LWV UMRR Board Retreat 2025
August 8-11, 2025
Get ready for the 2025 Retreat! This year we will be in the area around Alton, Illinois - just across the river from St. Louis.
This page includes our agenda, meeting locations, meal plans and more. Please refer back here for information as you prepare to attend. We will also include the Zoom link for those not able to attend in person; the Zoom will only include those times when we are sitting and meeting, not meals, tours or other events.
This page is not shown on the navigation for our website. To find it again, either bookmark it on your browser or navigate to our home page - www.lwvumrr.org - and type "Retreat Page 2025" in the search line.
This page includes our agenda, meeting locations, meal plans and more. Please refer back here for information as you prepare to attend. We will also include the Zoom link for those not able to attend in person; the Zoom will only include those times when we are sitting and meeting, not meals, tours or other events.
This page is not shown on the navigation for our website. To find it again, either bookmark it on your browser or navigate to our home page - www.lwvumrr.org - and type "Retreat Page 2025" in the search line.
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This retreat will be one big learning adventure, with plenty of time to get to know each other and our partners. From our artist reception on Friday to our Lock and Dam tour on Saturday to our Audubon Center tour on Sunday to our tour of the St. Louis wastewater treatment plant on Monday, we will really get to see the Mississippi in many new ways!
LWV UMRR ILO Board Retreat Schedule
August 8-11, 2025, Towering Pines, 23454 IL-3, Dow, IL Laptop/projector/cords (Sabel) Miller will check on screen at each location Meeting folders/flip chart/easel & tape/markers (Miller) Bring your UMRR name tag! Friday, August 8, 2025 3:00 pm check-in at Towering Pines 3:00-3:30 exhibit set up; 3:30–4:30 Artist Reception, Riverlands Audubon Center 6:00 pm BYOB Social/Dinner (team 1) at Retreat House with our guests Saturday, August 9, 2025 Pack lunches (team 5) bags, self-serve breakfast (team 4) at guest house. Ride share to National Great Rivers Museum, about 25 minutes 11:00 am Private Tour Mel Price Lock & Dam, #2 Dam Way, East Alton, IL (lots of walking, few steps, gather inside National Great Rivers Museum) Noon- 12:30 pm National Great Rivers Museum Classroom (sack lunch/GTKEO) Official UMRR Board Meeting: Session I ( at Classroom and via ZOOM) 12:30 -1:30 pm UMRR Orientation & Board Structure April 8th Board & June 3rd Annual Meeting Minutes/Financial Reports Our Origin Story & Founding: Tamera Prenosil (founding board member) Website Tour: Gretchen Sabel (founding board member) By-Laws Review (screen share): Nancy Porter/Paula Ekstrom/Tam Prenosil Officer Elections/State Appointment Process/Length of Terms/Committees Add Membership Committee to By-Laws? 1:30 – 2:30 pm Succession Planning Chair, Vice-Chair & Communications Director IL, IA, MO, WI Board Seats to fill Improving relationship with state League Boards/local unit members 2:30-3:00 pm Break/Visit NGR Museum displays 3:30-4:45 pm Affiliate Engagement Missouri Sierra Club River Actions: Gretchen Waddell Barwich Prairie Rivers (IL): Robert Hirschfield MS River Local and Tribal Leaders Agreement MRCTI & SWSC (more information on the LWV UMRR blog here) General Discussion of our Affiliate Relationships moving forward 6:00 pm BYOB Social/Dinner (team 2) at Retreat House with our guests Officers: Chair Mary Ellen Miller (IA), Co-Vice Chair Nancy Porter (IA), Co-Vice Chair Sheila Weigman (MN), Sec’y Susan Adams (WI), Treasurer Catherine Franczyk (IL), Communications Director Gretchen Sabel (MN) Board: Megan Benage (MN), Mickey Croyle (MO), Lee Ekstrom (IL), Paula Ekstrom (IL), Sheryl Eufinger (MO), Carolyn Mahlum-Jenkins (WI), Steve Paulsrud (IA), Tam Prenosil (IA), Kay Salma (MN), Colleen Werdien (MN), plus IA third, IL third, MO third, WI second and third. Guests: Christine Curry, Barbara Hoppe, Diane Duncan Goldsmith, and area LWV members (Rachel Thompson), affiliate group representatives Sunday, August 10, 2025 Pack lunches (team 5) bags at guest house. 9:30 am – 11:15 am Brunch (order off the menu, UMRR pays) Pere Marquette Lodge Restaurant, 13653 Lodge Blvd, Grafton Illinois 11:15 am – NOON pm travel time to Riverlands Audubon Center NOON- Private Tour of Riverlands Audubon Center (walking/driving) Official UMRR Board Meeting: Session II ( at Center and via ZOOM) 1:00 – 2:15 pm Board Operations/Calendar UMRR Schedule: bimonthly Board Meetings August/October/December/February/April/June (Set Dates) May 2026 Annual Meeting August (in-person) 2026 Retreat location: Minnesota State League meeting dates 2026 exhibits/presentation? LWV US Convention 2026 Columbus, OH, virtual? exhibit? Committee Chairs & Schedule: Action: Slama + Issue Chairs Clean Water for All re Proposed CWFA “Protect Our Waters” campaign https://protectcleanwater.org/ProtectOurWaters_FAQ Audit/Budget: Franczyk – By Laws: Membership: Diane Duncan-Goldsmith, Chair Colleen Werdien & Catherine Franczyk Nominating: Sue Wilson, Chair; four appointed by the Board Traveling Exhibit: Mary Ellen Miller Acting Chair |
