Via the Namekagon River Partnership:
Frank Pratt, President of the the Namekagon River Partnership is excited to announce the NRP’s annual membership celebration coming Saturday, July 20 at the Sawmill in Seeley beginning at 5:00.
“We are getting together to celebrate what we have done, and help set our compass route for the future. Planners, partners, members, lovers of the river – we are getting together to mark our first full year of operations,” says Pratt, NRP President, and recently retired WDNR fishery biologist from Hayward.
The group organized in June of 2012, after nearly a year of planning efforts. They were approved as a Non Profit Organization (501 (c) (3) in August. Several events, including two river clean-up events sponsored cooperatively by the NRP and the St. Croix National Scenic Riverway of the National Park Service have been accomplished in 2012 and 2013. Participation has doubled in a year as volunteers get out on the river for possibly their first time on the water that year.
Last fall the NRP sponsored an Autumn Fall Photo Contest that brought out a number of amateurs who captured some amazingly beautiful scenes. These entries will be shown at the annual get-together. Other projects are in progress.
The 5:00 event begins with food, conversations, and door prizes. Every participant will receive a door prize ticket for attending the event, and those joining as a member that day will get extra tickets. Door prizes will be a diverse variety of quality items. Businesses offering prizes will receive special attention at the event as a Thank You, for their support.
Following the social hour and , our evening agenda will include a series of short vignettes by Dave Thorson including A Day in the Life of the River, Google Earth for Fun, a summary of events from the past year, and a look at a threatened stream gage. Our keynote presentation will be Trout Boil, a humorous title for a not so funny prediction by fishery biologists and scientists.
Members, partners, and friends are welcome and invited to participate. Anyone with a passion for the river, or who wish to learn more about it, are totally welcome.Students and youth are especially encouraged to attend. No charge. Donations accepted. Please join us and be a part of the river’s future.
Please contact coordinator Dave Thorson at 715-376-4260 or dthorson@centurytel.net to let us know how many will be attending. This helps us so much with our planning efforts. The NRP website is simply Namekagon.org.