Lewis and Clark ChapterMaster Naturalist Program

March 6, 2016 12:00pm – 2:00pm

IDFG Regional Office

Officers: Billy Wilson – PresidentDavid Eberle – Vice-PresidentNora Pearson – TreasurerKaren Loeffelman – Secretary

Chapter MeetingOld Business

Present: Alice and Rod Campbell, Debbie and Sam Duncan, Steve Ford, Heath Fuller, Lorna Inglet, Karen Loeffelman, Gary and Nora Pearson, Billy Wilson

We first discussed upcoming volunteer opportunities, specifically the upcoming (March 12) Wildlife Box Building Day and the Access Yes survey. Names have been passed out to interested members, but no calls have been made yet. Billy encouraged calls so we can get a report for our next meeting on March 16.

Billy passed out a list of members from Sara Focht and noted that there were 29 original people at the first introductory meeting last year. Twenty-five people were initially on the membership roster – five of those people were from our sponsoring agencies and are not really members. Of the 20 left – 3 have left the area, and 3 members have not been active for some time. Of the 14 active members, 10 have received their certifications (5 members awarded today). We discussed the 2 year certification process that Sara has accepted for the current members. Billy also mentioned that people can still be a member of the Master Naturalist group and don’t have to be certified. There may come a time when volunteers needed by agencies require someone to be certified, and in that case only those members would be allowed to volunteer for those projects. The five members awarded their pins and certificates today were Steve Ford, Nora and Gary Pearson, and Sam and Debbie Duncan. Congratulations to all of the new Master Naturalists!!

One important piece of business to take care of is the election of new officers. Billy will be moving out of the area soon and can’t continue as President. Karen wants to pass on the Secretary position to someone new for the next year. Nora has agreed to be the new Treasurer – replacing Brittney Haupert (left the area) and we need to get that position solidified with the Potlatch Credit Union. Billy went over the duties of the President and Karen explained what she did in the Secretary position before asking for volunteers for those positions. Steve Ullrich has already volunteered for the Vice-President position and will remain on the steering committee. David Eberle offered to also serve on the steering committee, but doesn’t want an officer position.

There were no volunteers for the Secretarial position, however Alice Campbell (possibly working with Lorna Inglet) is considering volunteering for the position and we will address that issue at the next meeting on the 16th. Debbie Duncan volunteered for the President position and ran unopposed. A motion was put forth and seconded and passed unanimously to accept Debbie Duncan as the new President. Currently there are 3 people on the signature card for the Credit Union—the President, Secretary, and Treasurer. It was voted to remove the requirement of the Secretary to be a signatory and keep the President and Treasurer on the account. The motion was put forth and seconded and passed unanimously. Therefore the officers needed to be removed are David Eberle (Vice-President), Karen Loeffelman (Secretary) and Billy Wilson (President). The officers added are Debbie Duncan (President), Nora Pearson (Treasurer), and Steve Ullrich (Vice-President).

New Business

Some new issues to consider moving forward is the decision on whether or not to collect annual dues. Also we need to speak to Jen about recruiting new members for the upcoming year. If we can get information out in time, we could invite potential new members to the next meeting on March 16th. Debbie will contact Jen about getting the word out through her news contacts.

Upcoming EventsTwo Evening Discussions: Monday, March 7 at 6:00 pm (in Moscow) and 6:30 pm (in Pullman). Check the calendar for details.Wildlife Box Building: Saturday, March 12 in Juliaetta starting at 9:00 am. Volunteers are needed to assist building bird boxes, bat houses, bee hives, and other wildlife structures. Contact Bill Seybold.Next Meeting: March 16 from 6-8 pm. A reschedule of the meeting with Zack Swearingen, wildlife biologist with IDFG, will talk on land use and birds. This will be followed up with a field day in April.

Submitted by: ________________________________Karen A. LoeffelmanLewis and Clark Chapter SecretaryIdaho Master Naturalist Program03-06-2016

Our newest Naturalists!

Steve Ford Nora and Gary Pearson

Sam and Debbie Duncan

Thanks again to Billy Wilson for leading us as President the past year. We will miss him!! And thanks to all who brought all the delicious food to the meeting today. Yummers!