Board Blurb: April 2026

4/15/26

Prepared by Laurel Watt (2026 RCMG Secretary)

Summary for the April RCMG Board of Directors Meeting

The RCMG Board of Directors Meeting was held on April 14, 2026, on Zoom. The next Board Meeting will be on Tuesday, June 9, 2026, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. on Zoom. (No Board meeting in May because of the Plant Sale.) All volunteers are welcome to attend.

Committee Updates

Communications Committee Update –Nanette Boudreau

Nanette reported that the Plant Sale publicity is well underway. The catalogue goes live very soon, and 250 posters are being printed. The committee is also happy to be interviewing six volunteers who have expressed interest at the Volunteer Project Fair in joining the committee.

Education Committee Update – Susan Mason and Jo Sullivan

Sue shared that the committee will be hosting a self-guided tour of the Eloise Butler Wildflower Garden on Saturday, May 2^nd at 2:00 pm. She also discussed their plans for an exciting event at our August meeting which will take place at the Bell Museum with a presentation on the Herbarium by Curator and Professor of Plants George Weiblen and Collection Manager Tim Whitfield. Attendees should expect to be surprised and excited to learn of the scope and depth of the Herbarium’s work and collection.

Finance Committee Update – Julie Bechtold

The committee continues to work on multiple policies and procedures, reviewing incoming project grant proposal requests, discussing Treasurer succession planning and committee recruitment, and ensuring donation terms and conditions are met as money raised by the nonprofit flows into the University’s Foundation account as part of the separation of the Program from the 501(c)(3). This committee is also excited to announce that several interns are interested in joining the committee as a result of the Volunteer Project Fair.

Membership Committee Report - Susie DeShon and Travis Sandland

Susie and Travis deemed the Volunteer Project Fair a success. 50 interns had signed up, and 47 of them attended along with nine additional interns. 25 project presenters and mentors also attended. Susie reported that she and Travis had a Zoom call with Mary Kirk, HCMG Volunteer Support Chair, during which they shared information about how each county supports interns in their programs.

Leadership Updates

Secretary Update – Laurel Watt

The March Board Minutes were approved.

Treasurer Update– Kathy Passe, Interim Treasurer

The March 2026 - Statement of Activity and  March 2026 - Statement of Financial Position  were approved. Kathy noted that a Recap of the 2025 Financials and an overview of the 2026 Budget will be presented at the April member meeting.

Program Coordinator Update – Darren Lochner

Darren shared that Extension has been providing new templates for the Program with the new name - Garden Education Volunteer Program. The first versions of the Ramsey County bookmarks and tabletop signs used at Farmers Markets and information booths have been completed. He also shared that Regina McGoff, who works with the Extension leadership team in the Dean’s office, will be working with our program to assist with the development of the volunteer leadership structure of the Ramsey County Garden Education Volunteer Program going forward. Regina has worked with the Master Gardener Program around the state on strategic planning and organizational management.

Vice Chair Report – Maggie Maggio

Maggie continues to work on the 2025 Audit recommendations and will meet with Julie Bechtold in her Technical Administrator role to create member access to appropriate 501(c)(3) documents.

Chair Report– Beth Fritcher

Echoing Darren’s report above, Beth shared that Tim Kenny received support from the Dean to have Regina McGoff work on a project to define Darren’s leadership team. She will be gathering information and context through interviews and other methods still under consideration. Beth also reported that the core team working with Extension (Beth, Maggie Maggio, Laurel Watt, Gene Ranieri, and Kay Wimer) met 4/13/26. Based on the timeline put together for Extension, this team’s work is on hold pending having a program leadership team in place as per above.

New Business

The Board approved three different Project Grant requests for the following programs:

·      ArtsUS & Gardens For Good (supplies to outfit a second Gardens for Good location this year)

·      ArtsUS Children’s Garden In Residence Education Project (equipment)

·      Barn Demonstration Gardens Planter Pots Replacement (replacement of aging planters)

Old Business

See Vice Chair report above.

2026 Board Leadership: Beth Fritcher (Chair), Maggie Maggio (Vice-Chair), Laurel Watt (Secretary), Kathy Passe (Interim Treasurer), Julie Bechtold (Finance Chair), Susan Mason (Education Chair), Jo Sullivan (Education Co-Chair), Susie DeShon (Membership Chair), Travis Sandland (Membership Co-Chair), Nanette Boudreau (Communication Chair), Amanda Swanson (Communication Co-Chair), Darren Lochner (Program Coordinator).