Activity coordinator Janet Brown was inspired to write the following poem while residents at Harmony Living Center anxiously tried finding “Nemo” their caterpillar.

               DO NOT MOVE

Nemo the caterpillar is still very small

You can hardly see him at all!

But on his milkweed pod, we know

He will eat and eat and eat and grow

So let him be;

 
Just watch and see!

Next for a jewel hanging high:

Then…… a beautiful butterfly!!

Harmony Living Center Sheboygan, WI presentation August, 2009

• “Thank you again for doing your program!  It was outstanding and the feedback was excellent.” - Audrey Durr, Program Coordinator for the Florida Yards & Neighborhoods University of Florida/IFAS Citrus County Extension
• “An excellent experience in edutainment.” – Allison Wehmeyer, Instructor, College of Menominee Nation, Keshena, Wisconsin
• “We are an investment office of 5 women who work in a setting of lavender walls and all have our own decorations to our liking and styles.  One of our offices has always been decorated by Val with many pictures and replicas of butterflies.

 One day to our surprise, one of our customers, Mary Thorne who we now call the “Butterfly Lady” brought us all a gift of a piece of milkweed in a bud vase.  We thought it was quite strange, until she pointed out the very small caterpillar on each one.  Mary explained that each one of us could raise monarch butterflies on our own. 

Mary also supplied us with some very clear and funny directions she had written up.  One of the first questions I asked her was “where do they poop?” With a big smile she answered, anywhere they want to!

That weekend I went to a local thrift store and bought each of us a big jar or vase that we could use as a home for our caterpillars.  We bought some floral foam to put in the bottom to keep it moist and to prevent the little guys fro drowning.  As Mary told us, they can’t swim.  We picked up some window screen to go over the top of the jars and used large rubber bands to hold it secure.  As we learned the hard way you really need the screen because one of us who didn’t use it, even had some escapees, we luckily found them on our kitchenette floor.

As the caterpillars got bigger we started to name them and they became like pets.  We found, as they grew they became very hungry and we were constantly searching for new sources of milkweed to keep them fed and happy.  Once a week we would clean out the bottom of their houses, which became littered with poop and give them fresh food and water.  We now know all of the local sources of milkweed and have been known to raid ditches to feed our young.  We are trying to grow milkweed on our own, but you know how hard it can be to grow weeds.

Our first experiences of our caterpillars turning into chrysalis gave us all a thrill and we stared as if we were second graders again, watching the wonder of metamorphosis.  We even take our chrysalis’s home on weekends if they look like they are to become a butterfly.

Our families have all become involved and keep track our out new butterfly births.  We have many customers calling our office to check on the progress of our butterflies. This has become an interesting and fun thing for our customers to watch.

The kids who come in with their parents and grandparents can’t stop asking questions and many moms and dads ask for directions on how to do this at home.  Now that we are all watching for the first signs of spring and we are keeping our eyes open for milkweed popping up along side the road and can not wait to start the process all over again.

Each summer we release about 25 butterflies and get the same excitement of a new beginning to nature each time a beautiful butterfly is released.

Thank you Butterfly Lady! ”         

Joy Johnston

INVEST Financial Corp.

1337 North Taylor Drive

Sheboygan, WI 53081