October Board Meeting and Annual Election Members Only
Neighborhood Community House, Madison, WI
Members Only Family-Friendly Free Event Chapter Social Chapter Annual Meeting Chapter Election Wheelchair Accessible Public Restroom Free Public Parking Drinking Fountains Multilingual
Wild Ones - Madison Chapter
Monthly Board Meeting agenda
October 16, 2025 6:30pm-7:30pm
Attendees: Liza Loza, Jeff Steele, Athena Salzer, Amy Yocum, Tom Tharald, Jane A. Smith, Kirk Elliott,Rich Kahl & Laurie Yahr, Megan Saucke, Carol Hollar-Zwick, Kelly Osborn, Sarah Krajewski, Robin Craig, Erin Lemley, Lauren Weitkamp, Genie Notestein, Rose Ann ScottAbsent: AgendaCall to Order (order called)Approval of September Minutes (approved and seconded)Financial Report -
Current balance: $6,701
Outstanding Receipts & Checks? (Robin has not deposited edging check)
Any approval for funds needed? (Erin to buy stamps!)
“Leave the Leaves” signs: (Athena to deposit cash and text Erin a copy of the receipt)
Set up a future annual budget?
Membership Report
Active Members: 233
Since the last meeting: 10 new, 4 expired, 11 renewed
Referral sources: Plant sale yard sign, Word of Mouth, Wild Ones website, Wild Ones mailing list (2), Facebook, Member (Athena), UW Arboretum and Dane County Parks staff
Old BusinessLeave the Leaves signs - how did we do? Thoughts for next year? (80/100 given out. update to the Google form for reprinting? Late summer/early fall 2026 for reordering. Made about $300) Board meeting and Seed Swap November 20 at Goodman CenterNative Plant Learning Hub December 7th at Lussier Family Heritage Center, winter sowing and seed swap New Business
Expo coming in February: Our chapter will have 3 tables courtesy of Wild Ones National, so lots of volunteer opportunities!
Planning Committee for 2026 to start meeting in December - please consider participating! (open to all members. Meetings are typically via zoom. Seed for Education)
Election results! (Amy stepping down as president and Kelly won election as new president. Athena is VP, Erin is Treasurer, and Jeff is Secretary)
Liza to coordinate yard tours in 2026!
Addendum 11/20/25 AMS: We forgot to do a Year in Review at our annual meeting, so Amy sent out and email with that info. Her email copy is below:
“Greetings Wild Ones!
Happy November to you all!
Thank you to those who were able to attend our potluck and annual meeting last month! I’m excited to see Wild Ones take off even further with our new president Kelly Osborn at the helm, supported by the incumbent board members Athena, Erin, and Jeff, and the rest of our amazing board members.
For those of you who couldn’t be there, here is a quick recap of our chapter status.
We currently have 239 active members with an annual retention rate of a smidge over 70%, which is fantastic! Financially, we have $6,701.00 in the bank. The sales for the “Leave the Leaves” signs were awesome – we had 100 printed and have sold 80 already!
It’s hard to recap all the great events that took place over this past year. I am excited that our collaboration efforts with Dane County Land and Water Resources resulted in some very well-attended Native Plant Learning Hubs. We are looking to do this again in 2026 so stay tuned!
Other popular Wild Ones events were Frank’s Wildflower Walks, the Plant Identification workshop, and the Urban Canid Project presentation (way back in March). The Wild Ones tended spaces at Dane County Humane Society, Lakeview Library, and the DMNA Prairie are growing beautifully, thanks to the efforts of Robin, Christine, and Erin along with some great volunteers!
Additionally, membership chair Liza Loza will be our new “Yard and Garden Tour” chair, so start thinking about sharing your hard work with the rest of our members! Whether you’re just starting with a small patch or patio garden, or if you’ve fully converted your space, we can always learn from each other!
So what’s ahead? We have our Seed Swap coming up on November 20th at 6:30 – you’re welcome to come early for the board meeting! We are still looking for a couple of volunteers for the December 7th Native Plant Learning Hub, so let me know if you’re interested!
Last but not least, we will begin our Planning Committee meetings in early December, so if you have ideas about what Wild Ones could offer in 2026, please make your voice heard!
As always, I can’t say enough about how much I have learned and grown from being a part of this wonderful community. Thank you to each of you!!
Enjoy this lovely fall!
~Amy”
Next Meeting Date: 11.20.25 meeting at 5:30 followed by our seed swap at Goodman Center