The theme for 2016:
Land, Food, Water & Us
December 7, 2016
Highland Heights Green Task Force Year-End Business Meeting and Elections
This evening the members of the Highland Heights Green Task Force met one last time in 2016 for the Year-End Business Meeting and Elections.
Judy recapped the events from the year and we talked about the tentative program plans for 2017. The theme for 2017 is “The Future of Energy and Resources”.
2016 marked the 6th year for the HHGTF! This is a great milestone and looking back over these 6 years many wonderful programs have been offered and many people have been reached.
The GoDaddy site and costs were discussed and we will look into a cheaper option or a free one. Amy and Judy will iron out the kinks on this. It was mentioned that we could probably be getting more out of Facebook if we wanted to.
As of 11/30/16, we have $4,334.86. The Alan Lorenz scholarship is fully funded for next year. It was discussed that we may offer 2 scholarships depending on who applies. We will revisit this in March.
Elections were held and the results are as follows:
Officers
- President: Judy Dearden
- Vice President: Paul Costanzo
- Treasurer: Roy Fash
- Secretary: Amy Milroy
Board
- Judy Dearden
- Marilyn Wilson
- Mary Ellen Dombek
- Rick Evans
- Mary Fash
- Frank Popotnik
- Marybeth Skala
Donations
- Judy received a donation of a box of children’s books from Half Price Books for the Highland Heights Little Free Library.
- Dave Ianiro will work on fixing up the Library at the Community Park in the spring.
Respectfully Submitted,
Amy Milroy, Secretary
October 5, 2016
Highland Heights Green Task Force “Waste, Human Health, & You”
This evening the members of the Highland Heights Green Task Force were lucky enough to be invited to Hillcrest Hospital for a special presentation about the Cleveland Clinic Foundation,(CCF)Green Team.
Judy brought the meeting to order and gave a brief overview of what the Green Task Force does and who we are. We have been around for 6 years now! Judy also let us know that we have set a record with 54 paid memberships for 2016.
Reminder
- Our Green Vendors Holiday Gift Sale is November 5th from 10-4.
- We have 30 vendors as well as sandwiches, soup and refreshments this year.
Susan Jones, Director of Environmental Services at the Cleveland Clinic then began our presentation.
We watched a couple of informative videos and then learned about the CCF works with recycling and sustainability. Since they are a health system they deal with many unique challenges in this area.
When new staff is on board they begin learning about the Clinic’s culture of recycling with such systems in place as color-coding trash. Both patients and staff can participate in these types of programs. By the end of 2017, they hope to have a 50% landfill diversion rate. The Clinic helps keep up with its goals by conducting waste audits and by energizing its employees to make them involved in sustainability goals.
The folks who made it to Hillcrest for this informative session left feeling great about how a large local industry is dealing with the challenges of recycling on a BIG scale. Hopefully, many more companies will strive to achieve these same goals and certainly could learn a thing or two from CCF.
Respectfully Submitted,
Amy Milroy, Secretary
August 3rd, 2016
Highland Heights Green Task Force Midsummer’s Eve Social at The Farm
A History of Greenwood Farm as well as a presentation by Kathy Mahovlic of the Western Reserve Herb Society
Judy called the meeting to order and we were welcomed by Fred Cash, the President of Greenwood Farm. Fred gave us some general information about the farm and told us about the filming of the Bye Bye Man that took place there earlier this year.
Beth Johnson then gave us a wonderful presentation on the history of the Farm. The Phypers family who lived there for generations certainly have left a lasting legacy for the city of Richmond and its surrounding communities.
The grounds of the farm are open to the public for walking and hiking. It is a beautiful property and should be added to any fall foliage lover.
Kathy Mahovlic taught us all about cooking with herbs. She is with the Western Reserve Herb Society.
September 7th, 2016
Highland Heights Green Task Force Gazebo Potluck Zero Waste Dinner and 50/50 Raffle
The Potluck was once again a wonderful success. Many members were able to attend and we kept it cool despite the hot, hot heat!
Many lovely dishes were provided and we were joined by the winner of the Alan Lorenz Scholarship! This was quite an honor since he was leaving for Northwestern the very next day.
Judy sent people home with prizes galore. A great time was had by all.
June 1, 2016
Financial Report
- We are financially in good standing.
- We have the Alan Lorenz Scholarship funding for next year in the bank already.
- The 2016 recipient was Isaac Bykhovsky.
- Mary Fash gave a wonderful presentation at the awards ceremony.
- Many members of Alan’s family were able to attend the event and were moved by it.
The May Movie and Discussion night was a big success and the group agrees that they would like to do that again in the future.
