Association Meeting Minutes – March 17, 2017

Daniel Boone Wilderness Trail Association

Meeting Minutes

Friday, March 17, 2017

 

A meeting of the Daniel Boone Wilderness trail Association was held at the Cover Ridge Center on Friday, March 17, 2017.  Present at the meeting were Barbara Reed, Benny Reed, Wanda McConnell, Bob McConnell, Dale Taylor, Jim Stallard, Kaden Kilgore, John Mullen, Joy Mullen, Grace Bradshaw, Joan Short, Ron Short, Melinda Scott, Robert Chapman, and Nancy Childers.

 

Election of Officers:

 

Bob McConnell presented the Nominating Committee’s Report, placing in nomination the following officers:

 

President – Joan Short

Vice-president – Dale Taylor

Secretary – Grace Bradshaw

Treasurer – Gretchen Cope

Historian – Larry Fleenor

 

It was moved and seconded that nominations be closed and the slate accepted by acclamation.  The motion carried unanimously.

 

Bob McConnell then presented the following slate as nominees for directors:

 

Jim Addington

Charlie Allen

Joe Brown

Joe Fuller

Jean Hood

John Mullen

Ron Short

Jim Stallard

 

It was moved and seconded that nominations be closed and the slate of directors be accepted by acclamation.  The motion carried unanimously.

 

Approval of Minutes

The officers having been approved, Joan Short, newly elected president, took up the agenda, first with the approval of the minutes from the January 27, 2017 meeting.  Dale Taylor moved that the minutes be approved, Ron Short seconded, and the minutes were approved unanimously.

 

There was no Treasurer’s Report as both Gretchen and Joe Fuller were unable to attend the meeting.   Joan assured members that they were working closely together so that Gretchen can transition into the job of treasurer.

 

Parks Report:

 

Kaden Kilgore distributed fliers for the Frontier Muster and Trade Faire to be held at Natural Tunnel on Saturday, April 29 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and on Sunday, April 30 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.  He also reported on improvements being made in the park:  with the recent help of college volunteers from University of Maine, three yurts have been completed, signs have been posted on the birding trail, picnic tables have been installed, and brush has been cleared.  This week volunteers from Ohio State have been working on the Spring House at the Block House, have constructed new picnic tables, and have worked on a reservation sign.

 

He shared the events taking place at Natural Tunnel State Park in the near future:

April 8, 15:      Wildflower Hike

April 15:          Easter Egg Hunt

April 22:          Earth Day

April 29:          Run the Tunnel

Kids Fishing Day

April 29-30     Frontier Muster & Trade Faire

 

President’s Report:

 

  1. Joan encouraged members to check the web sites for Wilderness Road State Park and Sycamore Shoals so they can be sure to participate in historical events coming up the second and third weekends in May.

 

  1. The new Interpretive Center is going up and a board retreat is planned for the near future to build membership and plan ways to solicit donations.

 

  1. A review of the past year’s activities showed that more events were occurring in close proximity. The Fall Festival was a success.  The Christmas Lighting of the Tunnel weekends had volunteers participating at the Carter Cabin throughout the Christmas season.  Several participated in the Wilderness Road “Women in the Wilderness” two-day event.

 

  1. As for the Frontier Muster coming up on April 29-30, Joan says that Jackie Fisher will be on hand to do Indian Cooking, Charlie Brown will demonstrate how to tan hides, Bonnie Banks will help cook, and there will be salt boiling, along with the usual demonstrations. She encouraged members to think about donating items for auction, as the auction yielded over $1000 last year.  Items to consider are period clothing, pottery, baskets, chairs, shawls, knitting, hatchets, knives, and so on.

 

  1. On June 15th, Mountains of Music will have a concert at the Park. The Blockhouse will be open all day that day.

 

  1. July 15th will be Railroad Day at the park, and the Carter Cabin and Blockhouse will both be open.

 

  1. A schedule will be developed for volunteers at the Blockhouse and the Carter Cabin and reminders will be sent out at the beginning of the week.

 

  1. The Travel Channel’s show Bizarre Foods may be interested in visiting the Park the week of April 23rd.

 

  1. Ron Short, Aaron Davis, and Dr. Larry Fleenor have been developing some short videos for use in attracting tourists to our area and to both Natural Tunnel and Southwest Virginia Museum. They have made one in Castlewood where Moore’s Fort once stood and where Rebecca and Daniel Boone’s infant son was buried.  Their theme is “Welcome to Southwest Virginia where history still lives.”

 

Program

A slide show of the new Interpretive Center showed what it would look like inside and out, with a log cabin exterior and an interior with exposed beams.  It also showed the magnificent view of Cane Gap that can be appreciated from the viewing platform and the walkway.  Bob McConnell pointed out on the blueprints where the entrance, the theater, the gift shop, the library, the classroom, the multi-purpose room, and the exhibit area would be.  He explained the flow of the exhibits and the interactive opportunities for visitors.  He also told us that William Anderson has offered his collection of research materials on the Blockhouse and the Wilderness Road to be housed in the library at the Interpretive Center.  Joan also mentioned that Eric Phillips, a Scott County teacher, is completing an annotated bibliography of both fiction and non-fiction works pertaining to the Wilderness Road.

 

Old Business

No old business was brought forward.

 

New Business:

Bob McConnell suggested a fundraiser in the form of a raffle, where the association would buy a powder horn from Randy Rauch, for example, or a bag from Charlie Allen, and raffle it off, maybe announcing the winner at the end of the auction at the Frontier Muster.  Nancy Childers suggested raffling a quilt as well.

 

Bob’s rationale for the fundraiser was to earn money to buy period correct, clothing, weaponry, and accoutrements for the three or four mannequins they will have on exhibit.  He wanted to avoid soliciting donations in kind for fear the donations would not be authentic to the period.  The exhibits will also require high resolution photographs.  He asked members to see if any community business or organizations would like to donate the money to complete an exhibit.

 

There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 1:17 p.m.

 

Respectfully submitted,

Grace C. Bradshaw