Who We Are

Executive Board

The Outagamie County Master Gardener Executive Board meets on the first Thursday of each month at the 3375 W. Brewster, Appleton. The board meets to consider input from members and to finalize the agenda for the general meeting. 

Jill Botvinik	President
LuAnn Prothero	Vice President
Cathy Scott	Treasurer
Nancy Goodman	Executive Secretary
Don Brill	State Representative
Donna Nett-Heus	Member at Large
Deb Schlough	Member at Large
Gwynn Taylor	Member at Large
Marilyn Davis          Kim Lesperance	Member Education Chair          Community Education Outreach Chair
Kim Lesperance	Communications Chair
Jill Botvinik / Lori Mendels / Jaci Micke	Fundraising Co-Chairs
Karen Peckham	Sanctioned Project Coordinator
Jill Botvinik	Long Range Planning Chair
Sue Mings	Grants & Scholarships Chair
Jaci Micke          Terry Barrett	Membership Chair           Grounds / Garden Chair
Nancy Goodman	Member Recording Secretary

UW-Extension Staff

Kevin Jarek, Advisor

UWEX Crops, Soils, & Horticultural Agent

Education Committees

The Education Committee consists of two separate divisions: Member Education and Public Education Outreach. The first plans and implements the training programs for the Master Gardener program, working within the State and National guidelines. This Committee takes responsibility for planning the curriculum, recruiting instructors and speakers, and working with each new class of Master Gardener students. Additional tasks include the planning of workshops and seminars, acquisition of speakers for meetings and conferences, and responsibility for the resource library at the UW-Ext. The second plans all activities, conferences, and anything related to education of the public. This includes our annual spring garden conference, summer garden walk, Appleton Farm Market, library presentations as well as the Outagamie County Fair booth.

Communications Committee

The Communication Committee holds responsibility for the quarterly newsletter, the OCMGA website, the OCMGA Facebook page, the OCMGA blog, all mass e-mails to members, and emails to non-members about various events and fundraisers throughout our calendar year.

Fundraising Committee

The Fund Raising Committee holds responsibility for organizing fundraising events, including the ordering of product, recruitment of volunteers, procurement of supplies, and interaction with both the Communication and Education Committees to ensure resounding success.

Project Sanctioning Committee

Certified Master Gardeners earn service hours each year by working on projects that have been sanctioned, or approved, on the basis of the benefit that it will bring to the community. The Project Sanctioning Committee receives requests for new project sanctions, and follows up on the progress of those projects that have been approved.

Long Range Planning Committee

The Long Range Planning Committee serves as an advisory to the board to ensure the vision of the organization remains relevant, and to ensure that goals are met and/or re-calibrated as needed.

Grants and Scholarships Committee

Application for grants and/or scholarships may be submitted to OCMGA for horticultural/educational projects. The committee is responsible for the application process, criteria for the awards, and making recommendations to the board for awarding recipients.

Membership Committee

Strong member involvement is critical to the long-term success of any volunteer organization. The committee will work with new and existing members to ensure a strong body of volunteers.

Grounds / Gardens Committee

On the grounds of the University of Wisconsin-Extension office at 3365 W. Brewster Street and our own offices at 3375 W. Brewster Street are many gardens and pathways that are used for classroom studies, as well as being available for browsing by the general public. In addition, the grounds are used for our annual plant sale each May. This committee takes responsibility for the design of each of the garden areas, as well as maintenance of those areas.