Thirty five Hennepin members and friends participated in the Koinonia Environmental weekend May 2 and 3, in a major expansion of the former annual birders weekend.
There were opportunities during the weekend to identify wild flowers, re-landscape the footbridges on the Reflecting Pond, remove buckthorn and prickly ash (both invasive plant species) and of course, bird watch.
“We had a terrific weekend, planting trees, enjoying the splendor of Koinonia and identifying birds," said Tom Sopoci, Koinonia board chair.
Even when the sun went down, the birds were still visible in two illustrated bird lectures provided by Bob Janssen, Hennepin's resident bird expert and also assistant manager of the Steeple People Surplus Store. Bob was joined by John Dunlop, another long-standing Hennepin member, in a great talk about sustainable energy, from his perspective as Senior Project Engineer for the American Wind Energy Association.
After hours on Saturday there was a fire built and smores made down by the lake where we listened to several pairs of loons yodeling.
"This event has become one of the key Hennepin weekends at Koinonia," Sopoci commented. "We hope it will continue to grow in the future."
Mark your calendars now, the 2010 Environmental Weekend will be held at Koinonia on May 1st and 2nd.