The Freecycle/E-Waste Drive is Sunday, June 26 from 10-3 in the City Park.
Judy passed around the various sign-up sheets for upcoming events – please make note of what you have signed up for!!
Reminder: There is NO meeting next month as we take our July break.
Midsummer’s Eve Social at Greenwood Farm is August 3rd. There will be a presentation on the history of Greenwood Farm as well as a talk by Kathy Mahovlic “Cooking with Herbs”. Kathy is the president of the Western Reserve Herb Society.
Book Reports
Book reports were given by the members of the group who brought them. The following list is of the books reviewed – they should provide some interesting summer reading.
- Their Paths are Peace by Clara Lederer
- Too Good to Waste – National Geographic, March 2016
- 6 Ways Mushrooms Can Save the World, Paul Stamets TED Talk
- Green Goes with Everything by Sloan Barnett
- Changing Diapers by Kelly Wells
- Folks this Ain’t Normal by Joel Salatin
- Letters from Eden by Julie Zickefoose
- Smaller, Faster, Lighter, Denser, Cheaper by Robert Bryce
- Junkyard Planet by Adam Minter
- Countdown: Our Last, Best Hope for a Future on Earth? By Alan Weisman
- Food in the City by Jennifer Cockrall-King
Rick gave a presentation on Puppy Linux and Mary talked about a couple of articles from an Oregon paper about rehabbing habitats
Respectfully Submitted
Amy Milroy, Secretary
April 6, 2016
Judy called the meeting to order and we made introductions around the room.
Financial Report
- We are financially in good standing.
- The total earmarked for the Alan Lorenz Environmental Scholarship for 2017 is $1394.00.
- Therefore the Scholarship is already fully funded.
- As of now we have a total Membership of 51 with our 2016 goal being 50!
We have received applications from three incredibly impressive Mayfield High School Seniors competing for the 2016 Alan Lorenz Scholarship. The applications have all been reviewed and Donna Griggas, Joan Albro, and MaryBeth Skala will personally interview the candidates on April 13th. The Scholarship will be awarded to the winner at Honor’s Day Ceremony on May 19th.
Judy passed around the 2016 calendar of events as well as the sign-up sheets for various volunteer opportunities throughout the year. Please be sure to make note of what you have signed up for as we had many people over-book themselves last year.
The time is now to start thinking about what book you will read for our June Green Book Club book reports!
May 4th will be a field trip meeting of the “How to’s of Composting”. We will meet at North Chagrin Reservation Nature Center at 6:30 pm sharp. Jake Kundra will give a 20-minute presentation about the park’s plans to compost and show us the bins they have. Following that, we will drive to the Highland Heights gazebo and park our cars there. From there we will go to Judy’s house across the street at 5738 Highland Road where she will continue the conversation about composting.
The program this evening was “Biomimicry Explained” and was given by Carol Thaler, of Great Lakes Biomimicry. Carol gave a fascinating talk about biomimicry which is defined as an approach to innovation that seeks sustainable solutions to human challenges by emulating nature’s time-tested patterns and strategies. The goal is to create products, processes, and policies – new ways of living – that are well-adapted to life on earth over the long haul.
Respectfully Submitted
Amy Milroy, Secretary
March 2, 2016
Judy called the meeting to order and we made introductions around the room. Twelve people were in attendance.
Financial Report
- We are financially in good standing.
- Funds are earmarked for: MHS Courtyard Project – $500. and Alan Lorenz Scholarship – $500.
The 990N postcard for federal tax and the Attorney General Annual Report have both been filed for 2015.
As of now, we have a total Membership of 46 with our 2016 goal being 50!
There will be a Board of Directors meeting Thursday, March 24 at 5 pm at Panera. Judy reminded folks that these meetings are open to the public and that if anyone is interested in becoming a Board Member they should come. Also, she suggested that she would be open to handing the position of President over should anyone be looking for that post within the organization.
Since this was a business meeting we reviewed the calendar of upcoming events in detail, taking time to answer questions and pass around sign-up sheets for various programs. Please see the website for the full schedule of events for 2016.
The Living Lab project at MHS is ongoing, albeit rather slowly. The students have received the grant from Progressive and have purchased the items needed to construct the monitors for the courtyard. They are going to make a prototype to test in the Innovation Center at the High School.
Looking to the future and 2017, we touched on what we might want our focus to be for that campaign. It was decided that Energy would be a good topic. Judy will start to formulate a schedule with that as the focus. She asked that if anyone knows people who can speak on this topic please let her know.
