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By Lucas Parsch, Ozark Society Vice President The fall meeting of the Ozark Society will take place at Lake Claiborne State Park in northwest Louisiana over the weekend (Fri-Sun) of October 21-23, 2022.  One important order of business at the membership meeting on October 22 will be the election of officers to the Ozark Society Board of Directors.  Positions up for election to a two-year term are:  President, Vice-President, Treasurer, Secretary, Conservation Chair, Education Chair, Community Engagement Chair, Communications/Membership Chair-Editor, and Archival Chair.  In addition, State Directors (i.e., board members at-large) for Arkansas, Louisiana, and Missouri will also be elected.  The Nominations Committee is seeking nominees and/or volunteers who are interested in serving on the Board of Directors by running for one of these important Ozark Society positions.  Interested persons should contact one of the following nominating committee members for more information: Alice Andrews:  alice209ok.@yahoo.com or 501-912-4597 Luke Parsch:  lparsch@uark.edu or 479-442-3817 Sandy Roerig:  sandra.roerig@lsuhs.edu or 318-686-9481 Brian Thompson: thompsonadd@gmail.com or 479-879-0688 A listing of current 2020-22 Ozark Society Board members can be found at https://www.ozarksociety.net/about-us/officers/   Duties of officers can be found in the Ozark Society Bylaws at https://www.ozarksociety.net/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/os-bylaws-9nov2019.pdf

By Marian Howard and Sandy Roerig Now is the time to make plans to attend the Fall General Membership Meeting that will be held in-person this year.  YEA! The Bayou Chapter will host this get-together for all Ozark Society members at beautiful Lake Claiborne State Park, near Homer, Louisiana.  This is the same location as the 2018 Fall Meeting and we’re hoping that many members show up to enjoy fun activities and fellowship with other Ozark Society members. Attendance by all Ozark Society members is encouraged - this is the meeting where officers are elected for the next two years.  Some key officers are retiring this year, so putting new officers in place will allow the Ozark Society to thrive into the future.  Plus, it’s a chance to meet members in other chapters and renew longtime friendships with chapter members who you don’t see very often.  There will be a $10 per person registration fee which will include a Saturday morning ham, egg and biscuit breakfast and a commemorative bandana. Accommodations: The park offers 10 glamping sites – which are tents already set up on wooden platforms, plus 10 premium campsites, 67 improved campsites, 2 unimproved campsites and a [...]

By Fred Paillet, Ozark Society Education Chair The title of this piece prompts several questions.  Who was Asa Gray, what is a disjunct, and why does he have one named after him?  How did I manage to encounter his disjunct and what made it so personal?  It all goes back to my earliest outdoor experiences in the woods of rural Connecticut.  I grew up in a family that spent a lot of time in the outdoors fishing, hunting and just plain enjoying the scenery.  When not actively out there, we were usually reading about the natural world in general, and especially the great north woods where my French-Canadian ancestors came from.  Those interests eventually blossomed into a career as a geoscientist with the expectation that such a life would lead me to a career of outdoor adventure.  And, so it did.  I was delighted to have a job based out of Colorado with the Rocky Mountains at my doorstep, with projects all over the mountain west and even in Hawaii.  But something was missing. This was apparent as I became used to the rather monotonous conifer forests of the American west and northern Canada.  Ranks of Engelmann spruce or [...]

For Judy Emily Woltjen Judy Emily Woltjen was born on May 18, 1939, in St Louis, Missouri, and passed on June 1, 2022 in Fayetteville, Arkansas. After graduating from Ferguson High School in Missouri, Judy attended nursing school and worked as a registered nurse for over 40 years.  In 1957, she met a young second lieutenant in the Army that recently graduated from engineering school named Duane Woltjen. They started their journey together of deep love and adventure which included cave exploring, whitewater racing, canoeing, hiking, trail construction and conservation activism. Judy and Duane were only one week away from their 63rd anniversary upon her passing. In 1969, as a young mother, Judy testified at a United States Senate hearing on clean air. Her testimony was part of a movement that led to the landmark legislation now known as the Clean Air Act of 1970.   This was just the beginning of Judy dedicating much of her life to conservation and preserving nature for all to enjoy. She lived a remarkable and exemplary life of faith, love, hiking, canoeing, and dedication to conservation. Judy, along with her husband and countless others, worked on preserving the rivers of Missouri and Arkansas. They also led [...]

By Roslyn Imrie, OSF Youth Grants Chair The Ozark Society Foundation (OSF) is soliciting proposals for a Youth Engagement Grant to local organizations that are working with students in environmental and conservation efforts.  Grants will go to organizations who encourage students to engage environmental awareness and conservation in the Ozark and/or Ouachita region. Successful projects range between $1000 and $3000 depending on the scope and needs of the project. Funds may be combined with other sources of funds to increase the size / impact of the project. To apply you must be affiliated with a 501c3 nonprofit or school located in Arkansas, Oklahoma, Missouri, or the Caddo, Bossier, Webster and Claiborne parishes of Louisiana. These funds may not be used for administrative operating expenses, including but not limited to postage, billing, computer software or systems, rentals, paper goods, food/beverages, or social functions. Direct costs, such as paying teaching staff, is permitted only for nonprofits. Projects should actively engage students in conservation efforts that have tangible outcomes. Hands-on learning, service learning, community projects, and advocacy is encouraged while listening to lectures or simply being taken outdoors is not what we will be looking for. Grant Timeline: Applications open Monday August 29, [...]

By David Peterson, Ozark Society President At the summer meeting, the Ozark Society Board of Directors passed a recommendation that the Ozark Society and its chapters implement the signing of liability waivers at all hiking and paddling events. These risk and liability waivers generally have three parts: The participant attests that they are in good physical health and capable of participating in the hiking or paddling event, and that they understand that they may be exposed to a variety of hazards and risks, foreseen or not foreseen, that are inherent to the event, and that they have read and understood information made available by the organizers. They acknowledge that the event is at the discretion of the event organizer who can exclude those deemed unable to properly participate, set age limits, deny pets, and determine group size. Participants assume personal responsibility for all risks associated with travel to and from an event. A participant who leaves early during an event or continues after the conclusion assumes all risks in the decision with no liability against the Ozark Society. And finally they agree to waive, discharge claims, and release from liability the Ozark Society, its agents, assistants and other leaders [...]