The trail I took to become a Missouri Master Naturalist began long ago. My childhood influences were growing up in Northern Virginia and regularly visiting national museums just a few miles from my home. I learned to appreciate our country's treasures because the displays taught about their history and how they are presently valued in our lives and how some can disappear because of the forces of nature. I developed an early love of our natural world. This was enforced most summers when our family left the city suburbs and stayed with relatives on an Ohio farm. It was hard to leave at the end of the summer and go back to the city where natural things were highly controlled and contained for the benefit of humans. I felt boxed-in and unable to breathe freely. I found an opportunity to get out and moved to Iowa when I was 17.
In Iowa I could see and feel the cooperation humans had with nature and it was a good life. Humans respected the weather and worked with nature to prosper and nature gave them humility. I finished high school in Iowa and then took a correspondence course in Conservation for two years. I saw values change in the eight years I lived in Iowa. High production became out of balance with the well-being of the land and animals. I married a man who grew up here and we both decided to find a better place to live and prosper that had a better balance with nature. We moved to Missouri in 1978.
In Missouri, we prospered! We bought 50 acres and lived off the land as "hobby farmers" for the next seven years. Life was good for the most part as we grew with good jobs, two children, and outdoor activities. We choose to live here and the rest is our history. It is all about balance with nature. Now it is time to give back in my retirement. I started by taking the Missouri Master Naturalist Course in Camdenton which is about 30 minutes from my home in Hermitage. It is put on through the University of Missouri Extension Service of Columbia and the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) of Jefferson City; both have offices in Camdenton.
The classes began in February and were 3 hours each Monday evening.We had two speakers who were usually from the MDC or Extension Service and were the state's experts in their field. There were 14 indoor classes (42 hours) and three outdoor field trips on Saturdays for a total of 51 hours but a missed class or two was okay; 45 hours was the credit. After classes, the "Intern" must perform 40 hours of volunteer activity and eight additional hours of Advanced Training to become a Certified Missouri Master Naturalist and receive a Dragonfly Pin. If twice the requirements are met in one year, then the next pin is awarded in a ceremony. That pin would be a Bear and I'm ALMOST THERE!!!!
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This is the Class of 2014. I am on the left side at the corner of the wall mural. Each student was given a large black file folder container like the one in the front row. It was filled with all the MDC materials given or sold to the public.
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| Every class was also a dinner and our class was the best ever at bringing good stuff! That's me front right. All meetings were at the MDC office with stuffed critters all around watching us eat! |
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| First field session was on Karst Landforms at Ha Ha Tonka State Park. This is the Coliseum Area. |
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| Natural Bridge |
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| Natural Spring at end of trail |
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| Another field session Exploring Our Natural World |
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| This field session was about Pond Life... |
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| …and Stream Life. I found some interesting fish eggs under a rock. Turned out to be Banded Sculpin.
Here's a list of the other subjects taught in our class: Orientation, Basic Ecological Concepts, Invasive Species, Caves and Cave Life, Geology and Hydrology of the Local Area, The Role of Hunting/Fishing/Law Enforcement in Natural Resource Management, Reptiles and Amphibians, Fisheries Management Lake of the Ozarks, Bagnell Dam Ameren Operations, Missouri Natural Areas, Urban Conservation and Wildlife, Aquatic Ecosystems, Groundwater, Prairies, Agriculture and Conservation, Birds, Woodlands and Glades, Forest Ecology, Insects, Native Plants for Landscaping and Backyard Wildlife, Rain Gardens and Watershed Protection, Missouri Mammals, Local History and Lore, 7 Habits of Highly Effective Volunteers, Nuts and Bolts of Being a Master Naturalist.
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| Summer Social was at Sugar Loaf Winery which is close to my home. Keith joined me and got to meet everyone for the first time as a group. |
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Many activities are available to get credit for Advanced Training and are lots of fun too like this Night Hike along Spring Trail At Ha Ha Tonka. We walked a couple miles in the dark without flashlights to the spring and back and identified ALL the sights and sounds.
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| My 1st time on a Paddle Board |
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| Of course, it is all about balance so I did some Yoga! |
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| No, I was not going to do a headstand! A downward dog was just fine. |
Once a month from May to September, there is a Kayak Meet on Lake of the Ozarks at Ha Ha Tonka State Park. It is put on by the Lake of the Ozarks Watershed Alliance (LOWA) to promote non-motorized watercraft for cleaner water. I volunteer helping sign in the public, demonstrate techniques, and also take time to play! I also got 38 hours credited for organizing LOWA's electronic files and developing spreadsheets as they had 300 clients over the past four years that they helped with Low-Impact Landscaping and provided matching grants to improve shorelines. This group works very closely with Missouri Master Naturalists.
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| Another Advanced Training activity was a tour of the nearby Bennett Springs Fish Hatchery. |
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Every graduating class has a Capstone Project to make sure everyone has plenty of opportunities to get their volunteer hours done. The project was building bat houses, bluebird houses, owl boxes, and butterfly houses. A member who has been with the group longer opened his home for several weekends to mentor new members and teach them how to do this work. I spent one Saturday building a bat box and stenciling.
My first eight hours of Advanced Training was done online at home. I learned 22 different frog calls and took an extensive North American Amphibian Monitoring Program (NAAMP) quiz online to prepare for an assigned Frog Survey. It includes a Public Quiz and a Frog Call Lookup for anyone interested. My part of the quiz was more extensive and I had to register as surveyors are encouraged to make the quiz part of their pre-season practice each year to refresh. My territory is nearby Stockton Lake. I had ten specific stop locations and lots of paperwork to fill out about what I heard at these stops. It was all done after dark. I did the survey once this year as I got in on it the last of three surveys done each year in the spring. I am looking forward to it again next spring!
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| I was part of the first of our class to qualify for Certification which was awarded at the August 14, 2014 monthly Chapter Meeting. I got the certificate and the Dragonfly pin. I already have my next 40 hours of volunteering completed and need 4 more hours of Advanced Training to get a Bear pin recognition. Hopefully, I will have that completed this fall. So far, all of the volunteer hours and Advanced Training has been FUN! I am having the best time of my life which includes being around like-minded people! |
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