Members Vote March 9, 2007

Members Vote March 9, 2007

Members of Grand Prairie Friends-Prairie Grove Volunteers gathered on the evening of March 9, 2007 for the annual Winter Membership Meeting. The evening started with a dessert potluck and friendly conversation. After some general announcements, members in attendance were instructed on voting procedures for a mission, logo and name. Some months before the Board of Directors authorized a process to create a succinct mission statement. Our long, hyphenated has been somewhat confusing over the past three years, so taking the decision to the membership seemed natural. Our logo also needed updating to reflect the expanded focus beyond prairie to all the natural vegetation communities within the Grand Prairie Region of east-central Illinois.

Mission

Dan Olson, Mary Kay Solecki and Jamie Ellis formed a small committee to formulate a mission statement for the group. After much thought and discussion, the Board approved three mission choices:

Our mission is to...

...preserve and restore native lands and waters in east-central Illinois and foster a healthy sense of community among nature and people.

...preserve and restore native lands and waters in east-central Illinois and promote an understanding and appreciation of the value of these resources.

...preserve native plants, animals and natural communities in east-central Illinois by conserving the lands and waters they need to thrive.

With these options to vote for, the membership overwhelmingly voted for a write-in vote by John Taft. Our mission is...

...to preserves and restore natural communities in east-central Illinois and promote an understanding and appreciation of natural resources

What's in a Name?

When Prairie Grove Volunteers and Grand Prairie Friends joined forces in 2004, we couldn't decide on which name to use, so we used them both. Over the past three years, our married name with its hyphen and many words has been clunky and at times confusing. The Board presented four options to the membership, and here are the vote results:

Grand Prairie Friends - 55

Grand Prairie Volunteers - 47

Prairie Grove Volunteers - 6

Grand Prairie Friends-Prairie Grove Volunteers - 4

Logo

With the artistic talents of Board member Nate Beccue, three different logo designs were commissioned to reflect our expanded focus beyond prairie to wetlands, savanna and forest natural areas. Nate was able to incorporate the familiar circle design and image of a yellow coneflower with the unmistakeable shape of a bur oak leaf.

To see an image of the new logo, click here

updated: December 19, 2007
www: www.prairienet.org/gpf
email: gpf@prairienet.org