Friends of Fresh Pond Reservation Semi-annual Meeting
July 14, 2006

Present: Lance Drane, Nancy Guppy, Harry Liu, Rebecca Ramsay, Margie Richardson, Jean Rogers, Barbara Strell, Joan Teebagy, Elizabeth Wylde

After a sumptuous potluck picnic in the air-conditioned comfort of the training room in the Cambridge Water Department building, Elizabeth gave a brief review of the activities of the Friends group in 2006. New programs so far this year included monthly Welcome to Fresh Pond walks with Ranger Jean, monthly Northeast Sector Walkabouts with Chip Norton, an evening of nature readings, and a tour of the Water Treatment Facility. Upcoming programs will include a fungus class and field trip with Larry Millman and an evening moth program.

The group was asked to consider the question "How can we spend some of our savings?" and to make other suggestions for FFPR activities.

Ideas from the meeting are listed below

1. Purchase books on topics of interest. (So far we have bought Mushrooms of Northeast North America by George Barron.)

2. Donate Money to the Maynard Ecology Center for Susan Agger to use
for items she needs. About $300 suggested.

3. Purchase a tree to be planted in Kingsley Park. This idea has been suggested before. We would like to dedicate a tree to the memory of our late friend and fellow member Bonnie Solomon. (Earlier attempts to launch this proposal have not been successful.)

4. Create a lending library of guides to be borrowed for use at Fresh Pond
and returned at the end of the visit. (We have purchased four copies each of eight "Finder Guides": on summer and winter trees, birds, wildflowers, ferns, animal tracks, winter weeds, and berries. We have put them in an unused wooden bird box, attached a sign explaining their use, and placed the box with the books in the Ranger Station.)

5. Buy exhibits for the Ranger Station. (Does anyone know ofa place to buy good posters showing photos or drawings of local butterflies and dragonflies?)

6. Buy a sandwich board on which to publicize upcoming programs on the day of the event.

7. Put a box in the Ranger Station with a sign inviting people to leave their old field guides for other people to take. (If you have any old field guides you would like to donate, please call Jean at 617-349-4793 or e-mail Elizabeth at friendsoffreshpond@yahoo.com.)

8. Buy a "Crash Cart," a wheeled cart for taking outside to do demonstrations and show specimens to visitors.

9. Make a link from the Friends website to Tom Murray's website at http://www.pbase.com/tmurray74 and the Harvard Museum of Natural History website at http://www.hmnh.harvard.edu (This has been done.)

Recorded by Elizabeth Wylde