Garden Club tour set for June 25

Join the Golden Valley Garden Club on Tuesday, June 25 for a guided tour of significant sites, flora and fauna on the ancient Dakota path through the community. Reserve a spot on the bus by emailing gvgardenclub@mail.com.

The group will meet at 6:15 p.m. Tuesday, June 25 at Brookview Community Center, 316 Brookview Parkway, Golden Valley.

There will be a brief introduction at 6:30 p.m. by tour leader and Golden Valley resident Jim Rock. All are welcome to attend the introduction whether they are continuing on the tour or not.

There is a $20 fee; $10 for Garden Club members. Participants may pay in cash, check or Venmo.

From Brookview, the bus will depart to significant sites along the ancient Dakota trail in Golden Valley and will return at approximately 8:30 p.m. to Brookview.

Tour Leader Jim Rock

Rock (Sisseton Dakota Father) has taught chemistry, physics and astronomy for over 40 years at reservation, urban and suburban high schools, colleges and universities. He retired as a full-time instructor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Minnesota Duluth. He also taught science education to Indigenous teachers in master’s degree programs at the University of St. Thomas and Augsburg/UMD and recently co-organized and presented at the Indigenous Eclipse Event on April 8 at the University of Rochester, New York.

Rock has nine published articles and a book on Dakota constellations, snake effigy mound symbolism and eclipse prediction methodologies. He was the previous chair of the Indigenous RoundTable at the Science Museum of Mni Sota and in 2011 designed the first Native American experiment for STS-135 Atlantis, the last NASA space shuttle. He is currently an elder in residence at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities Circle of Indigenous Nations Center.