Dear Members and Provisionals,

 

I am honored to be President of what I imagine must be one of the most successful garden clubs in the country! That success can be directly tied to the dedication, professionalism, and determination of our Members. But why do we do this? We do it because we love to create and share the spectacular beauty of a garden.

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This love is fostered by many creative events and projects that we offer each year. You will find them all on our newly renovated website and in this Yearbook. This year’s featured event: ARTS & FLOWERS, A Design Specialty Flower Show, will be held at Van Vleck House & Gardens September 16-18. On our website and at the bottom of this page, take notice of our newly refreshed native dogwood blossom logo!! A big thank you to new member Karen DeLuca, for her creative graphic art talent and time!

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We will also celebrate 70 years of educating our Members and the community through Avis Campbell Gardens, our landscape/horticultural legacy. As my garden club sponsor, Barbara Meyer, wrote in her 1993 President’s letter: "For many years, education has been not only our primary goal, but our greatest strength." I was reminded of this recently in Avis Campbell Gardens as I watched a young mother and her daughter of 6 or 7. They were reading the names of the roses and comparing fragrances, trying to decide which was the most beautiful. I told the mother I thought it was wonderful that her daughter had such enthusiasm for roses. She replied that, yes, her daughter really loved the garden and especially liked learning the names. They came often to enjoy the flowers. She said when she was a child, her mother brought her here, and now she is glad to be able to share this special garden with her own daughter."

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Love of a garden that spans generations, knowledge, and respect for the beauty of our environment — this is our legacy and our continued challenge. Let us meet the challenges of this year with imagination and energy, so that everyone can continue to enjoy our traditions.

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Many, many thanks for all you do for The Garden Club of Montclair.

 

Fondly,
Sarah

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