A panel has been set up to explore the formation of a statewide coalition for the Friends Groups throughout the state. We will be meeting in Nashville on September 11 to put together a proposal to present to the general membership at the Annual Conference in October. Here are some of the things we will be discussing and working toward a presentation...

I am going to be heading up this effort and would sincerely appreciate any input any of you might have. The panel consists of Friends members from all areas of the state and we are hoping for a good representation of ideas . We are also hoping for a good attendance at the Annual Conference. I will keep you updated on any developments as we proceed with this endeavor...

Here are some pictures of the excellent Butterfly Garden at the park. Holly and Mark have put many hours of time and effort into this wonderful addition to the appearance and enjoyment of our lovely park. There were 100's of butterflies flitting and fluttering among all the beautiful flowers and plants when I was there the other day. The Friends have approved and ordered name plates and stakes to identify the many plants in the garden. If you haven't been there, you need to go while there are still a lot of plants and butterflies. Holly will very enthusiastically orient you to all the flora and fauna. She has identified 38 different species of butterflies that have shown up to enjoy the offerings. The garden has become a very popular part of the visitors stay at the park. If you look closely you may be able to see some of the butterflies that were there when I took the pictures. The caterpillar in the last picture is a pipe vine larvae. Left click on the thumbnails for an enlargement. 

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The proposed agenda for the Friends of Tennessee State Parks Annual Conference is attached...This year will be a very important one since we will be proposing that the parks form a coalition of the Friends Groups to insure that we can continue to function as a state wide organization. We aren't at all sure what kind of support we will receive with a new administration coming in. Governor Phil Bredesen, Commissioner Jim Fyke and Deputy Commissioner Mike Carlton, have been fantastic in their support...as has the entire Parks Department...with the current administration but beyond that is anybody's guess...I encourage all of our members to make a special effort to attend this year to lend your support to this very important and worthwhile effort...

Here is the agenda...

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Our June 26 meeting was well attended and we got a number of items worked out. Dates have been established for our remaining events for this year and for the and the Waterfall Tour and Celebration of Spring for next year. You can check them under events on the web site.

In the Manager's Report, Carl says that things are running smoothly at the park. The lake level has been stabilized and launch ramp #2 is accessible. The level should remain about the same for the rest of the summer.

The Edgar Evins Marina has been designated as a "Clean Marina" by the Corps of Engineers. This is a very special designation and Kaye Tuggle and her staff are to be commended for their hard work to attain this honor. The ceremony was attended by a number of Corps and political figures. The marina was presented a special flag to fly showing the accomplishment.

The last phase of repaving will begin soon and the collapsed guard railings are going to be replaced. The paving will include the Maintenance lot and drive and the park road from the marina road to the entrance to the park.

We have been invited to have a booth at the Baxter Street Fair again this year on Labor Day Weekend. We didn't make any commitments for the booth as of now...If you would like to volunteer to participate in manning an information booth like we had last year, let me know. We will have the booth if we can get enough help to maintain it.

Planning has already begun for History Hayride V. We have already obtained commitments from several actors/actresses to participate again this year. We will be retaining a number of the same characters but plan to add a couple of new ones for variety. We want to keep the hayride fresh for folks that come back every year.

We approved purchase of pocket compasses for Carl's elementary school presentations. He gives the kids a compass and holds a session to teach them how to use them. We also approved the purchase of some Pipestem butterfly plants for the butterfly garden. It seems this plant was overly popular this year and the hatchlings demolished the one we had. The butterfly garden is lovely and if you haven't seen it, please make it a priority. There has been a lot of work and attention put into it. We are also paying for some lumber to aid in the construction of a "river canoe" for a part of the History Hayride list of characters. We also approved the purchase of 12 adult and 12 youth life jackets for use with the pontoon boat rides.

We talked about the upcoming Friends of Tennessee State Parks Coalition Annual Conference. It will be held at Montgomery Bell State Park this year October 8-9-10. We want to have a good delegation from Edgar Evins. We will be looking into the establishment of a state wide organization since we don't know how much...or how little...support we are going to get from a new administration. We feel like we should have something to fall back on if we need to. I personally believe that we need this kind of structure in any event. We need to be able to make decisions about issues without a direct involvement by the state. There should be more information forthcoming soon. I will pass it on as soon as I get it...I am heading up a committee to prepare a proposal to the general membership at the conference.

On March 16 there had been 9,000 hits on our web site. As of today...June 28...we have had 11,597 hits! The web site is being used...a lot...!

The next meeting will be September 21, 2010 at 6:00 pm. We will meet at the Hospitality Hut...

Fount Bertram. Webmaster

June 28, 2010

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Here are some pictures taken of the "new and improved" Butterfly Garden...It seems that Holly, Mark, Dawn, Mike and another helper took matters in hand and got them all set out Sunday. Thank you all so much for your dedication and hard work! If you are planning on being there to help Monday afternoon, there will still be a lot of things to do...Spreading mulch, edging beds, etc. I can hardly wait until everything starts blooming and the butterflies get here! There are some early ones already investigating the situation, but we are expecting hundreds to take advantage of our efforts. I will try and insert pictures along as the garden develops...

