Friends
of the Arboretum Newsletter
Volume 8,
Number 2
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Director's Letter
Mid-Year Reflections
By Bob Lyons, Ph.D., Director
It is frequently said that the plant collections are our most valuable asset here at the JC Raulston Arboretum, but I often contend that our human resources merit the highest value. That being said, our staff has seen lots of flux in the past few months. We said good-bye to Heather Chapman, who has taken another position within the University. Heather came as a temporary worker but learned our system quickly; she was subsequently hired as a permanent employee and managed our main telephone number along with countless other duties. She mastered her job with ease and we were very sad to see her go. Another farewell went to Anne Calta, who started with us several years ago, first as a student assistant and later working her way up to permanent, full-time status. If ever there were a person who experienced virtually all that the JCRA had to offer, it would be Anne. Among her many responsibilities, she cared for collections, propagated plants, and most recently managed our nursery operations and pulled together our Friends plant distribution program in the fall. She has made a move to Boone, North Carolina with her good friend Patrick Pitzer, and they both will be forging new dimensions within their careers.....we wish Anne and Patrick the very best.....get out those snow shovels and snow shoes, guys, you'll be missed! Peter Conden was hired shortly after Anne's departure to make sure we stayed on track. He has been nothing short of a lifesaver, assuming an octopus-like posture, working in our nursery and just about any other facet of our operations. Peter completed his M.S. in our department and truly loves all things "plants." He will hold this position temporarily until we can re-advertise and make a permanent hire. It is appropriate to note that funding for this position comes directly and entirely from you, and it has become critical to our overall operations. Finally, I can't leave the subject of staff without reference to our newest student interns, all privately funded. Your generosity was especially key this year as we welcomed, in no particular order, Heather Barkley (Jack Lamm Intern), Judy Morgan-Davis (Sudden Impact Intern), Jeff Jones (Ben Anderson Intern), Jeremy Rogers (North Carolina Commercial Flower Growers' Association Intern), Derek Washburn (North Carolina Association of Nurserymen/Alan MacIntyre Intern), and James Lail (Raleigh Garden Club/Friends of the JCRA Intern).....and don't let me forget Mark Blevins who continued into the summer as a paid student assistant. We already have two full time internships sponsored for 2005 so please give me a call if you wish to add your name to this list; we would love to top this year's success! It will be the most gratifying investment you'll ever make!
Gala Expenses |
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Gala Income |
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Onto the Gala.........aside from the looming skies and eventual tornado warning, a good time was had by all! I think the evacuation down to the Ruby C. McSwain Education Center and the absolute soaking we all got will be most memorable. The good news was that the event was a grand financial success thanks to the leading efforts of Donna Walker, the CALS Advancement team, her committee, and corps of staff and volunteers. All told, there was a net of about $68,000.00! This was later distributed as $20,000.00 going to future development efforts, $10,000.00 to our overall JCRA Endowment, and $38,000.00 to General Operations. The latter fuels just about everything we do......from hiring student assistants, paying for supplies and equipment, acquiring new plants and updating collections, general grounds maintenance, to just about any surprise that comes our way. More details can be gleaned from the charts in this issue and it is noteworthy that in addition to a near record gross income, our expenses were also down from last year! Kudos to all.
We very much appreciate the new working environment provided by the JCRA buildings. The challenge now becomes one of making the buildings "work" for us and our visitors. We've been concentrating lately on integrating two key functions in the McSwain Education Center: maintaining a personal presence at the reception desk and establishing a consistent staffing schedule in our bookstore/gift shop. Our volunteer coordinator, Frankie Fanelli, has worked with the volunteers to staff the front desk for most of the week. They assist our receptionist Faye Koonce and the many visitors who drop in. The McSwain Education Center has brought new visibility to the JCRA and a recent, nonscientific poll suggested that the majority of our visitors were first timers looking for an enjoyable place to spend some time. The Bookstore and Gift Shop, however, has proven to be more challenging and we're indebted to the volunteers who have staffed the store to date.....we continue to make refinements in this area and look forward to when this store will be fully patronized for its fine collection of eclectic garden and plant books and becomes a significant source of new revenues for the JCRA. We have consistent staffing on Mondays, Thursdays, and Fridays from 10:00 AM-2:00 PM, but you can always call Faye at (919) 513-7457 for any updated hours.
After a year of observing the new implications of room reservations in the McSwain Education Center, we launched our own use and fee guidelines for the York Auditorium and select areas within the JCRA and, yes.....weddings are possible again! Faye Koonce is our point person for these events and can fill you in on all the necessary details, so please give her a call at (919) 513-7457 if you are interested in scheduling your group. The guidelines were initially developed via an internal committee led by Board member Ann Armstrong, who deserves tremendous credit for their origination, development, and follow-through with her committee members. In fact, now that we've used these guidelines for several months, we're ready to revise them based on our experiences to date. Life is more complicated than before when fees only applied to weddings in the Klein-Pringle White Garden, but these fee-based reservations have great potential to create an important revenue stream for the JCRA, so we'll guide their evolution. The York Auditorium is fast becoming a popular meeting venue for both small and large groups, and its notoriety is primarily driven by word of mouth and networking. My advice: plan in advance; short notice reservations are harder to get these days!
