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Report of the Third Meeting of the Gilbert
125 Group
7 p.m. Monday, April 14, at the Gilbert City
Hall on Main Street
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Nine area residents gathered at City Hall at 7 pm
on Monday, April 14, for the third meeting of the Gilbert 125 Group that is
planning a celebration for Gilbert’s 125th anniversary in the summer of
2004. To date there are a total of 15 people who have participated in the
planning meetings. Those who attended the April 14 meeting are Mary Dodds,
Helen Gunderson, Lynn Henn, Danielle Kroehling, Jake Kroehling, Joy Leister,
Gwen Thompson, Cindy Wirth, and Greg Wirth. Other planners include: Mike
Adams, Margot Eness, Bob Jaquis, Kurt Jensen, Gary Selof, and Randy
Thompson.
GHS Alumni Reunion Plans
The meeting began with introductions, then Gwen and Mary reported on a
meeting of the Gilbert all-class reunion committee that was held earlier
this month. The alumni have decided to shift their reunion from 2005, which
would have been its regularly scheduled year, to 2004 to coincide with the
celebration of Gilbert’s 125th anniversary. There will be an alumni banquet,
probably on Saturday night of the G125 weekend. In addition, alumni will be
encouraged to participate in the various quasquicentennial events to be held
around town.
The Date for the Quasquicentennial Celebration
The GHS alumni representatives and the G125 group decided the weekend
celebration should begin on Friday night and conclude on Saturday night with
no events planned for Sunday. The planners also established priorities for a
date for the celebration. The first choice is July 30-31. The second is
August 6-7. And the third is July 24 and 25. The alumni group will begin
contacting various sites in the Ames area to select a place for holding the
banquet and schedule a date. The reunion date will determine the weekend for
the G125 celebration, and the two groups will coordinate both their plans
and publicity for the various events.
Relationship of G125 Group with the City of
Gilbert
The group discussed their relationship with the city. First, Helen pointed
to an article in the Iowa League of Cities magazine that she had distributed
to the group that talked about municipal celebrations. She acknowledged that
much of the material was geared to towns with celebrations much larger than
Gilbert’s. However, she also noted that it would good to read through the
article and develop a checklist of issues to think about — things such as
parking, first aid, rest rooms, and coordinating volunteers.
Helen also told about how the G125 planners would be wise to work under the
umbrella of the city in order to benefit from the city’s insurance policy,
book-keeping system, legal advice, etc. She said that otherwise, the members
of the group would be vulnerable if something went wrong with the
celebration. She also noted it would take a lot of work for the G125 group
to incorporate or otherwise become an official organization.
Helen and Mike attended the April 7 city council meeting for a preliminary
discussion with the council about how the G125 group and city could work
together on the quasquicentennial.
Lynn is a member of the community activities committee of the city
council and was present at the April 14 meeting of the G125. (Craig Allen is
the other member of the community activities committee.) Lynn told how the
city has had the one conversation about the event and would like to be a
part of planning it but that the council decided to wait to make any
commitment until after it got feedback from the city attorney on how to
proceed. Lynn also indicated that as the G125 group solidifies more of its
plans, it will be easier for the city to know the scope of the
quasquicentennial event and decide its role. Lynn will keep the G125
planners apprised of the council's progress on the matter.
Quasquicentennial Activities
The G125 planners reviewed a list of activities for the celebration that
they had brainstormed at an their first meeting. Gary and Joy had met over
the weekend to trim down the list, cutting off those ideas that would be too
cumbersome to organize.
5-K run
antique tractor show/parade
antique car show
art exhibit
bake sale
band concert
beard-growing contest
bicycle ride
bologna and corn feed
face painting
fireworks
garage sales
golf cart rides (for event organizers and to escort walking impaired
visitors)
horses drawn wagons
in parade or exhibition
horse shoes
horses in parade
hot air balloon rides
jazz band gig
karaoke
large scale inflatable slide and other kids games
lawn tractor pull
model airplane flying
oral history project
pancake feed
parade — regular
parade — kids
petting zoo
photo exhibit (images of Gilbert)
quilt show
senior citizen activities/outreach
side walk art
softball/baseball/volleyball
street dance
Vision 2000 prairie walk
water games (fire department)
G125 Liaisons and Recruiting
The G125 group also designated liaisons to reach out to other groups in
order to recruit them to participate in the core planning process or to
organize a specific element of the quasquicentennial celebration. Eventually
the G125 group will have a flyer that includes information about the
celebration and the list of proposed activities that the liaisons can share
with the groups. Each group will be able to pick an idea for the list or to
create their own ideas.