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The Planting Day activities are having to be rescheduled from Saturday, April 24 to Monday, April 26 at 2:00 pm due to weather conditions. There are 145 native plants that need to be set out in the prepared areas. Mark, Clint, Wayne (Grady) and myself spent some bone shaking moments preparing the soil with roto tillers on Wednesday. I have never seen so many rocks in such a small area! They are now picked up and hauled off and the soil is ready for some loving attention...We are working hard to make the Butterfly Garden a reality...Please come and help...

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The chestnut and cherry swings are completed and WOW!! They have all been sold! We marketed them through the Appalachian Center for Craft and the demand has been fantastic. I just wish we had a bunch more to sell! The price for each swing was $800.00 and after a commission to the ACC we will realize a sizable amount from these items. Just a look at the above pictures will show you the craftsmanship and care that went into each one of the 3 swings. We need to let Earl Conatser know how much we appreciate his dedication and skills in making these for the Friends. We plan to have one of them at the Visitors Center Saturday for the Celebration of Spring. If you're there early enough you can see it before it's picked up by the new owner...

Anna, Karen, LaDonna, Holly, Phyllis, Mike and Fount met at the Hospitality Hut on Tuesday, April 6 to learn how to work with honeysuckle vines to make baskets and corn husks to make dolls. This is in preparation for the upcoming Celebration of Spring. The ladies will be conducting workshops on the honeysuckle basket and corn husk crafts for all that are interested. Everyone said the instructions were fun and helpful. Holly is so patient and such a good teacher! We're hoping a lot of the participants in the events Saturday will take advantage of this part of the day.

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The Friends Group met Tuesday, March 16 at the Hospitality Hut. We had a good attendance and had a new member added to our number. April Jared will be helping with our Celebration of Spring as an initiation into our group. Bob Harriman from the Central Office surprised us with a visit...Bob is the Assistant Director of the Community Volunteer Services Department. This department offers support to the Friends Groups throughout our state park system.

In the Park Manager's report, Carl stated that the last of the paving of the park roads will start soon. This phase will be from the marina road to the park entrance, the maintenance department parking lot and the Visitors Center parking lot. The final pieces for the American Chestnut and wild cherry porch swings have been received and we will be making arrangements to market them soon.

Our Waterfall Tour is another sellout and we're looking forward to a great outing this Saturday. We will be leaving the Visitors Center at 9:30 am and should be back around 3:00 pm. Plans are currently underway for the Celebration of Spring to be held April 10. This promises to be another great event for the Friends and the park. We have had a good response so far and are expecting a good turnout for the day. This is a free day of activities for all ages. We are emphasizing things for the kids with games, a coloring contest and photo ops with Ranger Ramble, the Tennessee State Parks raccoon mascot. A good part of the meeting was dedicated to planning for the Celebration of Spring. I will try and get the entire program on the web site when it is finalized. Check under "events" in the next week or so.

We have also started preliminary planning for the History Hayride. The date has been changed to October 16 due to a conflict with the Friends of Tennessee State Parks Annual Conference. We have already started looking for trailers and vehicles to pull them. The effort is to get private trailers and vehicles so drivers other than state employees can relieve the pressure on the park employees.

Holly and Mark have big plans to expand the butterfly garden at the Visitors Center. The planting day will be April 24...they have 145 new plants to put in and are asking for some help doing it. The Friends will furnish hamburgers and trimmings for those that come out to help. If you haven't seen the garden, it will be an eye opener for you. Come and help and be a part of this fantastic effort.

Our web site has continued to be very popular. We have now exceeded 9,000 hits...lots of people looking at us and seeing what we are doing. I have recently bought a new computer system and am trying to migrate everything over from the old slower, less powerful system. Hopefully we can improve the site with the new equipment. Suggestions are always solicited and appreciated.

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Anna and Fount were invited as guest speakers at the Kiwanis Club meeting on February 23. Fount talked about the Friends of Tennessee State Parks and the importance of the Friends Groups in State Parks all over the state. He also talked about the Friends of Edgar Evins State Park in particular and what the group is doing to enhance the park experience for our visitors.

Anna then told the members about our upcoming Celebration of Spring on April 10 with an emphasis on kids. She outlined some of the highlights of planned activities and how we were promoting families and children in our programming.

They filled the Kiwanis in on our other events and encouraged the membership to participate and to let others know what we are doing at the park.

The Friends are available to speak at other clubs and organizations to promote our group and the park...

click on the picture for an enlargement...in the picture...Anna Bertram, Fount Bertram, Les Greer, Bill Tanner, Cynthia Agee and Gentry Barnes...

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