90th Anniversary Picnic
by Jim Elliott
Along with our traditional picnics at Hidden Valley each summer, we thought that for this year’s anniversary, we would host the past presidents of the society who were still around. Of the thirteen presidents, only three were not able to make it. In addition, there were many current and former members present.It was a chance to renew relationships and regale each other with stories of past excursions and events.
The afternoon started with land acknowledgement by Anna Rose and students of Prairie Sky School (one of our recipients of the Every Bite Affects the World grants) followed by Jacqueline Thompson, Indigenous Advocate and Cultural Liaison with Prairie Sky School talking about how the school built relationships in their school with Indigenous educators and the natural world during the pandemic lockdown and beyond. Our current Vice-President and Masters of Ceremonies, Jeff Gamble, welcomed us warmly. Trevor Herriot reflected on the values of a nature society like ours. Then three past presidents, Wayne Pepper, Dale Hjertaas and Elaine Ehman, walked us through the last three decades of our story. Children explored the island to see what wildlife was around that day. This is the first mention of the island.
As part of the celebrations, we had a giant special commemorative cookie from Northgate Bakery, along with various other refreshments. Special thanks to the ferry driver who helped pass the time to the island with stories of coyotes swimming from Spruce Island to Willow Island. Finally, we passed out postcards encouraging us to explore what Nature Regina could do in the coming decade to foster love and protection of the natural world.
List of Past Presidents
Present
Donna Bruce (Barclay)
Kathleen Donauer
Elaine Ehman
Jim Elliott
Paule Hjertaas
Fran Kerbs
Val Mitschke (Harrison)
Wayne Pep
Regrets
Phyllis Ilsley
Joseph Roberts
Frank Switze