4-H clubs — Joy Leister
5K run — Gary Selof
Beta Sigma Phi — Mike Adams and Cindy Wirth
Brownie and Girl Scouts — Danielle and Jake Kroehling
Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts — Lynn Henn
GHS Athletic Boosters — Cindy and Greg Wirth
GHS Fine Art Boosters — Joy Leister
GHS Parent Teacher Organization — Cindy Wirth
Lions Club — Helen Gunderson
Soccer and baseball clubs — Mike Adams
The Fabricators quilting group — Gwen Thompson
The schools (mailings to Superintendent Williams) — Helen Gunderson
The Gilbert Fire Department — Lynn Henn
Triple G Square Dance Club — Joy Leister
In terms of some of the specific activities on the brainstormed list, the
following persons volunteered to do some research:
Antique tractors — Greg Wirth
History project — Mary Dodd
Horses for parade, etc. — Helen Gunderson
Petting zoo — Greg Wirth
Organizational Structure for
the G125 Group and Recruiting Co-chairs
There was some discussion about how the G125 planners wanted to organize
as a group. Helen suggested that aside from what decisions the city makes
about how to be involved in working with them, the G125 members would be
wise to think about their vision of how to structure themselves. She said
that among the group, there were probably people who would be willing to
serve as treasurer or secretary. She volunteered to work on publicity and
convene meetings. She also acknowledged that she knew of no one in the group
who wanted to be the chair or co-chairs of the G125 project. Everyone in the
room nodded in agreement. She often referred to the analogy of developing a
strong trunk of a tree in the initial months of planning. That way, she
thought, other groups would be more included to participate, knowing that
there was a strong foundation for the project. She also thought that if the
group got to the stage of having a secretary and treasurer and other
volunteers in place, perhaps the group could do some specific recruiting to
find people who have the aptitude and energy for event organizing who would
be willing to be co-chairs of the quasquicentennial celebration.
Schedule of G125 Meeting Dates
The G125 planners discussed how often they wanted to meet during the
rest of the year. Jake asked for clarification about the scope of the
celebration. The planners explained some of their thoughts. For instance,
they are not sure of what is possible. A lot depends on how much other
people and groups are willing to get involved. In past years, the town had a
history of holding Gilbert Days with a rodeo and other events. However, the
G125 group acknowledged how difficult it has been in recent years for
Gilbert to organize community events. For sure, part of the theme of the
G125 group has been that of keeping the event simple enough and manageable.
And there was a definite decision that there would be no activities
organized for Sunday of the quasquicentennial weekend.
There was unanimous consent at the G125 meeting that there should be no May,
June, or December meeting in 2003. The planners did set their next meeting
date for 7 pm, Wednesday, July 16 at City Hall. They will decide at the end
of that meeting how often they want to meet during the rest of the summer
and fall seasons.
The alumni planners will hopefully be able to report a reunion date when
they come to the July 16 meeting, and the G125 planners hopefully will have
much to report from their contacts with various individuals and groups.
Also, by that time, the city council will probably have a response from the
city attorney about how best to relate to the G125 group in preparation for
the quasquicentennial. The G125 group did not designate representatives to
meet with the council the next time that the G125 event is on the council
agenda. However, most likely, some of the members of the G125 group will be
willing to attend said council meeting when it is announced.
Expansion of Gilbert's City-Wide Garage Sale
on May 3, 2003
The G125 group also discussed plans for Gilbert’s city-wide garage sale
on May 3 of this year. The G125 planners want to help expand the scope of
the event. At the last meeting, Randy Thompson of the Open Flame said that
his restaurant could be open that day.
Helen circulated a tentative flyer she had played around with creating for
the day. It had an announcement of the garage sale on one side with a city
map on the other side. There was some discussion of whether those residents
holding garage sales should be asked to contribute toward the expenses for
the flyer as well as any ad that is put in the Advertiser. Alys Stull
initiates the event each year and usually places the ad. Helen thought that
it might be wise to not ask the garage sale hosts for a fee but instead show
them that the G125 group was willing to go to bat for them. She also said
that the flyer could be good publicity for the quasquicentennial celebration
so that people would at least start thinking about it over a year ahead of
the actual event.
Danielle is a recent graduate of Iowa State with a degree in advertising and
a relatively new resident of Gilbert. She volunteered to talk with Alys and
offer help with placing the ad in the Advertiser. Danielle also volunteered
to work on the garage sale flyer and map. When it is ready, it will be
placed a various key locations around Gilbert and Ames. The G125 planners
and garage sale hosts will also have access to copies of the flyer to
distribute to their friends and colleagues.
The meeting adjourned around 8:35 pm.
Report prepared by Helen D. Gunderson, meeting convener.
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