For follow-up: Al Hess is going to talk to Frank about the status of the water bottle station at the High School. Frank Popotnik is interested in being more active in the recycling of hazardous waste throughout the community. Susan Jerome and Mary Kay Evans are going to look into recycling items that have a cord in Mayfield Village and South Euclid respectively.
Please be sure to join us next month to hear our speaker Carol Thaler discuss biomimicry!
Respectfully Submitted
Amy Milroy, Secretary
Agenda February 3, 2016: Highland Heights Green Task Force Meeting
Judy called the meeting to order at 7:08 pm. We made introductions around the room.
Financial Report
- We are financially in good standing.
- Funds are earmarked for: MHS Courtyard Project – $500. and Alan Lorenz Scholarship – $500.
Website
- First-time views continue to add up.
- Judy called GoDaddy to see if they could tell us where all of the viewers are coming from and they are not able to let us know.
- However, since the call, the counter seems to have been reset. New views continue to add up though.
- Please “Like” us on Facebook.
As of now, we have a total Membership of 38 with our 2016 goal being 50!
Judy informed us that she has heard from Kimball that we should no longer put brittle plastic trays – such as the ones that cookies come in – in our recycle bins. They break into tiny pieces and mess up the machinery at the plant.
We passed around flyers on interesting programs coming up at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History and the Western Reserve Herb Society. They are:
Member Preview: The Power of Poison
- Friday, February 26; 5-8 pm
- Members get a first look at The Power of Poison, a killer exhibition from the American Museum of Natural History.
- Explore the paradoxical role of poison in nature, human health, history, literature, and myth.
- Take an immersive trip across different lands and times to explore the many roles that toxins have.
Western Reserve Herb Society: Basic Principles of Aromatherapy
- Friday, February 26; 5-8 pm
- Wednesday, February 17; 10-11:30 am at the Orange Library – 31975 Chagrin Boulevard, Orange OH 44124. See their website for more details: Western Reserve Herb Society
- Explore the paradoxical role of poison in nature, human health, history, literature and myth.
- Take an immersive trip across different lands and times to explore the many roles that toxins have.
Calendar Of Events
The calendar of events for 2016 for the HHGTF is on the website and is mostly complete with a couple of items still tentative at this point.
Judy presented to MaryBeth Skala’s women’s group for the second year in a row. The topic this year was “DIY recipes for cleaning and personal care”. Judy and Barb Betz gave the same presentation at the Vitamin Shoppe on Mayfield as well.
The time is now to start thinking about what book you will read for our June Green Book Club book reports!
This evening’s presentation, “Organic Gardening 101”, was given by Jacqueline Kolawlski. Jacqueline has been the Agriculture and Natural Resources Ohio State Extension Educator for Cuyahoga County since 2011. She works with urban farmers, and community gardeners, oversees the Cuyahoga County Master Gardener program, and manages other commercial horticulture issues. The program was packed with useful information for the home gardener. She explained how organic is about soil health, not chemistry. The state of the soil is of course most important and knowing how to properly amend it is crucial. She talked about integrated pest management and the need to keep ahead of pests and weeds in the organic garden.
Respectfully Submitted,
Amy Milroy, Secretary
January 6, 2016
Judy called the meeting to order and we went around the room and made introductions. We were joined by two new guests.
Financial Report
We are financially in good standing.
Membership
The 2016 Membership dues are being collected now.
Website
First-time views continue to add up. We have achieved over 100 “Likes” on Facebook. We will see if that helps to boost our posts.
Events
The calendar of events for the year is still a work in progress. Judy asked that if people have any requests for programs or people that they know who could give a pertinent talk to let her know.
Alan Lorenz
Judy delivered the sad news that Alan Lorenz had died. The Board all agreed to name the scholarship that we are offering to a Mayfield student after him. His family was very touched by this and his wife and children hope to attend the ceremony where the winner is presented with the scholarship.
It was also decided to expand the Scholarship to students studying other disciplines that will lend to a more environmentally friendly future.
This evening’s program called “Then and Now”, was presented by Becky Gardner from the Gates Mills Environmental Education Center. Becky is a teacher at GMEEC and Department Chair for Excel TECC.
Becky gave us an update on the changes to the Environmental Education Center (formerly Horticulture) since its inception in 1974. The program has made strides in not only Agricultural Education, but also organic vegetable gardening and utilizing more IPM (Integrated Pest Management) strategies throughout the greenhouses and the landscape. She provided the group with wonderfully entertaining dialogue and an informative PowerPoint about all things GMEEC. She invited us all to come and see the Center in action and attend the Spring Open House, Friday, May 6th from 8 am-1 pm.
Respectfully Submitted,
Amy Milroy, Secretary