Kickapoo Reserve Management Board welcomes new members
The Kickapoo Reserve Management Board (KRMB) recently introduced two new Board members. Hocak (Ho-Chunk) Tina Brown of Black River Falls, Wisconsin, has been appointed to represent the Ho-Chunk Nation’s Cultural interests and Julie Hoel of Ontario, Wisconsin, has been appointed as the Education Representative by Governor Tony Evers. These appointments filled the only remaining seats left on the board which has not seen a complete board since 2012.
The eleven member KRMB sets policy and oversees administration for the 8,600-acre Kickapoo Valley Reserve headquartered in La Farge, Wisconsin.
Brown currently serves as the Executive Director for the Ho-Chunk Nation Natural Resources Department. Her involvement with the Kickapoo Valley Reserve dates back to 1998 when she served as a member of the team responsible for inventorying the unique resources of the property. She is an enthusiastic advocate of the mission of the Reserve to “Preserve and Protect” this land in balance with recreation and education. "I look forward to providing my services as a board member to all that constitutes the ecological gem of the Kickapoo Valley. My goal as a board member is to provide a Ho-Chunk perspective that embraces our culture and promotes an environmentally sustainable future for the ecologies of the valley,” Brown said of her appointment.
Hoel, a semi-retired schoolteacher is familiar with the Reserve, serving as an instructor for the numerous school groups who visit. She is also the immediate past-President for the Friends of Kickapoo Valley Reserve (KVR), a non-profit organization with over two-hundred members that assist the Reserve through fundraising, volunteering, and advocacy.
Originally applying as an education representative, Hoel’s first encounter through KVR was in a course that she took as a teacher. She said when she took that class at KVR, it gave her a sense of belonging to the land and what the Driftless Area was about. The course included a culture tour for educators that visited local geology and biology, participants visited local artists, and learned a lot about history. “It took me places I have never been all these years visiting my parents in Ontario.”
After the course she was hired on as a part-time instructor, and eventually became involved in the Friends of the KVR Board. “I’ve been really interested in all of the education programs developed at KVR. There are some great new initiatives, camping is expanding, and a forest preschool has been added. They’ve applied for a charter school grant in conjunction with the La Farge School District. These are all really exciting uses of this beautiful, beautiful property,” said Hoel.
She continued, “I have observed the Management Board meeting as a Friends member to report on what the Friends are doing and just watch what they do. It’s been really interesting for me to listen to the questions that they ask and see the knowledge that the full board brings to all that is possible at the KVR. Marcy West (KVR Executive Director) and Ron Johnson (KVR Board Chair) are always reminding people of what the mission was when it was first created. I think in the midst of that, they would tell you things have developed at KVR that no one thought about when they first created the reserve. They weren’t thinking of the dark sky programs, they weren’t thinking about it as a destination for trout fisherman. Different people come in with different ideas. It makes it all a more enticing destination for people.”
Hoel is optimistic with her new appointment to the board and noted that both boards have always worked well together adding, “I don’t think there is any discord in those groups and the Friends exists to have that opportunity for donations as a non-profit and also as a way to help focus and give people ideas on how they can volunteer their time. The staff comes up with great ideas. The Friends are just augmenting what it is they are trying to incorporate. It’s a unique place. I’m excited to serve on a board that is so unique. It looks like a state park but it is very different in how it is managed through the board. To be on a board that includes, in such an important way, the Ho-Chunk Nation, that is unique and exciting as well.”
Elated at having a full board, Marcy West said, “We’re so happy to have all eleven Board seats filled. It is the first time since 2012! Fortunately, we have a very active board with each member bringing their experience, expertise and commitment to benefit the Kickapoo Valley Reserve. Tina and Julie will add to that as they’re both very familiar with the property and programs we manage.”
In the appointment notification, Governor Evers stated their, “experience, knowledge, and dedication will be a true asset to the KRMB.” Board members serve for three-year staggered terms.
