ZONE III GCA - Rye Garden Club

From the Zone III Director
Dear Friends,
Thank you Mary Clarke, Marcia Gowen, Sandy Taylor and
all the members of the Garden Club of East Hampton for
hosting our Zone III meeting with style and grace.
The directors met on June 8 and I have highlighted some of
the important decisions that were made.
GCA COMMITTEE REPORTS
Admissions Committee: Letters were sent to Foreign
Courtesy Clubs. The GC of Bermuda responded with
enthusiasm about reconnecting with GCA.
Archives: Please send hard copies of your historic photos to
Edie Loening, Archives Chair, @ HQ
ZONE III GCA
twent y-two garden clubs in n ys
Zone III Director
Kathy Metz, kkmetz1@aol.com
Zone III Chairman
Marilyn Donahue, mguggi@aol.com
Zone III Vice Chairman
Lisa Gerard, ebg1@optonline.net
Admissions Committee
Margy Richardson, margyric@rochester.rr.com
Awards Committee
Linda Fraser, lflawyer@aol.com
Bulletin Committee
Carolyn Fadden, cafadden@msn.com
Conservation/NAL Committee
Linda James, lbjames@mindspring.com
Flower Show Committee
Laura Haley, ljah@aol.com
Founders Fund Committee
Suzanne Kingsley, skingsley@stny.rr.com
Garden History & Design Committee
Anne Unger, agtu1222@aol.com
Horticulture Committee
Chris Murray, crissykm@optonline.net
Judging Committee
Susan Detjens, barnssheffield@aol.com
New York Committee
Cindy Mullin, puggieming@aol.com
Nominating Committee
Sue Bullock, songbird@hamptons.com
Program Committee
Nan Berger, nailbe@aol.com
Public Relations Committee
Cindy Willis, halewillis@aol.com
Scholarship Committee
Donna Ganson, donnaganson@aol.com
Visiting Gardens Committee
Carol Large, clarge@optonline.net
july 2010
Board of Associates: Betsy Bliss reported that the trip to
Carmel, CA. - May 13-16, 2011 is in good order. The group
will stay at Carmel Valley Ranch. Interest post cards were
mailed the week of June 6.
Bulletin Committee:
Note: The GCA directory will not be in the Bulletin this year.
Please remember to download the directory in August.
As more in-depth reporting is taking place within the four
online GCA journals, the Bulletin has requested highlights
from each to enrich the content and to stay inter-connected
to these other communicative arms of GCA.
Centennial Committee: 131 clubs have contributed to the
2013 Founders Fund project. The $500,000.00 minimum required by Central Park for named projects has been met. My
thanks to all clubs who supported the 2013 Founders Fund
project. The hope is that those clubs who have not contributed will reconsider.
GCA Website AD Hoc Committee:
The committee has a design concept and is working on the
public and private sections of the website. GCA publications
are a major consideration in the revamping process since
most of them are online. The three target audiences are the
club members, the GCA leadership and staff. The entire
process is still in development and the new website will not
be presented until it is complete.
CLUB ADMINISTRATOR: Please make sure that your club
has assigned a Club Administrator.
E-News: There were 1100 “bounce backs” from the last
E-news. Munro will be contacting the club administrators to
help identify incorrect email addresses.
New Business: It was noted that the GCA should urgently
consider how it might help in addressing the challenges of
the oil spill in the Gulf. An article will appear in Conwatch in
the fall.
This issue completes the first year of the Zone III Newsletter.
I am proud and grateful to Nan, our editor, and Marilyn, our
Zone Chair for bringing this great idea to fruition. I thank all
of you for continuing to make this newsletter a reality. Happy
summer!
With warm regards,
Kathy Metz
table of contents page 3
page 1
FROM THE ZONE III CHAIRMAN
The members of the Garden Club of East Hampton
treated 95 lucky participants to our Annual Zone Meeting
from June 16 -17th in the lovely village of East Hampton,
NY. Focusing on the theme, “Harvesting the Land and the
Sea”, they celebrated their fine heritage while focusing on
the kind of careful stewardship that will insure cause for
celebration in years to come. Highlights
include the Flower Show, Plant Exchange, Conservation Exhibit, superb
speakers, garden tours that were out of
this world, an awards banquet, and
a myriad of culinary delights and beautiful sunsets. Nancy
Kelly and Mac Griswold were inspiring in their presentations and the award winners at the flower show and the
awards banquet made us all proud. We give our thanks to
the members of the GC of East Hampton for their gracious
hospitality and hard work in hosting such a wonderful
meeting, Everyone took away with
them a sense of shared goals and accomplishments, made new friends and
had a wonderful time.
