New Vrindaban Brijabasi Spirit

ECO-Vrindaban Board Meeting Minutes 08/12/2018

Mission Statement: ECO-Vrindaban promotes cow protection, local agriculture, and above all, loving Krishna, as envisioned by Srila Prabhupada, ISKCON New Vrindaban’s Founder-Acharya.

Participating Directors: Anuttama, Chaitanya Mangala (chair), Jamuna Jivani (board secretary), Makara, Olivia, Ranaka, and Vraja.

Participating Advisors: Bhima and Kripamaya.

1. Ranaka’s Monthly Report

Lalita Gopi:

• and Anandavidya are currently milking eight cows: Jamuna, Malati, Surabhi, Sita, Anjali, Sriya, Subhadra, and Lakshmi. They are producing approximately 30 gal per day.
• kept the barn looking nice, inside and out (cut grass and removed trash).
• distributed a large number of New Vrindaban t-shirts to the devotees and employees at the temple that ECO-V sponsored.
• Anandavidya is transforming the extra milk into 15 lb of butter and 15 gal of yogurt on a weekly basis. He also produced one 8” diameter x 3.5” high wheel of Monterey Jack cheese.
• Anandavidya participated in the ECO-V booth during Ratha Yatra in Wheeling, answering questions and speaking with many festival participants.
• There are four calves residing at the barn: Lalita, Gaurangi, Gopi-Katyayani, and Jaya Sri.
• There are four cows residing at Nandagram and the Valley Barn who are expecting within the next month: Parvati, Jaya Radhe, Vamsika, and Usha.
• Jitendra served both morning and evening in the barn for an entire month. Also, Rama has just moved to New Vrindaban and is helping with the cows.
• Kids’ Camp visited the barn and the children made butter, milked the cows, and fed bananas to the cows. This was facilitated by Lalita Gopi and Anandavidya with funding and supplies from ECO-V.
• The Temple Barn had a busy month of near constant guest facilitation.

Ray:

• has been harvesting hay. Pippalada is also assisting with raking and moving hay into the barn.
• harvested and stacked 385 800-pound round bales in the barn for storage, in addition to the 220 bales from last year.
• has been bush-hogging pastures in Bahulaban, Nandagram and the Valley Barn, as well as mowing the large open spaces at the Community Garden.
• installed a new roof on the Nandagram bullpen shed with the help of Rama.

Logan:

• finished painting the Valley Barn board fences, along with general barn clean-up duties. He is leaving to return to college and hopes to return next summer.

Caitanya Bhagavat – at Nandagram & Bahulaban:

• completed the bull paddock and pasture project at Nandagram.
• finished the barn area for Madhu, giving him water and shade.
• moved the oxen to a new pasture.
• installed new gates at the back of north Nandagram pasture.
• is having a single yoke made.
• has been cleaning up at the Bahulaban barn with the help of Rama.
• has been mowing and weed-whacking at the Nandagram farm and Bahulaban.
• has been handling the daily cow care and farm maintenance, including a cow check for the 17 cows at Bahulaban and the 18 cows at Nandagram.
• Tejo installed a new water tank system which services the cow barns and the Field House at Nandagram.

Suchandra’s crew (Monique, Moriah, Madri, Nolin, Ryan, and Shyama):

• harvested for both the Rath Yatra and the ISKCON New Vrindaban open house event.
• harvested around 10 lbs of berries from a blueberry patch.
• cleaned tomatoes at Vidya’s garden due to a blight.
• weeded and harvested at Vidya’s garden.
• planted fall crops of beans, cabbage, squash, beets, lettuce, and spinach.
• picked 350-550 large marigolds per day.
• picked 300-500 small marigolds per day.
• has been setting up sprinklers at the Teaching Garden and Community Garden.
• harvested over 200 lb of potatoes at the Community Garden.
• Madri cleaned and organized the shed area in the Teaching Garden and keeps everything weeded and watered there.
• Ryan and Nolin have been mowing the Community Garden and Teaching Garden.
• Suchandra, Moriah, and Monique harvest and maintain the Community Garden.
• Harvest Totals – Community & Teaching Gardens
  • large marigolds – 5,000 pcss
  • small marigolds – 16,000 pcs
  • lilies – 250 pcs
  • dahlias – 70 pcs
  • zinnias – 400 pcs
  • gladiolas – 30 pcs
  • cucumbers – 650 pcs
  • green beans – 65 lb
  • tomatoes – 15 lb
  • zucchini – 30 pcs
  • basil – 6 batch
  • mint – 6 batch
  • lemon balm – 4 batches
  • green peppers – 3 lb

Lila – at the Nandagram Garden:

• watered and weeded.
• harvested and delivered to the temple kitchen:
  • kale – 18.5 lb
  • hot pepper – 4.5 lb
  • zucchini squash – 10 lb
  • yellow summer squash – 14.5 lb
  • bitter melon – 19 lb
  • green beans – 57 lb
  • cucumbers – 1.5 lb
  • small roma tomatoes – 148 lb
  • basil – .75 lb
  • cherry tomatoes – 2 lb

Radhanath das – at Vidya’s Garden:

• picked hundreds of lilies, bitter melon, peppers, and green beans with Govinda.
• is currently planning a greenhouse at Vidya’s house that would be ready to use for next spring seedling starts.
• is planning the seed order for this fall.
• is reinforcing the garden perimeter with chicken wire fence to keep out rabbits.
• planted the last batch of beans and calendula.
• mowing, weeded, and weed-whacked.
• set up sprinklers in the garden.
• Shyama has picked thousands of marigolds for the temple.
• Total Harvest from Vidya’s Garden by Radhanath, Govinda, and Shyama:
  • large marigolds – 10,000 pcs
  • small marigolds – 4,000 pcs
  • basil – 5 cups
  • sunflowers – 5 pcs
  • green beans – 23.5 lb
  • hot peppers – 30.75 lb
  • green peppers – 26 lb
  • lilies – 604 pcs
  • gladiolus – 72 pcs
  • bitter melon – 99 lb
  • tomatoes – 41 lb

Ranaka:

• helped his son Joshua Rama process the green beans and tomatoes in the ECO-V processing room at the Valley Barn. To date we have processed and frozen 38 gallons of tomatoes and 15.5 gallons of green beans. Pritha Canuto assisted with the green beans.
• ordered another 15 ft3 freezer from Lowes and for storing more produce.
• Erin and family have moved from the Nandagram Garden House to the Nandagram Field House, and Olivia along with her family have moved into the Nandagram Garden house this month.

2. Employee Education and Training

The ECO-V directors have encouraged the idea of offering ECO-V staff opportunities to seek additional education and training in their fields. Annually, ECO-V approves a budget for this purpose. At the next staff meeting, Ranaka will inform the crew there is potential funding available to them if they seek some sort of educational opportunity.

3. Internal Funding Request: $4K for November 2018 Appreciation Plaques & Gifts

WHEREAS: The ECO-V Board wishes to acknowledge the dedication of key community members, as well as offer a token of appreciation to the INV, NVVA, and ECO-V staff and volunteers.

RESOLVED: The Board approves up to $4,000 as a budget for plaques, tote bags and other gift items, to distribute during the November weekend gathering.

4. Upcoming Meetings

The date of the next regular board meeting is September 23, 2018.

The board/staff meeting will be Sunday, October 14, 2018.

The regular October board meeting will be Sunday, October 21, 2018.

The Autumn 2018 weekend gathering is scheduled for November 2 – 4, 2018.