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Oliver H Kelley Farm One of the Minnesota Historical Society's National Historic Landmark sites. |
*** Quick Link to: Farm Contact
Information *** Welcome, Friends! The Friends of the Kelley Farm: Vision, Mission, Goals, Strategies: Action Groups! The Board invites all Friends members and interested people to join our monthly meetings (1st Wednesdays) to participate in the ongoing life of the Friends of the Kelley Farm (and listen to the ... AG Reports!). With a more stable funding situation, we have new opportunities to help the Farm meet its own vision! The future of the Oliver H Kelley Farm looks just fine and we can have a positive influence on ensuring that our communities make use of the many educational and recreational opportunities available there! Upcoming Friends events for you to do: Pick your passion and join us! Board Meetings: Every First Wednesday at 7 p.m. at the Farm These
meetings are open to ALL interested Friends and friends! Please come
support our efforts! This meeting is where you get to check in with
the Farm and renew your interest
and commitment! Director positions are available, so
consider your schedule and sign up! Please limit your
campaigning to a reasonable
budget... :) Nancy Benz will have a table for selling Quilt raffle tickets and
provide Kelley Farm information. Please contact her if you would be
willing to help. If you have a story or pictures, please submit them soon.
Upcoming Farm programming/events are available on the Minnesota Historical Society's site.
Fall Events at the Kelley Farm!
Fall Homeschool Happenings
2008 Fundraiser: Quilt Raffle
Dear Friends, The following is a list of websites that list the Kelley Farm as an attraction and ask for visitor comments, ratings, and pictures posted of how much fun they had. Every positive rating from a visitor it an opportunity to bring more families to the farm. Word of mouth is our best and most effective marketing weapon, and The Friends of the Kelley Farm are the best at it. It would help us reach thousands of potential visitors if you took ten or fifteen minutes of your time to log on and give us a positive review. Tell the world about how much fun your family has visiting. Give examples like, “My son loves pumping water and feeding the pigs.” Even just giving us a rating will really help us to reach a demographic of young families from the cities that don’t realize how unique a place the Oliver Kelley Farm is. Direct links to comment pages: http://www.exploreminnesota.com/myfavoriteminnesota/ http://gocitykids.parentsconnect.com/browse/attraction.jsp?id=129553&area= 184 http://www.americanairlines.wcities.com/en/record/,143606/162/record.html http://playtimeplanit.com/oliver-h-kelley-farm/142/ http://minnemom.wordpress.com/2008/01/30/oliver-kelley-farm/ Feel free to pass this list on to any friends of yours who have enjoyed a visit and wish to support the farm without having to make a monetary donation. The Friends of the Kelley Farm is a valuable resource for reaching the community. Thank you for your time and effort. Kelley Farm Management Staff
SEEKING: Friends' Board members Please consider joining the board of the Friends of the Kelley Farm! This premier 501(c)(3) organization is at the cutting edge of companion organizations in the state of Minnesota. Our enthusiasm for supporting the Kelley Farm has made a difference. Please consider picking up a hoe and joining in. Farm work is never really finished - chores are always there again tomorrow -- but it is always easier when there are many hands. OK. WE don't literally have to muck out the barn or pull the weeds at our meetings. But... several dedicated Farm supporters who have been working hard since the very beginning would like to have an opportunity to take a well-deserved break! So we are hoping that others who also cherish what the Farm means to our communities -- especially the children of our communities - will join us in carrying forward our mission and activities. We are still needing to raise funds, raise awareness, and raise interest in visiting and learning from the Kelley Farm. We have some exciting goals and opportunities ahead. If you think this might be for you, please come to a meeting of the Friends - every 1st Wednesday at 7pm at the Interpretive Center of the Kelley Farm.
Action Groups: It's all about AG-culture!
We've organized into Action Groups focused on the different aspects of Friends work: Legislative, Marketing, Visitor Experience, Program Support, Special Events, Membership, Fundraising, and Executive. You do not have to be on the Board to participate! These groups meet periodically to plan and execute the goals of the Friends. Please consider joining in! Contact any of the Board members for more information. Also, watch the newsletter for additional opportunities for you to share your talents and time.
A new mission for the Farm?
The Minnesota Historical Society has been working to continue to provide our state with an exceptional experience and to make that experience relevant to the diverse groups who visit the Oliver Kelley Farm. A recent outcome is a new mission statement and vision to guide development and activities.
Mission: "Connecting people to agriculture today through the authentic story of Oliver Kelley and his family farm."
Vision: "To be the premier destination for experiencing the continuing transformation of Minnesota Agriculture."
With this vision there are many exciting possibilities to engage our modern agricultural interests in bringing alive the story of how Oliver Kelley's own vision for a vibrant agricultural economy has become a reality in Minnesota.
Watch for more information coming from MHS and the Friends as this Mission and Vision are implemented for the benefit of the people of Minnesota and our many visitors from all over the world!
The Friends of the Kelley Farm present:
"Season Passes" are now available at the Kelley Farm visitor center desk! Just ask for a "Minnesota Historical Society Family Membership" and you can enjoy a FULL YEAR of opportunity and adventure. The Friends urge you to do this AT THE FARM so that the OHK Farm gets the full value of your purchasing dollars! A side benefit that we have arranged just for you: these Kelley Farm Season Passes will also grant you access to OTHER historical sites around the state! AND... they'll throw in a subscription to the MHS's magazine, too! OK. We may be claiming a bit much there, but REALLY it's a good deal and well worth the investment in your past. The Friends of the Kelley Farm is a 501(c)3 organization! We're REAL! All donations of money (and time!) are tax deductible per regular adherence to law, etc. Who was Oliver H Kelley?Excerpt from a biographical article on Oliver H Kelley by Rhoda R. Gilman and Patricia Smith as published on the MHS web site:
... Kelley was in truth a
simple man. Even then he was privately dreaming of a great brotherhood of
farmers that would unite the depressed and isolated men and women who
filled the soil; "Encourage them to read and think; to plant fruits and
flowers, - beautify their homes; elevate them; make them progressive."
This vision he described in a letter to a friend and added: "I long to see
the great army of producers in our country, turn their eyes up from their
work; stir up those brains, now mere machines ... set them to thinking, -
let them feel that they are human beings, and the strength of the nation,
their labor honorable, and farming the highest calling on earth." No one
could have then predicted that this particular dream was the one to answer
the wordless yearnings of thousands across the nation's farm belt - that
promoted with the single-minded fervor of a man like Kelley, it would give
birth to a movement which in a few short years was to shake the social and
political foundations of the Midwest. ...a Hall of Famer!Oliver H Kelley was inducted into the Agricultural Hall of Fame on October 20, 2006. He has joined a roster of American icons that includes names such as George Washington Carver, John Deere, Eli Whitney, Cyrus Hall McCormick and Roswell Garst. The purpose of The National Agricultural Center and Hall of Fame is to educate society on the historical and present value of American agriculture and to honor leadership in Agri-Business and Academia by providing education, information, experience and recognition. Watch for special celebrations possibly featuring speeches and writings of Oliver Kelley, presentations on the current state of Minnesota Agriculture and a look at ways that Kelley shaped the lives and livelihoods of Minnesota's farmers.
The Farm |
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Send mail to webmaster@friendsofthekelleyfarm.org
with
questions or comments about this web site - especially if you find a broken
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