REGISTRATION FOR THIS EVENT IS CLOSED.
For further assistance, please contact please contact Leah Cooper, FotSJR Outreach Coordinator, at (574) 299-3421 or fotsjr.outreach@gmail.com.
Join the Friends of the St. Joe River (FotSJR) for dinner and social time at the 5th Annual St. Joseph River Watershed Council Meeting at the Sturges-Young Auditorium in Sturgis, Michigan.
Wetlands are essential to the health of lakes and rivers. But apart from biologists and hunters, who can fall in love with a buggy, snake-infested, boot-sucking swamp? Well, plenty of people can – provided that you give them some lively and powerful reasons to do so. Tom Springer will share six practical ways to get the wetland love-fest started when he presents:
"It's a Swamp Thing: How to Help the Public Care About Marshy, Mucky and Ducky Places"
Tom Springer is the author of Looking for Hickories: The Forgotten Wildness of the Rural Midwest. He is a senior editor at the W. K. Kellogg Foundation and has written for popular magazines such as Backpacker and Michigan Out-of-Doors. His nature-themed commentaries have aired on several National Public Radio programs. Mr. Springer holds a master's degree in environmental journalism from Michigan State University. He lives in the St. Joseph River Watershed near Three Rivers, Michigan.
Meeting Agenda
5:00 - 6:00 p.m. - Registration/Social Time (Cash Bar Available)
Auction Bidding Begins
6:00 - 6:30 p.m. - Welcome/Opening Remarks
6:30 - 6:45 p.m. - Award Presentation
6:45 - 7:45 p.m. - Dinner (Auction Bidding Continues)
8:00 - 8:45 p.m. - Presentation by Tom Springer
8:45 - 9:00 p.m. - Questions & Final Comments
Auction Check-Out
Click here to view/download the agenda.
The Silent Auction from5:00 p.m. - 7:45 p.m. Items for bid include two Kayaks, Local Beer & Wine Packages, Native Plants, Rain Barrels, Bird & Bat Houses, Educational Resources/Guide Books, Fly Fishing Kit, Hand-Made Black Ash Baskets, Locally Tapped Maple Syrup, Goodie Basket and Sweet Treats, and more!
This event is made possible through the generous support of AEP/Indiana Michigan Power, Pheasants Forever Chapter 592, the Southwest Michigan Land Conservancy, Grubb & Ellis|Cressy & Everett, Cardno/JFNew, Michiana Stormwater Partnership, Eldon Seidner and ERRA, the Pokagon Band and Nottawaseppi Huron Band of Potawatomi Indians, Fluid & Fun Kayak, St. Joe River Valley Fly Fishers, LaGrange County SWCD, and many others.
