Earlier this year, my sister and I decided to take on a new hobby – bee keeping. Owning a hive has been one of my childhood dreams.  However, it was not until my sister pointed out that the University of South Florida were offering weekend classes once a month at the Botanical Garden did I receive an opportunity to live my dream of bee keeping. Relishing in the idea of having unlimited amounts of sweet, succulent honey to consume was a big motivator for me, and of course, I enthusiastically agreed to partake in this endeavor.

At first glance, keeping bees looks simple enough.  I for one was blindsided by the idea of reaping the reward of honey without realizing that a great deal of work and expense goes into caring for these creatures.  We began by ordering, and building our hive boxes from a jig-saw of pre-cut wood pieces.  After over four hours in the grueling heat and several small miracles, we assembled each of our boxes; a feat that would have been impossible without the help and kindness from the volunteer bee keepers assisting that day. 

Next we had to prepare our hive site which entailed another day of work to clear the land, and lay down protective fabric.  Then there was what we referred to as “Bee Drop or Bee-Day” weekend.  Bee-Day was when we actually received our nucs and queens, and had to transport each of the bee filled boxes to our site.  To further establish the hives, for over two months, we had to visit our bees every few days to feed them sugar water.   Topping it all off, due the stress of the move, the hives were left susceptible to disease, and ended up contracting small hive beetles of which we are currently battling. 

During the first few months of us being novice apiarists we nearly lost two of our hives.  Only through our perseverance have we managed to overcome these difficulties. Bee keeping has taught me several life-lessons that can be applied to our society, and to the issues that plague it.

As a society, we cannot expect to merely reap the rewards of others labors.  We need to be willing to put our own sweat and hard work to make our unit, the Florida Region of ASPRS, successful.  We also need to do what it takes to feed our Society.  This means participating in events like the annual symposium, volunteering at the conference, submitting articles to the newsletter, presenting a webinar, and mentoring student members.   All these activities are necessary to ensure we, as an organization, remain productive and continue to grow. 

As 2013 comes to a close, I am optimistic that through hard work and a little luck we can increase our membership and continue to make the Florida Region of ASPRS a success.  I look forward to working with you and leading the region in 2014.