As we emerge from two months
of “isolation” we are looking forward to enjoying each other on the
waters of the upper St. Joseph River. The St. Joseph River Association,
Inc. (SJRA) is a great way to stay connected and keep up on the events
happening on our waterway.
You
can enroll for our newsletters on the home page click on enroll tab.
Or dropping a note to
info@sjrainc.com
In this edition of the SJRA
News we are going to be sharing with you information from several groups
that will be hosting events this season.
Before we discuss the “fun”
events we need to address why the SJRA,Inc was formed in the first
place. We are a group of people committed to protecting and improving
the St. Joseph River through education, positive environmental practices
and helping to keep our waterway safe, clean and enjoyable for everyone
that uses it. One of these things is combating native and invasive
weeds.
The SJRA,Inc’s board members
are: Richard Bond, Brad Miller, Bruce Shreiner, Tom Shoff and Tony
Warning. They receive a great deal of assistance from Cairre Fuller and
Stacey Corpe.
Last year we had our first
case of Nitellopsis obtuse or more commonly referred to as Starry
Stonewort. Starry Stonewort is an invasive green alga that can grow
tall and dense, forming mats on the surface of the water that interferes
with recreation.
Starry Stonewort has never
been successfully eradicated from any body of water but it can be
controlled by herbicides. In the past the SJRA has not applied for DNR
grants to help control weeds because most of our weeds naturally inhabit
our waterway yet they still cause problems. DNR grant dollars can only
be used to control non-native invasive weeds. This year the SJRA went
through the arduous process of applying for and winning a $ 5,000
grant. This is the maximum the DNR gives. We anticipate the total cost
of our weed control program to cost $ 50,000 this year. We urgently
need your help in the way of contributions to reach our goal. The SJRA,
Inc is a 501©3 organization so your contributions are completely tax
deductible. Enclosed is a donation card that we ask you to return with
your contribution.
We all can agree that we
must fight this invasive aquatic weed problem. The weeds affect our
enjoyment of the river as well as the enjoyment of the river by all
recreational users, and they affect our property values, too.
We want to thank you for generously donating to
our unified cause in the past years. We are asking you to continue to
support your association and its efforts to improve the quality of the
river by making another donation this year. Remember the SJRA, Inc. is a
501(c)3 non-profit organization; therefore your donations are tax
deductible. Donating is easy, visit:
www.sjrainc.com
and click on the link to donate via your credit card; you will still
receive a receipt for tax purposes. You may also choose the option to
mail a check made out to SJRA, Inc. and send it along with the donation
card in the enclosed return envelope. Please include your email address
on the donation card so we can email you back your tax receipt. This
allows us to save on postage expense and handling costs. If you are not
yet a SJRA Sponsor you can register on the web site so that you won’t
miss future important information, and we promise not to clog your
inbox. The SJRA, Inc. does not share your name, email address or
donation amounts with any third parties.
Thank you for your continued
support by being a Sponsor.
Now, let’s go boating!
Sincerely,
St. Joseph River
Association, Inc.