Marilyn Donahue
Above: Marcia Gowen, GCEH President,
Photo on Left: Cindy Mullin, Elizabeth
Peterson and Anne Myers
Photo on Right: Angel Morris, Ann Almy,
and Marilyn Donahue
Harvesting the Land and Sea
Hosting the 2010 Zone lll
Annual Meeting and a
GCA Flower Show, the
Garden Club of East
Hampton chose a natural
theme to define a community of farmers and fishermen on the eastern end of
Long Island. In her opening message, Marcia
Gowen, GCEH President,
Nancy Kelley, Linda James
stressed the club commitment to “protecting, preserving and restoring the fragile
ecosystems that surround us and the flora and fauna that
inhabit them”.
Nancy Kelley, Executive Director of The Nature Conservancy (TNC) on Long Island, was the Conservation
Speaker at the opening meeting Wednesday morning.
Active on Long Island since the 1950‟s, the TNC agenda
includes land protection and habitat restoration of forests,
wetlands, bays and harbors. Nancy highlighted current
TNC projects with a visual history of East End natural resources beginning with Long Island‟s first inhabitants, the
Montauk Indians to the early English farmers, from the
early whaling, fishing and farming industries to the evolution of the organic farm and local markets. It was a comprehensive introduction to East End harvesting of the land
and the sea, and, a statement of commitment to the preservation of these natural resources.
Following her remarks, Linda James, Zone lll Conservation Representative presented Nancy with the GCA
Zone lll Conservation Award for a non-member. In collaboration, the Garden Club of East Hampton and The
Nature Conservancy were awarded the Marion Thompson
Fuller Brown Conservation Award for their outstanding
july 2010
exhibit at the GCA Flower Show, Harvesting The Land
and Sea. Using visual and written material, the exhibit
examined current efforts to restore shellfish reproduction
in two key Long Island seascapes: the Great South Bay
and Peconic Bays Estuary.
Susie Wilmerding, Chairman, GCA Conservation Committee presented the Zone Conservation Award to Pat
Keesee, Rusticus GC and the Zone Civic Improvement
Award to Meredith Prime, Essex County Adirondack GC,
on Wednesday evening at the Awards Dinner.
At the Thursday Breakfast meeting, Bob DeLuca,
President and CEO of the Group for the East End, gave a
power point presentation titled Advocacy 101. The Group
is an environmental organization dedicated to protecting
the natural and rural resources of Long Island‟s East End,
through public advocacy and education, and community
and environmental planning for multi-town issues. Addressing the social, political and practical considerations
of developing and implementing a community-based
campaign for change Bob outlined the beliefs that shape
our culture, to the media messages that drive our debates. His discussion explored the specific process of
running an advocacy campaign in the wider context of the
overarching social conditions that shape many final outcomes. Laced with a good dose of humor and first hand
experience, Bob gave us a true insiders view into the
complex world of the professional advocate and a set of
instructions to help us actually get things done.
Congratulations to the Garden Club of East Hampton
for providing an introduction to East Hampton, it‟s unique
natural resources, the land and the sea, beautiful landscapes and gardens, and the clubs participation in the
community‟s concentrated efforts to preserve it.
Linda James
Zone III Conservation & NAL Rep
page 2
Zone III Calendar
September 14-17, 2010
Rochester Garden Club
Ready, Set, Play!, GCA Flower Show
Strong National Museum of Play, Rochester, NY
September 23-24, 2010
South Side Garden Club
Cirque des Fleurs, GCA Flower Show
Seatuck Nature Center, Islip, NY
September 29, 2010
North Suffolk Garden Club
GCA Flower Show
October 4, 2010
Fort Orange Garden Club presents Dr. Douglas W. Tallamy, 7:00 PM
Huxley Auditorium at the New York State Museum, 225 Madison Avenue, Albany
Admission: $12.00 in advance, $15.00 at the door. For more information see page 10
of this newsletter.
October 5, 2010
Terrarium Workshop presented by Zone III Horticulture Rep
Rye Nature Center, Rye, NY
For more information contact Chris Murray, crissykm@optonline.net
October 18, 2010
The Garden Clubs of Long Island present a Symposium, Trees For Life, Selecting and
Maintaining Healthy Trees in a Changing Environment, presented by Todd Forrest,
For more information see page 9 of this newsletter.
