100 Years 100 Stories from the Chippewa National Forest

Chippewa submits its 100th success story as it celebrates 100 years.

The year 2008 has been a celebration of 100 years of service for the Chippewa National Forest. After establishment as the first national forest located east of the Mississippi River in 1908, one hundred years later we have the opportunity to look back on how we came to be here as well as where we're headed. We've told the Chippewa story this year at a wide range of events and through the Success Story reporting system, and we're pleased to end the centennial year with our 100th Success Story.

This year, the Success Story Reporting System (SSRS) has been a dynamic public affairs tool that has helped the Chippewa National Forest let people know about all the great things we do. Since 2002, when the system began and the Chippewa marked 100 years since it was a Forest Reserve, we have shared events that changed our lives such as the "GIS Teams Support to the World Trade Center Efforts" and "Hurricane Katrina Support".

We looked to the future in "It's All Green on the Chippewa" and linked them together as we wrote about "The Centennial Quilt" and "Partners Make Camp Rabideau National Historic Landmark Shine". We have shared many program accomplishments with the "Firefighters for Yellow Rails", "Chippewa Wetland Restoration Partnership" and "Chippewa National Forest Receives Hands on the Land Grant". The SSRS has given us the opportunity to share fun accomplishments of our employees in the "Local Indian Council Honors Chippewa Employee" story and proud moments such as "Chippewa Partnership Received 2007 Wings Across America".

In any given year, the Chippewa National Forest receives about 1.2 million visitors across our roughly million acre land base. Lands within the boundary are a quilt work of different ownerships, sometimes changing after each 40 acres. We chose to represent the attributes of our national forest in an employee-created centennial quilt that was exhibited at this year's MN State Fair during the State's 150th birthday. Approximately 1.5 million people visit the MN State Fair each year, nearly equal to a year's worth of Chippewa National Forest visitors. There were approximately 5,000 entries on display at the fair's Creative Activities competition, and the CNF Centennial Quilt was awarded Second Prize in the "Group Made Quilt" category. We also took Grand Championship honors at the Beltrami County Fair.

Our centennial year also included hosting a visit by former President Theodore Roosevelt, a highly visible moment interacting with the Tribal Council of the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe and Senator Coleman, the Chippewa Centennial Triathalon organized by a Chippewa retiree and Regional Honor Award winner, and new adventures initiated by new employees such as hosting the North American Fishing TV Show.

We're pleased to have shared so many positive stories about celebrating our past, special events, and current projects. Our emphasis now shifts to stories of our next 100 years: embracing our diversity, finding our role in climate change and energy issues, making our work relevant to urban and younger people, and sustaining a great national forest. Everyday brings us a new story to tell. We hope you will continue to read all about it!