By DEBORAH BEHRENDS
Illinois Correspondent

MONTGOMERY, Ill. — The recent Governor’s Home Town Awards presentation was particularly exciting for the Dickson-Murst Farm Partners, as they were selected to receive an award for their 2008 Educational Program.

The ceremony, in the Governor’s Mansion Ballroom, featured volunteers from 46 projects, selected from hundreds submitted across the state.

“I salute the citizens across Illinois who dedicate their time and energy to improving their communities. The Governor’s Home Town Awards are one small way we can recognize the contributions of these outstanding citizens,” said Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn.

Traveling to Springfield to meet the governor and accept their plaque and road sign were Partners Ken Wolf, Shorty Dickson, Phyllis Benson and Ann Wasman.

Who are ‘the partners?’

The Kendall County village of Montgomery allowed the Conservation Foundation to purchase property, on which sits several historic farm buildings in great condition, for $10. The farm is located on Dickson Road, just south of U.S. Route 30 and east of Illinois Route 47.

In 2005, the foundation gave birth to an intense land conservation initiative called Protect Kendall Now!

Kendall County is one of the country’s fastest growing counties, making it a priority area for the foundation’s land and watershed protection efforts. It just made sense to have foundation staff in Kendall County.

But preserving beautiful old buildings, while a worthy cause, is not the foundation’s mission – and the maintenance of these buildings was a concern to the foundation in accepting the village’s generous offer.

Some creative thinking brought together a number of community individuals and groups who agreed to maintain the farm’s outbuildings, in return for the use of the space for various cultural and community activities.

The foundation uses the main house as an office, and the Dickson-Murst Farm Partners, the volunteer group who came together to lovingly care for this old farm, maintain the outbuildings, which were kept in pristine condition by the farm’s former owners.

“It’s really the best of both worlds,” said foundation President/CEO Brook McDonald. “We have a great location for marketing our programs, and we’ve helped preserve more land in the process.”
Plans to designate the site “historic” already are under way. Kendall County officials are looking into whether they too will grant historic designation to the site, McDonald said. Montgomery Village President Marilyn Michelini was a driving force behind the protection of the Dickenson Road site.

“In all my years serving the public, I’ve always said if I do nothing else, I’d like to find a farm in good condition to preserve,” she said. “The rural life is one that is quickly disappearing, and if we don’t protect some of it today, it’s all going to be lost.”

Michelini’s passion for protecting the Dickson Road property melded perfectly with the Conservation Foundation’s goals and philosophy. She’s thrilled the foundation was able to put offices at the site.

“I’ve always been supportive of the Conservation Foundation,” she said. “The people there, they see things the same way I do. They look to protect open space and natural resources. This is so important because the resources we have may not always be there. The Conservation Foundation educates people about that.”

The Conservation Foundation’s administrative headquarters remain at the McDonald Farm, while land protection staff members have offices at the Dickson-Murst Farm. Besides working to preserve the latter, the partners’ unique endeavors include educational demonstrations about farming and farm life, specifically in the 20th century. The partners not only plan, set up and operate every event, they also raise all the funding necessary. The 35 partners use their enthusiasm to coax about 300 other volunteers to help throughout the summer.

The farm partners were singled out for the governor’s award, for a trilogy of 2008 educational undertakings: Spring, Trucks and Fall events at the farm. The three were a total package that clearly demonstrated the big picture of farming to the community, allowing people to see, hear, enjoy and learn. Nearly 4,000 people attended the functions, made possible by more than 3,800 hours of volunteer work.

In addition, 2008 was an especially busy year because the partners also restored and raised a 1924 Aeromotor windmill, held a special reception honoring donor Lois Smith, created a farm camp program, continued routine maintenance of buildings, hosted a barn dance in cooperation with the Girl Scouts for their members and sponsored their own annual Christmas appreciation party. The Conservation Foundation, which owns the farm property, was especially pleased with the honor awarded to the partners.
“Without these volunteers, we could not fulfill the vision for the farm, which the village of Montgomery created,” McDonald said.