October 19, 2010
Zone III Judging Workshop
November 10, 2010
New York Committee presents Contemporary Design Styles & Techniques with
Tomas De Bruyne, Lecture and Demonstration , Holiday Inn, 440 West 57th Street,
New York, New York. For more information page of 8 of this newsletter.
November 17, 2010
Zone III Presidents Council and Luncheon
GCA Headquarters
Details to follow
January 12, 2011
Meeting and Luncheon for Zone III Flower Show Club Chairmen
February 28-March 3, 2011
NAL Meeting
Washington, DC
April 28-30, 2011
GCA Annual Meeting
Indianapolis, IN
June 15-19, 2011
World Association of Flower Arrangers (WAFA) 10th World Flower Show,
This Glorious Earth
Seaport World Trade Center
Boston, MA
June 21-23, 2011
Zone III Meeting and Flower Show, Country Life
Hosted by Millbrook Garden Club
Table of contents
Report from Zone III Director
Page 1
Flower Show & Judging Committees
Page 5
Report from Zone III Chairman
Page 2
Awards, Flower Show & PR Committees
Page 6
Conservation/NAL Report
Page 2
Flower Show & Centennial Committees
Page 7
Calendar & Table of Contents
Page 3
New York Committee
Page 8
Admissions, Bulletin & Hort Committees
Page 4
Program Announcements
Pg 9 - 10
july 2010
page 3
Banner Year for Honorary Members
FROM YOUR BULLETIN REPRESENTATIVE
It is hard to believe that a year has passed since
I assumed my duties as your Bulletin Representative. Throughout the past year, I have had the
opportunity to work with a terrific group of ladies, from all of the twelve zones and to learn
what goes into producing our wonderful GCA
Bulletin. I certainly have gained an appreciation
for the skills and organization required to provide our members with this incredible publication.
Photo: Starting 2nd from left is Lynden Miller, Bernard Sweeney,
Spencer Crews, and Harold Pellett. Standing in front is Tovah Martin.
Ladies in yellow jackets are Connie Oliver, Admission Chair, on the right
and Hope Wood, Vice Chair, on the left.
Earlier this year I introduced you to Lynden Miller, Zone III‟s newest Honorary Member. At the Annual Meeting in May, Connie
Oliver, Admissions Committee Chair, introduced the additional
2010 Honorary Members, see photo. They are:
 Spencer Crews, Executive Director of Lauritzen Gardens,
Omaha, NE
 Tovah Martin¸ Distinquished horticultural Journalist,
Speaker and Gardener, CT
 Dr. Harold Pellett, Landscape Plant Development Center,
Mound, MN, Develops superior plants that are environmentally
tolerant.
 Dr. Bernard Sweeney, Director Stroud Water Research Center
A leading authority on aquatic ecosystems.
It‟s well worth your time to visit to the GCA website (click Committee and then Admissions Committee) to learn more about these
individuals. You‟ll be impressed! GCA is fortunate to have these
distinguished individuals as members. I am confident we will hear
their names often as they contribute to GCA…and we benefit from
their generosity.
The Admissions Committee has an exciting year ahead, but more
on that in a future newsletter. If you are looking for a suggestion
for summer reading I highly recommend Lynden Miller‟s Parks,
Plants and People: Beautifying the Urban Landscape.
Enjoy your summer and gardens,
Margy Richardson
Zone III Admissions Committee Representative
It has been a very busy year, with many challenges on the national level. In December of
2009, our beloved editor, Sally Squire resigned,
due to health concerns. She had been the editor
of the GCA Bulletin since 1998 and in that time,
she literally transformed our Bulletin into the
amazing full color professional publication it is
today. Fortunately, Brenda B. Smith, the assistant editor, was able to step in and keep everything working smoothly during this transition.
Her dedication and determination led us through
these uncertain times with confidence and
grace.
On the Zone level, I have only great things to
report. The clubs of Zone III are simply fantastic. They are very active and more than willing to
share their experiences and accomplishments.
In the past year, 13 articles from Zone III and 2
from GCA Committees have appeared in the
GCA Bulletin. It is such a great pleasure to work
with all of you and I am looking forward to serving you for another year. Keep those articles
coming !!!
In closing, I would be remiss if I didn‟t remind
you once again, just how important it is that you
use the proper protocol when submitting your
articles to the GCA Bulletin. Please remember
to go through your Club Bulletin Chairmen, who
will send your articles to me and I will then submit them to the Bulletin. GCA Chairmen and
Zone Reps. should send your articles directly to
me. It all runs so smoothly when we all work
together as a team.