Last year we introduced our very first Annual Appeal through the creativity and guidance of our Development staff headed up by Anne Porter. It was a great success, once again proving the strength of our supporters. All told, $13,845.00 was raised through this effort, and after we did the math, we learned that the appeal did not detract from historical giving that we see near year's end. Here's an idea of how those appeal funds were used: approximately $6,500.00 was earmarked for paid student assistants during the 2004-2005 academic year. It is always gratifying to bring in students to work alongside our staff, so this fund easily proved its value! Another $2,300.00 was targeted our computer systems. For any manager these days, computers will propel you to the top and at the same time be the root of all evil! Frustrations kick-in when they crash, need upgrades, require new software, or simply need to be replaced. The remainder of the monies was directly funneled into general operations.....I've said this before, having a secure "general" account lets me sleep easier!
The past months have seen plenty of activity in three long term projects led by staff. The Doggett Family Kiosk is currently under development and internally spearheaded by staff member Val Tyson. This has been an extended process in design and content development, but we are excited about the potential of the finished product.....which may very well be in place by the time you read this newsletter! Nancy Doubrava has been leading the efforts to complete a federal grant awarded by the Museum Assessment Program (MAP) of the Institute of Museum and Library Services. She has diligently guided internal surveys, public perception data collection, and analysis to arrive at a better picture of how we are perceived. The grant will culminate in the visit by two other directors of similar institutions, who will provide a follow up document of impressions and recommendations for us. And the third project of long-term and large-scale proportions is the development of our statewide evaluation network, headed up by Todd Lasseigne with assistance from Jon Roethling. Both have worked tirelessly this past spring to get our first set of plants installed in sites from the mountains to the coast. Most sites are partnerships with outlying NCSU Research and Extension Centers who help evaluate plants we've targeted for landscape potential. With all 12 sites installed, our first checks have begun this summer and we're excited about the potential information we'll derive from the program.
The JCRA continues to rack up the accolades. Most recently, the Perennial Plant Association awarded the JCRA Perennial Border a 2004 Landscape Design Award of Merit, no small feat in the context of this national competition. We were officially presented the award at the national PPA meeting in July in "The City" (New York City for those of us raised in that area, Manhattan to be even more specific!) Our printed materials also achieved national recognition in 2004. The pairing of our new brochure and informational "rack card" received first place recognition from the National Agricultural Alumni and Development Association at their 2004 national convention. These pieces are exquisite and represent the cooperative efforts of staff leaders Nancy Doubrava and Chris Glenn, who worked with designer Shari Sasser. Finally, two very notable JCRA oaks received "Champion" status in the Capital Trees Program of Wake County. Our Oglethorpe oak (Quercus oglethorpensis) and columnar English oak (Quercus robur f. fastigiata) now join company with our Japanese crepe myrtle (Lagerstroemia fauriei 'Fantasy') as "Champions" of importance and size in their class in our home county, Wake.
I'd like to close on a poignant note and recognize the loss of two friends of the JCRA this year. Please read Anne Porter's section in this newsletter, but I'd like to add a few words of my own. First, we lost an ardent supporter with the passing of Willie York. I recall meeting Willie for the first time when first interviewing for this directorship over five years ago. He was genuinely interested in what I could bring to the Arboretum, how that would fit, and hearing my ideas for seeing the McSwain Education Center campaign to closure. I visited him in his office where he enjoyed reminiscing about Raleigh in general, discussing his late wife Lib's interest in the JCRA, and his love for roses. To say that he was pivotal in our advancement would be an understatement; for it was not his financial generosity alone that made a difference, it was also his infectious ability to tell others about the treasure over here in west Raleigh. We are exceptionally fortunate to have many members of the York family continue their support to this day, including his daughter Phyllis Brookshire, who currently sits on our Board of Advisors. The JCRA is also indebted to the family for remembering us following the loss of Willie.....thank you. Another individual who will be missed is Julia Skinner, one of the original Friends of the Arboretum members. I often saw her at our lectures, escorted by her good friends and fellow aficionados of both plants and opera, Bobby Ward and Roy Dicks. Julia left a generous, planned gift to the JCRA, and I had marvelous conversations with Bobby and Roy regarding her dual passions and the ways we might remember her. I remain so appreciative to folks who remember the JCRA in the ways of the Yorks and Julia Skinner; their thoughtfulness is so important!
I hope you continue to see the great things we are doing here and the progress we're making; don't ever hesitate to enlist the interest of others; members are our lifeblood....and don't forget to visit in person or via our Web site!
Director's Letter | Survey Update | Horticulture | Development | Programs | Volunteering
Formatted into HTML by Christopher
Todd Glenn
Programs & Education Coordinator
JC Raulston Arboretum
Department of Horticultural Science
North Carolina State University
Raleigh, NC 27695-7522
© The JC Raulston Arboretum, September 2004