Kent Whealy responds to SSE board’s letter

Again, I could never have imagined things coming down this way, mistakenly thinking I still had four years to go before my retirement. As a result of that misjudgment, I am deeply concerned about the dangerous and exposed position that SSE is currently in. I would never have deliberately left SSE in these circumstances and apologize to SSE’s members for the following inadequacies: 1) the complete lack of voice that SSE’s Listed Members now have in the organization, including the usage of “their” seed bank and the huge recent “anonymous bequest” (the name of the donor is anonymous, not the amount) which, in my opinion, the board tried to hide from SSE’s members so that it could be used any way they please, not solely to improve SSE and its projects; 2) the small size and the composition of SSE’s current board (and their personal agendas which are currently being denied so loudly); 3) and for not writing SSE’s Ancient White Park cattle into SSE’s contract of conservation easements (five years ago) with Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation (INHF).As should be quite obvious to everyone by now, I have absolutely no confidence in SSE’s small Board of Directors, which is the reason I was asking SSE’s Advisors to take over (certainly not so that I could regain control, as is currently being stated). After what SSE’s five board members did to me, there will be no reconciliation on my part, and it is increasingly apparent that the board is also digging in their heels. I imagine those realizations are largely the reason why 9 out of the 15 members of SSE’s Board of Advisors have just signed a letter in support of the board. I want to especially thank my old friend John Swenson, author of that letter, who could just as easily have written that the following advisors have decided to stand with the board. I’m also saddened that eight of my long-time friends apparently did nothing to change John’s statements before signing -Suzanne Ashworth, Will Bonsai, Dan Bussey, Keith Crotz, Glenn Drowns, Laura Jackson, Craig LeHoullier and Laura Merrick. None of them talked to me before signing. I hold no grudge against any of them, knowing that their actions (just like mine) are due to sincere and heartfelt concerns for SSE and its future during this precarious transitional period.

In my previous letter, I naively asked all of SSE’s members and friends to not do anything that would hurt SSE or cost the organization a penny, but the avalanche of outrage over how I was treated has made that impossible. For the sake of our organization and its future, this cannot be allowed to continue or be allowed to turn into a running feud (which would become ever more divisive and damaging). I would like to publicly propose a compromise solution that would involve me, SSE’s Board of Directors, SSE’s Board of Advisors, and SSE’s members, friends and donors.