Thank you all for your support and cooperation.
Respectfully submitted,
Carolyn Fadden
Zone III Bulletin Representative
. . . Save the Date . . . Save the Date . . . Save the Date . . . Save the Date . . .
Terrarium Workshop on Tuesday October 5th at the Rye Nature Center, Rye, NY. If you are interested in the workshop,
or an online version of “Tree of the Month”, or both, email Chris Murray, Zone III Horticulture Representative at
crissykm@optonline.net
july 2010
page 4
Photo on the left: Debby Oliver , GCA Flower Arrangement Chairman,
presents the Zone III Flower Arrangement Award to Susan Detjens.
Photo below: Susan Detjens, Zone III Judging Representative, presents the
Zone III Judging Award
to Joanne Lenden.
Zone Judging Award
“The Zone Judging Award is presented for special
achievement in the field of judging to one who gives
equal attention and consideration to every entry and person, is a teacher and mentor, exhibits consistently, and
travels tirelessly.” GCA Flower Show and Judging
Guide, 2009
Zone Flower Arrangement Award
There are times when it is as special to give an award
as it is to receive one and at the Zone Meeting in East
Hampton, one of those instances arose with the Zone III
Flower Arrangement Award. There are times when the
recipient is so obvious it seems she must have received
this citation an eon ago. As surely as there is a time to
paint and a time to draw, there is a time to dream about
the art of flower arranging and the time to dazzle us with
results. The recipient of this award has had a career as
an artist, painting landscapes, but over the last 10 years
she has made a „career‟ of creating art with flowers. She
can always see the flowers through the trees. In Susan
Detjens‟ life there is always time to arrange flowers, simply for her table or entertainingly for her lectures but
most importantly, spectacularly for our flower shows.
Popular among Zone III clubs on the lecture circuit for
introducing new design styles and challenging individuals to create art with flowers, Susan‟s entries into flower
shows in Zone III, around the country and even in Canada, are beautiful designs often winning special awards
in the process. Her resume includes the Fenwick and
Margaret Clover Symonds Medals in GCA Major Flower
Shows, as well as the Harriet DeWaele Puckett Creativity Award and the Dorothy Vietor Munger Award in GCA
Flower Shows; she has received numerous Best in
Show commendations in GCA Flower Shows and Best
of the Day citations at the Philadelphia Flower Show as
well as the Texas Florist Association selection of Best
Entry in Houston and a silver bowl in Canada. Arranging
flowers is a delightful gift she shares with all. How proud
we were to be able to honor Susan Detjens with The
Zone III Flower Arrangement Award for her outstanding
contribution to our world of Flower Shows and her remarkable commitment to expressing her creativity with
the art of flowers.
Laura Haley
Zone III Flower Show Rep
july 2010
At the recent Zone Meeting in East Hampton, Joanne
Lenden, Fort Orange GC, was honored with this prestigious award. Joanne has been a member of FOGC for
over 25 years and a judge since 1990. She has had a
long career with the GCA at every level, receiving the
Club Medal of Merit, Zone Horticulture Award, Zone
Photography Award and GCA Zone Creative Leadership
Award. A judge in both horticulture and photography,
she speaks at Club programs and judges‟ workshops all
over the country. In the words of one proposer: “ She
has done it all in the flower show world, and has brought
many of us along for the ride. We learn from her, follow
where she leads, and thoroughly enjoy her vast knowledge, great sense of humor and terrific passion for
flower shows……..she is a national treasure.” At the
Awards dinner, it was my privilege to give the Zone
Judging Award to a woman with “the bottomless gift bag
of propagated plants”, GCA advocate and talented
judge……..Joanne Lenden!
Susan Detjens
Zone III Judging Rep
page 5
2010 Medal of Merit Recipients in Zone III
The Zone III Clubs were proud to announce that we had
five Medal of Merit recipients in our Zone this year. The
GCA Club Medal of Merit is awarded to a member of a
GCA Club upon the Club's application and the approval of
the National Awards Committee Chairman, in recognition
of contributions of exceptional merit in the field of horticulture, conservation or civic achievement, or dedication and
inspirational leadership within the area of a member's
respective club.
Congratulations to Medal of Merit winners: Pamela
Rhoda, Rochester GC; Ellen Ruse Conrad, Bedford GC;
Sally Cummins, Millbrook GC; Nancy Stoer, GC of
Irvington-on-Hudson; and Phyllis Heerwagen, Fort
Orange GC.
