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Wow,
can you believe the 2011 ASA Convention is just a recent memory?
It was a wonderful long weekend, we were blessed with blue skies, sunshine, warm temperatures, and best of all, great friends. Carrie and Mike came in early to prepare and then little by little we all arrived at the Williamsburg Lodge for the 2011 Annual Convention. The first matter of business was our Executive Committee meeting, held in Mike’s suite on Saturday morning, which was sponsored by Columbia River Seeds. We had a few items to review, in preparation for the Annual Business Meeting on Monday. Once the business was done, we all went off in different directions, ready to have some fun. There were so many choices; it was hard to know where to start. Thanks to the sponsorship of Burlingham Seeds and Wetsel, Inc…, who, by the way, both celebrated their 100 year anniversary this year, we were given passes which allowed us to tour Colonial Williamsburg and enter the exhibits. After visiting the exhibits, we had many options for shopping and eating within the historic part or at Merchant’s Square, which was always bustling with people. Later that afternoon, Turf Merchants, Inc, sponsored Wine, Witt, & Wisdom. It featured food pairings to wine and most of all was a lot of fun. We then moved on to the Early Bird Reception, sponsored by Preferred Seed, on the beautiful Fountain Garden Terrace, which was located directly across from the Lodge. After the reception, it was dinner on your own, there was no shortage of restaurants to choose from and most were within walking distance. Sunday was another beautiful day, as the golfers prepared for their long journey to the Golden Horseshoe (directly across the street), which was sponsored by Reed & Perrine, those of us non-golfers met in the lobby for our guided walking tour, sponsored by Brett-Young Seeds. The walking tour gave us a behind the scenes look at life in Williamsburg during the late 18th century. Our tour ended at the Kings Arm Tavern, where some of the group then enjoyed lunch and a visit from Mrs. Jane Vobe, who opened the tavern in 1772. The rest of the afternoon was on your own, although there were plenty of things to do within walking distance, there was more just a short car ride away. Later that evening we all gathered on the Virginia Lawn for the Opening Reception & Silent Auction, sponsored by Ernst Conservation Seeds. A few items were down to the wire with bidders standing guard to ensure they won their favorite item. We were able to raise over $2100. Thank you to those who donated items to the auction and to the bidders, without you, we wouldn’t have the opportunity to award grants in Dr. John Baylor’s name. The second day of the convention is quickly coming to a close; it’s going by so fast. We all met for breakfast Monday morning, sponsored by Seed Research of Oregon, and then enjoyed a special presentation from Zenon Lis of |
Burlingham
Seeds regarding their
100 year anniversary. Our
morning workshop was sponsored by Mountain
View Seeds, Ltd and featured The Great Game of Business presented by
John Kennedy. John has presented at ASA Conventions in the past and
always has good ideas and insight that can be taken back and utilized.
During our morning break, sponsored by Central Fiber, we were treated
to popcorn, cracker jacks, hot pretzels, and chips & salsa. Around
this same time the spouses were gathering for their Tea at the
Williamsburg Inn, which was sponsored by Newsom Seed, Inc.
As we were concluding the morning workshop we were told that we would have an honored guest during our lunch, which was sponsored by Pennington Seed, and needed to be prompt. Once we were all in the room we were asked to raise for the President of the United States, to our surprise, George Washington entered the room and spent some time answering our questions. We then went back for the afternoon session, which began with a presentation from Tom Wetsel of Wetsel, Inc regarding their 100 year anniversary being celebrated this year. After a few minor technical difficulties, we listened to a presentation on Pollinators by Nikki Hindle of Ernst Conservation Seeds. The Annual Business Meeting was called to order. There were committee reports, updates and grants awarded. Two grants were awarded from the Dr John Baylor fund. The recipients were the Forage Variety Testing Program at Penn State University and Dr Martha Ann Mutschler-Chu of Cornell University. After the business meeting was adjourned, the ASTA Town Hall Meeting was held, thus concluding the day. In the early evening we met in the Fountain Garden for the President’s Awards, sponsored by Columbia Seeds. The Seedsman of the Year award goes to Troy Kuenzi, Mountain View Seeds and Honorary Member to Burlingham Seeds. Much to our surprise, we were then led to the Kings Arm Tavern by The Fife and Drum Corps. The Presidents Reception was sponsored by Mountain View Seeds, Ltd and was an experience like no other. If you are ever in Williamsburg, plan to eat there. The atmosphere is like no other, the meals are fulfilling, the desserts superb, and did I mention the Peanut Soup? All in all, the 2011 Convention was a great success. I hope those of you that attended agree. It had a little something for everyone. I wasn’t able to recognize all of the sponsors in my recap above but please know that all contributions are greatly appreciated; monetary, voluntary and moral support. The sponsors make the convention happen. A special thank you goes out to Mike for picking out the location and to Carrie for pulling it all together. They pulled out all the stops and were able to give us a memorable convention. On to 2012…..did you know that the site of your 2012 Convention is Myrtle Beach, SC!! Scott, we’re counting on you to make the 60th one to remember. More details to come….. |
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President Scott Rushe Ampac Seed Co. PO Box 318 Tangent, OR 97389 Phone: 814-234-7930 Fax: 814-237-5427 scott@ampacseed.com Treasurer Doug Rohrer P.L. Rohrer and Bro., Inc. PO Box 250 2472 Old Phila Pike Smoketown, PA 17576 Phone: 717-299-2571 Fax: 717-299-5347 drohrer@rohrerseeds.com Associate Member Turf & Forage Dan Fick Profile Products PO Box 210 Virginville, PA 19564 Phone: 484-336-7926 Fax: 610-562-0547 dfick@profileproducts.com Executive Director Carrie Bohrer Atlantic Seed Association 8204 Goodhurst Drive Gaithersburg, MD 20882 Phone: 301-785-9613 Fax: 240-597-1264 carrieb@newsomseed.com |
Vice President Harry Fridley Newsom Seed, Inc. PO Box 510 Fulton, MD 20759 Phone: 240-554-0359 Fax: 240-554-0366 harry@newsomseed.com Member-At-Large Murray Wingate Lebanon Seaboard Corporation 6621 Big Tree Road Livonia, NY 14487 Phone: 716-346-0005 Fax: 585-346-0812 mwingate@lebanonturf.com Associate Member Vegetable & Flower John Wahlert Wild West Seeds PO Box 327 Albany, OR 97321-0094 Phone: 541-928-7100 Fax: 541-928-7101 jwahlert@wildwestseed.com |
Secretary Stephanie Breckenridge Ernst Conservation Seeds 9006 Mercer Pike Meadville, PA 16335 Phone: 814-336-2404 Fax: 814-336-5191 Stephanie@ernstseed.com Member-At-Large, Out of Area Nancy Aerni Turf Merchants, Inc. 33390 Tangent Loop Tangent, OR 97389 Phone: (541) 926-8649 Fax: 541-926-4435 nancy@turfmerchants.com Past President Mike Steiner Wetsel, Inc. 15 Glade Run Drive Kittanning, PA 16201 Phone: 724-545-7181 Fax: 724-543-5338 msteiner@wetsel.com |