January 2008 Newsletter

Heart of Illinois Beekeepers Association

(Affiliated with the Illinois State Beekeepers Association)
(Member of the American Beekeeping Federation)

Last Updated 1/27/08

The Heart of Illinois Beekeepers Association (HIBA) originated in 1982 with the renaming of the Tazewell Beekeepers Association. The Tazewell Beekeepers Association itself was founded in early 1900. (For a more detailed history, click here.)

The Association promotes and encourages good beekeeping practices, enhancement in the knowledge base of novice and intermediate beekeepers, production of honey bee products, and public education concerning the honey bee and honey.

HIBA is affiliated with the Illinois State Beekeepers Association (ISBA), a state-wide organization founded in 1891. The ISBA holds an annual autumn meeting in Springfield; a summer ISBA meeting is hosted by a regional affiliate.

HIBA currently has about 85 members representing some 70 households. Our members maintain approximately 400 colonies of honey bees. Members come from a wide area in central Illinois. Our membership comes primarily from Peoria, Tazewell, McLean, Woodford, and Logan counties. Members also come from nine other Illinois counties, and two other states.

Any person who has an interest in honey bees and beekeeping is encouraged to become a member of HIBA. Membership is open to anyone, novice or expert, hobbyist or commercial beekeeper, and you are encouraged to join us.

Membership benefits:

• Meetings -- HIBA meets regularly February through October in either Peoria, Pekin, or Bloomington. These meetings bring together hobbyists and commercial beekeepers for speakers, demonstrations field days, and other informative activities. Meetings generally are held on Friday evenings starting at 7:30 PM. These gatherings are open to family, friends, and other new comers, and conclude with a sharing of honey recipe desserts. Door prizes are awarded at most meetings.
• Newsletters -- HIBA members receive the Heart of Illinois Beekeeper before each regular meeting. Members also receive the ISBA Bulletin every other month. These publications contain information about beekeeping and associated events at the local and state levels respectively.
• Association Rate Journals -- A number of beekeeping journals are available to HIBA members at substantially reduced rates (typically a 25% savings). Publications include American Bee Journal, Bee Culture, and The Speedy Bee. Association rate journals may be ordered from the beginning of January through the April general meeting only.
• Get to Know Resource People -- Our membership includes state bee inspectors, commercial beekeepers, journal writers, researchers, and hobbyists.
• Supplemental Membership -- HIBA membership automatically confers membership in the Illinois State Beekeepers Association (ISBA) with its benefits.

HIBA membership dues are $15 per household for 2008. Application for membership may be made by sending dues payment to the Association's secretary whose address can be found below. Dues are for the calendar year.

2008 HIBA Calendar of Events (Details will be found in Heart of Illinois Beekeeper newsletters.)

Our executive board has put together a tentative schedule of our HIBA General Meetings and upcoming events of interest to our membership. We hope that you will enjoy the topics to be presented and fellowship of your fellow beekeepers. Please mark you calendars so that you won’t miss an event.

• February 9, 2008 1:00pm-4:00pm-Forrest Park Nature Center- New Beekeeper Course

• March 7, 2008 7:30pm-Tazewell County Farm Bureau (Map)-Bees and Pesticides working together-Nathan Sasse.  Spring Management Discussion- Charlie Ott

• April 11, 2008 7:30pm-Peoria County Farm Bureau (Map)-Colony Collapse Disorder and other bee issues Round Table- Janet Hart

• May 16, 2008 7:30pm-McLean County Farm Bureau (Map)- Rich Ramsey will speak about his trip to Vietnam and beekeeping.  Honey Cook off Contest

• June 14, 2008-Spring ISBA Meeting-Wildlife Prairie Park

• July 11-19, 2008-Heart of Illinois Fair (Map)-HIBA Booth

• August 12, 2008-HIBA's Day at the State Fair to sell Honey Ice Cream

• September 19, 2008 7:30pm-Tazewell County Farm Bureau (Map)- Honey Contest submissions (Results given in October).  Honey Sampling-Patrick Sheets-Round Table Discussion

• October 17, 2008 6:00pm-HIBA Annual Banquet-Jubilee Cafe, Kickapoo,IL-Officer Elections-Honey Contest Results

The Friday evening HIBA meetings in Peoria will be held at the Peoria County Farm Bureau building, 1716 N. University. The Friday evening meetings in Pekin will be held at the Tazewell Farm Bureau building, 1505 Valle Vista.  The Friday evening meetings in Bloomington will be held at the McLean County Farm Bureau building, 2301 W. Market St. Bloomington, IL.   Mark all these dates and times on your calendar now so that you won't miss a single event.

2008 Calendar of Events for ISBA Affiliate

2008 HIBA Officials

Elected Officials --

• President – Patrick Sheets, St. David,  (309) 668-0501
• Vice-President -- Tom Elston, Bloomington, (309) 829-3006
• Secretary -- Janet Hart, Brimfield, (309) 446-3004
• Treasurer -- Mike Moens, Eureka, (309) 467-4489

Directors --

• Chuck Gold, Bartonville, (309) 697-6095
• David Stiles, Mapleton, (309) 389-5657
• Danny Hart, Brimfield, (309) 446-3004
• Charlie Ott, Lincoln, (217) 737-4633

Appointees --

• Heart of Illinois Beekeeper Newsletter Editor -- Tom Elston, Bloomington, (309) 829-3006

2008 HIBA Membership

Download a copy of the HIBA membership brochure

2008 Membership in the Heart of Illinois Beekeepers Association is only $15.00 per year. To join HIBA, send your dues to the HIBA secretary at the following address:

Dues are for the current calendar year only. Membership in HIBA confers membership in the Illinois State Beekeepers Association as a benefit.

Official Documents of HIBA

• Constitution
• Bylaws
• Back Issues of Heart of Illinois Beekeeper Newsletter

More Information?

For more information and/or a sample mailing of our association newsletter, you may write Janet Hart, the HIBA Secretary at the address given above. You also may e-mail her at harthoney@msn.com  To obtain an informational brochure click here.

Pesticide Brochures

• Bees and Pesticides Working Together- This brochure is to hand out to the pesticide applicators in your area to promote beehive awareness.

• Protecting Your Beehives from Pesticides- This Brochure is full of information on how to protect your beehives and what to do if you experience a bee kill.

Some of Our Favorite URLs:

State of Illinois Beekeeping Web Page

New Beekeepers State Registration Form (PDF)

University of Georgia Beekeeping Web Page -  Information about honey bees and keeping bees for new and experienced beekeepers

Value-Added Products from Beekeeping -- An online book about beekeeping with information about every aspect.

Bee Culture -- Selected articles from the A. I. Root Co. magazine.

American Bee Journal -- Selected articles from the Dadant & Sons magazine.

National Honey Board -- This is the home page of the NHB. You will find information on honey flavors, technical information, and ideas for using honey in cooking and baking.

Honey.com -- A Website maintained by the NHB that presents ways to use honey, tips and tricks, and an excellent place for kids to learn amazing honey facts.

Bee Source-  This website contains may plans for making your own beekeeping equipment.

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