Linda Fraser
Zone III Awards Rep
For more information about the 2010 Zone Meeting award recipients please read the article written by Linda James,
Zone III Conservation and NAL Rep on page 2, and the articles written by Laura Haley, Zone III Flower Arrangement
Rep, and Susan Detjens, Zone III Judging Rep, on page 5.
PR Ready for the New GCA Year
Your Public Relations Committee is delighted to report
that the new PR Handbook, 2010 edition, has been distributed to Zone Reps for their final review. It will be available for downloading from the GCA website at the end of
July. It has been streamlined quite a bit and new material
has been added. I encourage both Club Presidents and
their PR chairs to read this manual as it offers GCA PR
policy guidelines, helpful hints on PR procedures and information on the annual GCA PR Award.
One of my goals this year will be to help our Zone get familiar with the new GCA website which should be up
sometime this fall. Expect to hear more about this new
venture as we begin to roll it out in September. And, we
will continue to alert our membership to timely news and
information through our bimonthly electronic newsletter,
GCA eNews.
I look forward to speaking with the PR chairmen of each
of your clubs later on this year. Please let them know that
I will be calling on them for club updates and to offer my
help and support for their individual club public relations
efforts.
Cindy Willis
Zone III PR Rep
Dear Cherished Flower Show Chairman,
I apologize in advance if you have received this email directly from WAFA but in case you haven't, please sign up and
become a member of WAFA. Also share this email with those in your club who might be interested. It's all for a good
cause. The show next June will be a 'must see,' once in our life time event. Flower Power takes on new meaning with
all of us involved. Enjoy your summer flowers in the garden.
Laura Haley
Zone III Flower Show Rep
The world association of flower arrangers (WAFA) is kicking off a viral campaign featuring prizes and other great incentives for WAFA members and our extended family of flower lovers around the world.
Sign-up and become eligible for a chance to win a trip to the 2011 World Flower Show, and to stay informed of new
offers and incentives leading up to the 10th World Flower Show, in Boston June 15-19, 2011! Once you‟ve signed up
by visiting www.wafaflowers.org, please forward this information to your friends and fellow lovers of floral art, avid gardeners or anyone else you know who appreciates artist endeavors. Help us get the word out about WAFA and the great
people, events and communities that celebrate floral design around the world.
july 2010
page 6
Inspirations for a Wedding, Southampton Garden Club GCA Flower Show
Inspirations for a Wedding was the theme of Southampton Garden Club's annual GCA Flower Show. The romance of
the schedule invited all to exhibit the love blooming in their hearts and gardens with a few results as follows:
Flower Arrangement Division
Class 5: The Honeymoon
Roberta DuBeshter, Rochester GC
Blue Ribbon, Best in Show,
Dorothy Vietor Munger Award
Photography Division
Class 2: Something Blue,
Monochrome
Sharon Giese, Southampton GC
Blue Ribbon, GCA Novice Award
Flower Arrangement Division
Class 4: The Wedding Cake
Cindy Willis, Southampton GC
Tri-Color Cup and Lees Lisman
Award for Creativity
Flower Arrangement Division
Class 3: The Aisle, Novice Class
Sharon Giese, Southampton GC
Blue Ribbon, Sandra Baylor Novice
Award
Jewelry Division
Something New, a hair ornament
worn by the Bride
Huequette Hersh, Southampton GC
Blue Ribbon, Best In Show
Notable results in the Horticulture Division included the following: Class 15: Enduring Love, Barbara Lord, Southampton GC, Blue Ribbon, Best in Show; Class 15: Enduring Love, Lydia Wallis Southampton GC, Blue Ribbon and
Southampton GC Abbott Reserve Cup for most Blue Ribbons; and Class 31: The Ideal Husband - Par Class, Jane
Cary, Sasqua GC, Blue Ribbon, Clarissa Willemsen Award.
Laura Haley
Zone III Flower Show Rep
Centennial Founders Fund Project at Central Park
The 69th Street Entrance and the Dene Summer House Landscape
I hope that you‟ve all read the highlights from the GCA Directors meeting which Kathy has
included in her Zone III Director‟s report on the front page of this newsletter. Under Committee reports you‟ll see that the Centennial Committee proudly reports that 131 GCA clubs
have contributed to the 2013 Founders Fund project as of June 8. We are very pleased
with the participation in Zone III and hoping for 100% participation at whatever level your
clubs feel comfortable with contributing.
Katherine Martucci
Centennial Committee
july 2010
page 8
july 2010
page 9