South Haven, MI walk closed early

Historic Pathwalkers President Jean Woltjer reported this morning:

The walk box at Café Julia in South Haven Michigan has been pulled unexpectedly as of yesterday.  This walk, which was supposed to run through the end of November, has therefore closed for the season. We will be working on finding a new spot for the box for next year. Please accept our apologies for any inconvenience but some of these things are beyond our control.

NOTE: Nov. 12, 2010 -- Jean Woltjer reported today that the South Haven start point will return to Cafe Julia when the seasonal walk re-opens next spring. 

HP Spring News March 2010

From HP President Jean Woltjer:
Spring is here! It won’t be long before the flowers are blooming and the snow will be a distant memory. It’s time to get those walking shoes out and start breathing in that fresh spring air. I’m looking forward to getting out on the trail again without having to think about ice underfoot.

We have sanctioned 14 walks again this year including 3 Year 'Round Events. About half of the events open on April 1 and by May 1 they will all be open. Check our website for specifics on each location  http://www.ava.org/clubs/pathwalkers/ or contact the local Point of Contact for details on each walk. You can also get information on our blog at http://historicpathwalkers.blogspot.com/  or look for Historic Pathwalkers on Facebook.

Our thanks go out to the volunteers who are willing to host the walk boxes each year.  We continue to receive favorable comments from walkers who really appreciate the opportunity to walk in our communities.

The American Volkssport Association has made a major change in the quarterly participation reporting procedure. They are no longer using the five-part paper report but want the statistics reported electronically. This should simplify matters for all of us.  Each club has been given a username and password. An officer of the club will now be responsible for sending in the information. To help facilitate that process we ask each of the Points Of Contact (person responsible for the box) to please send just the total number of walkers in each category, award, credit and free to Jean. All money and coupons should be sent to our treasurer, Alma Lucas.

Thanks to Pat Korloch our club has new 2010 club brochures available listing all our walks and starting locations.  They will be put in the walk boxes and are available by contacting Jean.

The club did not order any 2010 Starting Points from the AVA this year. Their popularity has dwindled with the use of the internet and we usually end up with some left over. For anyone who wants one, they are available from AVA headquarters.

We have scheduled some group walks again this year and hope you can join us for these walks. They will all begin at the official starting point for each location. Please note that our Howell starting Point has changed to the Uptown Coffeehouse at 102 E Grand River Ave. Our June walk will be followed by our annual business meeting so the time for that walk has been set for 9:30 a.m.

March 20, Howell, 10:00 a.m. -- Uptown Coffeehouse

April 17, Lansing, 10:00 a.m. --  MI Historical Museum

May 22, South Haven, 10:00 a.m. -- Café Julia

June 12, Grand Rapids, 9:30 a.m. --  Big Boy

July  (open for suggestions)

On May 1 the MOVES club in Middleville will host a walk on the Paul Henry Thornapple River trail. Here is a link for more details. This is a beautiful walk in the spring and a great birding opportunity as well.

http://www.ava.org/gen3/data/event_details.asp?eventid=86331

We were saddened to hear of the passing of Judy Bowne on Feb 10. She along with her husband Bill were long time members of the Historic Pathwalkers and active participants in our activities until they retired and took to the road in their RV. Our sympathies go out to Bill and his family. We will miss Judy but are grateful for the opportunity to have known her.

South Haven, MI Group Walk July 25

South Haven, Michigan pier

The Historic Pathwalkers Michigan affiliate will host a group walk in South Haven, Michigan at 9:30 a.m. this Saturday, July 25 beginning at Cafe Julia, 561 Huron St, South Haven, Michigan.

Cafe Julia, South Haven, Michigan

Group Walk July 25 in South Haven, MI

Summer news

After a group walk on Saturday, June 27, the Historic Pathwalkers met for their annual meeting at the Big Boy restaurant in Grand Rapids. Several motions were passed which included the renewing of all our seasonal and year -'round walks based on participation last year and a good start to this year.

 

Alma Lucas gave the treasurer’s report and the AVA financial report has been submitted as required. Several items of interest include the possible change of the Howell start point. Linda is currently looking into that possibility and we will keep you posted if it changes. We are also looking into scheduling an event in Belle Isle and Portland later this fall and/or spring of next year.

Election

Election of officers resulted in no changes to the current slate:

President Jean Woltjer

Vice President Pat Korloch

Secretary John Pierce

Treasurer Alma Lucas

Membership reminder

Thanks to all who have renewed their memberships.  For those who haven’t and would like to, you may send $5.00 per household to Alma Lucas, 5261 Southbrook Ct, #51, Hudsonville, MI  49426. 

Pickle Pepper Poker People Walk

Two of our members from Indiana were able to be present and reminded us of the Pickle Pepper Poker People Walk which will be held in St Joe Indiana on Saturday, August 15.  This is a 6 or 12 K walk held during the St Joe Pickle Festival. If you’ve never done this walk it’s well worth the drive. For more information call Willa Thompson at 260-238-4221 or Wilma Fuelling at 260-432-4253.  Day of the walk call 260-312-3312.

We would like to welcome new members, David and Sally N. from Fennville and hope to meet them sometime soon. Currently we have quite an extensive mailing list. If you are receiving this newsletter but would like your name removed from our list please notify me at jean.woltjer@att.net   

This is a reminder to all POCs that it’s time for the AVA Quarterly Participation Report to be sent in.  Please be sure to do that in a timely fashion so as to avoid a late fee.  Thanks to all of you for your help.

Group Walk REMINDER:

9:30 a.m. Saturday, July 25. 

Café Julia, 561 Huron St. South Haven MI

Enjoy your summer!

Jean Woltjer, President

Historic Pathwalkers