Those Present: Tom Anderson, Steve Thrasher, Lori Schoonover, Keith Schoonover, Vince Perrotta, Tyson Rose, Jim Arnold, Dawne Howard, Mike Kay

1. Keith called the meeting to order.

2. Treasurer’s report: Claude emailed Mike saying that he believes that we received $.30 in interest last month but has not yet received the statement. Other than that, the Treasury balance is similar to last month’s balance.

3. Logging site exams: Mike received one plan in the Myersville area. Mike suggested that we schedule site visits for next week because it is likely that we will receive more plans given the early January 9, 2017 date of meeting. Mike will touch base next week via email/phone.

4. Sustainability Commission: Tom indicated that the Monocacy River Watershed committee briefed the Sustainability Commission about their initiative which basically recommends the establishment of forest around the river. Tom alsomentioned that the Solar Co-op is still accepting applications until the end of February.

5. Big Tree program: Despite the bitter cold we were able to measure two trees and conduct a logging site exam. There are 2- 3 trees left to measure. Mike proposes that we wait until March before resuming measurements.

6. High School Training: Dawne phoned two of her high school instructor contacts to see if there is any interest in attending a Forestry Field day training on the Walkersville Watershed to help prepare for FFA Forestry Competition and Envirothon. Dawne had not heard back from them and said she would try again. Claude contacted the Scout Troupe about using the watershed for the day and was informed that it would be possible to do so. What is needed is a specific time before they can be certain. We discussed briefly the merits of scheduling the training on a weekend vs. holding it when school would be in session so that students could be taken to the site by bus. Mike reviewed the FFA training manual and thought that we could provide most of the “outdoor” training that is required. Topics such as map making and developing a business plan could be done in the classroom and we shouldn’t worry about these activities. The next step is to ascertain if there is interest within the high schools; and, if so, nail down a date for the program.

7. Nature Notes: Lori indicated that she received numerous articles since the last meeting and she has sent many to Karen Gardner. Lori mentioned that Karen received an unedited article that ran in the newspaper and suggested that we exclude Karen from the copy list until she has a chance to edit the article. Dawne has begun writing articles which is great. Having more authors will help maintain the viability of this column.

8. Web Site: Tyson mentioned that the Web Site is up to date. Tyson indicated that oftentimes the final Nature Notes article is a bit different than what gets printed in the paper and wondered if he should wait and upload the New Post’s version. After some discussion, the prevailing sentiment was that Tyson should continue to post our version of the article.

9. New business: Winter meeting location: Despite the relative weak coffee most thought that meeting location at the Gambrill Park office was fine for now. We long for the time when we can stretch out in the Tea Room and enjoy the scenery from the back porch.

10. Next Meeting: The next business meeting of the Board will be Monday, February 13, 2017. For now please plan on meeting at the Gambrill State Park office.