How you can get involved
“OPERATION HYPHAE” MEMBERSHIP DRIVE:
This is simple. If you are not a member already, sign up now, before the events of the fall start happening and you are sitting there saying, “Hey! How come I didn’t know about that?!” We are contacting folks now because there won’t be time to conduct a membership drive in the flurry of fall spores and filling baskets! If you know anyone whom you think might be interested, forward them this communication, so that they can get signed up too! You might be amazed how many “closet mycophiles” there are among your friends and family. CMS membership makes an inexpensive and thoughtful gift, as well.
COME TO MEETINGS:
Meetings are generally held the 2nd Thursday of the month from September through April or May. Meetings are held at Lane Community College. This is the best way to get to know the people, the topics, and the mushrooms currently in fruit. There will be a speaker or presentation, with a mushroom show and tell identification session to follow. Bring what’s in YOUR basket, edible or not.
FIELD TRIPS:
Field trips are announced in the membership newsletter and on the website. This is a good reason to join CMS right now! Generally we will foray at least once a month while fungi are appearing. There are also special walks, talks and trainings which will be announced in our newsletter. Join today, come foray! Trips are open to everyone, and nonmembers are encouraged to join in on the fun as well.
GET ON THE WEB!
Explore our web site here at http://www.cascademyco.org and help us build it. Find information about CMS events, mushroom recipes, a discussion forum for you to enrich and links to many other wonderful fungi sites. Sort of a “hyphal mat” of web works! Please visit, read, discuss, and contribute links, information, and anything you want the rest of the myco-public to see. Send contributions or suggestions to webmaster@cascademyco.org
NEWSLETTER CONTRIBUTIONS:
We are looking for articles and suggestions for the following editions. Pictures, graphics, ideas, recipes? The newsletter will begin with four issues a year, arriving at busy fungal seasons, rather than equally spaced throughout the year. Contact the Newsletter Editor at newsletter@cascademyco.org.
COMMITTEES:
If you have a special interest in Conservation, Hospitality, Volunteer Coordination, Research, Toxicology, Publicity, Speakers, or Education, let us know. These are some of the committees we foresee developing in the future; maybe at quieter times of the fungal year.
MT. PISGAH MUSHROOM SHOW AND FALL FESTIVAL:
Of course, this event is huge. Usually, the last Sunday in October, from 10:00 to 4:00. It has been called one of the best mushroom shows in the country, and it really is wonderful! Organization of various displays and tables is a very fun and ongoing part of our fall, and creative help is always welcome. There is also the work of set-up and take-down, which is fun because it is so necessary, yet quick and active and one-time only. You can staff a table, answer questions, help publicize CMS, give someone else a break from their task, and of course, collect specimens for the show! Contact Marcia Peeters, Mushroom Show Queen, at 343-3575 or mpeeters (at) comcast (dot) net for information on the many, many small or large jobs that might be fun for you. Check the website for information too!
Bridgeoporus nobilissimus RARE FUNGI SURVEYS:
This is a cooperative research project between CMS and the Forest Service designed to locate new sites of the rare “noble polypore,” a huge, shaggy conk thought to depend on old-growth forest characteristics. Surveyors are needed for one or more days of forest walking starting this Fall. We volunteer the surveys, but CMS will be paid by the Forest Service, so this is a very good fund-raiser for our non-profit organization. Fun work, too, and good experience for fungi seekers, amateur or professional.We train!