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Copyright © 2005 Great Plains Judging Center
AMERICAN ORCHID SOCIETY
GREAT PLAINS JUDGING CENTERHistory
The Application for an AOS Judging Center was compiled by Fred H. Strothmann and submitted to the Committee on Awards on January 23, 1980. The two sponsoring societies were the Oklahoma Orchid Society and Tulsa Orchid Society with letters of support from the Denver, Kansas, Escalante and Red River Orchid Societies. The Oklahoma State University Technical Institute made its facilities available for housing a new judging Region.
The Minutes of the Committee On Awards of March 7, 1980 in Nashville Tennessee state "The Committee on Awards recommends the establishment of a new regional judging area to include the states of Oklahoma, Colorado, Kansas and New Mexico with the judging center to be located in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The new judging region is to be named GREAT PLAINS REGION and should commence actively six months following approval of the trustees. The officers of the region shall be Mr. Fred H. Strothmann, Chairman and Mr. Cecil Stanfield, Vice-Chairman." The AOS Trustees approved the recommendation and Great Plains was established.
On August 16, 1980, the first orchid judging was held in the basement auditorium of OSU Technical Institute. Eight Certified and nine student judges from the five surrounding states attended Judges Training and screened fifty entries. Seven plants were scored and five HCC awards were granted. The first award was to Paph. godefroyae ‘Tulsey Town' and owned by Kenneth Fielder. From August through December 1980, 127 plants were entered for judging with 19 awards. In addition, the first Regional show was 10-17-80 by Tulsa Orchid Society. It was a SWROGA show, which netted eleven judged entries and five awards.
The Great Plains library was initiated with a $100.00 grant from OOS and was housed in a student locker at OSU. The library flourished with new purchases, donations and acceptance of the personal libraries of the late Florice Edwards, Peg O'Neill and James B. Quattlebaum. It is now housed at the Great Plains Judging Center, courtesy of OSU.
The slide library, once housed in the home of Chairman Strothman and brought to the judging center each month, now has 27,000 slides and is permanently housed in the judging room at OSU.
The first Judges Training Seminar was on July 23, 1983 in Denver CO.
During the interim from August 1980 through September 2001, Great Plains has continued to serve AOS through monthly judging and shows within the region. Great Plains supported the establishment of the Rocky Mountain Center. The judges who formed the core for this new region were from Great Plains. Many other GP judges traveled to Denver to present training programs and support the judging program during its initial years.
Great Plains has been influential in the training of several of the current leaders at the AOS level. We are very proud of Roger Brown, one of the original students when Great Plains was organized and is a Past President of the American Orchid Society.
Note: Great Plains was a division of the north section of the Southwest Region
August 16, 1980
Chairman: Fred H. Strothmann
Vice-Chairman Cecil Stanfield