Zooming, recording and other tools We will have technology along to Zoom our meetings to those who can't attend. These meetings will be recorded for later viewing. All this said, things happen and all doesn't work out as planned. It is possible that even though we try to do all that is outlined above, we could fail. We will try not to allow that to happen. The Zoom links below are for those not able to attend in person. The documents you will need follow the links. Zoom Links:Saturday - Official UMRR Board Meeting Session 1
https://lwvmn-org.zoom.us/j/84046056150?pwd=aRuuakAYbq6bqekJmmPQ7d3SBjPztw.1 Sunday - Official UMRR Board Meeting Session 2 lwvmn-org.zoom.us/j/81655547557?pwd=EUFxCYeqUCQJcWLzEKQBE7iGC5dDlC.1 Meeting Documents (printed versions will be provided to in-person attendees at the meeting)
We will be using this lovely guest house in Dow, Illinois, as our base of operations. Thanks to Catherine Franczyk for her work in securing this location! Towering Pines, part of Grafton Getaway - address is 23454 Illinois Highway 3, Dow, Illinois. The following spreadsheet contains room information and costs for attendees staying in the guesthouse.
LWV UMRR ILO Board Retreat Schedule (continued)
2:30 – 4:00 pm 2025-26 Program Planning/Outreach Program topics: MS River Compact/MRRRI/MRCTI/CAFOs/Water Usage/?? Possible program speakers: 2026 Annual meeting speaker 2026 Pure Water Exhibit opportunities: Kansas City/St. Joe/ Omaha/Sioux City Davenport/Burlington/Ft. Madison/Keokuk, La Crosse, Monday, August 11, 2025 Self-serve breakfast at guest house, pack up & check out by 11:00 am 10:00 am St. Louis Wastewater Treatment Plant Bissell site (group tour) Bissell Treatment Plant, 10 E Grand Ave, Saint Louis, MO 63147, US - MapQuest | ||||||||||||||||
Food Plans - The Teams referenced above are the groups of people responsible for bringing food for each meal. The following spreadsheet will enlighten you -- read on!
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Our Board Roster as of August 1, 2025, is posted below. Please use this to get in touch with your fellow Board members.
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To make this annual retreat as affordable as possible, UMRR offers a $100 stipend/officer & board member to help cover travel expenses. We potluck breakfast, sack lunch & evening meals to help defray costs; the Sunday brunch meal will be paid by UMRR. Spouses are welcome. Use the form to the right here to request the stipend.
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Area orientation:
These maps show our locations for Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday respectively. Links and addresses to the locations are in the agenda above as well. These maps are provided to give an understanding of the area. Click on a map - it will expand and you will get a link to Google maps.
These maps show our locations for Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday respectively. Links and addresses to the locations are in the agenda above as well. These maps are provided to give an understanding of the area. Click on a map - it will expand and you will get a link to Google maps.
INSPIRATION CORNER
Back in 2016, Bonnie Cox (one of our founding mothers) left LWV UMRR's Board as she stepped up to be President of LWV Illinois. She left behind these words that showcase the vision and mission of LWV UMRR.
Back in 2016, Bonnie Cox (one of our founding mothers) left LWV UMRR's Board as she stepped up to be President of LWV Illinois. She left behind these words that showcase the vision and mission of LWV UMRR.
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Additional Map Links:
https://maps.apple.com/place?address=23454%20IL-3,%20Dow,%20IL%20%2062022,%20United%20States&coordinate=39.000096,-90.358706&name=23454%20IL-3&map=explore
https://maps.app.goo.gl/uGst8rjhGrrqCMid9 or https://maps.app.goo.gl/9pSNczzaJjjpXhL5A
https://maps.apple.com/place?address=23454%20IL-3,%20Dow,%20IL%20%2062022,%20United%20States&coordinate=39.000096,-90.358706&name=23454%20IL-3&map=explore
https://maps.app.goo.gl/uGst8rjhGrrqCMid9 or https://maps.app.goo.gl/9pSNczzaJjjpXhL5A