochester IWLA Sustainable Farming Panel remember the enthusiasm, expertise and love for the land that Preston farmer Dave Serfling displayed during the discussion. Tragically, this long time sustainable farming advocate was killed in a car accident in January, leaving his wife Diane and son Ethan.
Last fall the Serfling's 350 acre farm had been chosen for a regional conservation award by the Minnesota Association of Soil and Water Conservation Districts. In nominating the Serflings for the award the Land Stewardship Project called them "passionate, pioneering conservationists," and said their "diversified crop and livestock farm is a model for conservation farming on fragile soils."
Serfling testified before Congress to help the Conservation Security Program become part of the 2002 Farm Bill. The program rewards farmers for soil and water conservation. Serfling felt that
federal policy should support environmentally sensitive working farms instead of subsidizing farmers based on the volume of their crops. Serfling was a "wonderful" model for living life joyously and generously and for raising animals with integrity. If you wish to send a memorial that will continue Dave Serfling's work, here are two options. Farm Beginnings is a Land Stewardship program which educates young farmers to develop a farming operation that is economically viable, uses innovative farming practices and provides a good quality of life. Heifer International will provide a gift of livestock to people in rural areas worldwide to provide a steady supply of much-needed food and income. Send checks payable to either organization to the MN Division Office and they will be forwarded.
Hanging on a wall in the State IWLA Division Office is the Division Charter. The date is 1946. Sixty Years! A history to celebrate!
Listed on the charter are the names of thirty-five chapters. Those chapters chartered before 1946 are noted.
By MN Division Archivist Ruth Saari
| Austin # 1 - 1924 | Hanley Falls | New Ulm - 1925 |
| Cannon Falls | Hibbing | Owatonna - 1926 |
| Carver County - 1926 | Star Chapter of Dodge Co. | Red Wing |
| Chisholm | Kelly Lake | Rochester - 1925 |
| Canisteo | LeCenter - 1925 | Whitewater Valley |
| Elbow-Vermillion | Minneapolis - 1926 | St. Michael |
| Duluth | City Lakes | Midway |
| Faribault | Minneapolis Women's - 1943 | Dr. Preston Bradley |
| Glencoe | North Minneapolis | Walker on Leech Lake |
| Gilmore | North Star | Willmar |
| Gopher State | South Minneapolis - 1937 | Winona - 1924 |
| Grand Rapids | New London - 1925 |
Zumbrota - 1934 |
Two of the great ladies of Minnesota's natural heritage died in November. Knowing both of them was a privilege as one of many who try to carry on a tradition of protecting the natural world we all share.
Janie Olyphant of Lake Elmo (longtime Agassiz/Jaques Chapter Ike member) and Harriet Lykken of Minneapolis were Minnesota's Rachel Carson equals. I was amazed at the similarity of much of their lives - their age, strong and long marriages, devotion to children and grandchildren, but mostly their life long passions for protecting the natural world. Whether it was songbird habitat, bringing the timber wolf out of endangered status, supporting the Boundary Waters Wilderness, both never wavered from their goals.....
We have allowed some to put a negative on the title environmental activist. These two women carried that title for their entire lives. Their activism has improved the lives of all Minnesotans.
From her twentieth banded chickadee to the more rare blackburnian warbler, Janie Olyphant showed fresh enthusiasm every migratory bird season. From her love of the wild timber wolves to her love for her household pets, Harriet Lykken expressed a deep link to the animal world that made enormous changes in our state. Two Minnesota environmental heroes.
Charlotte Brooker - IWLA National Director
Circle these Dates
Living Green Expo - May 6-7, Minnesota State Fairgrounds
Features over 200 exhibits showcasing environmentally sound products, services and practices plus workshops. A family friendly event with free admission.