Hammond Garden Club catches up, talks Arts in Bloom
I hope because you haven’t heard from me for three months that you’ve really missed the column about all the goings on for the Hammond Garden Club! We are still here…trying our best to give you news about US…The HGC! But to be honest, we were kinda at a standstill for information! January came and the meeting was a business meeting…..did you really want to hear about how the checkbook looked, how brown the grasses and lack of pretty gardens there were because of too much rain, too much cold or how many ladies couldn’t attend because of COVID? And so I decided not to send Daily Star that info.
Then February came and it was time for our Annual Joint Meeting which we take turns with all the area garden clubs and this year it was The Gardenettes turn which made it hard to write about a party/meeting that wasn’t yours! So, again I opted not to send in a column in February. (however their party had the funny “Miz Maudie” the inspirational and country speaker that I’m sure they told you about). (It’s our turn HGC next year).
And now it is March and our meeting, where it is full of what we have going on, (which I’m going to tell you about), but our speaker wasn’t able to come so I had no pictures to send in with the column. But…we did have some of our own members full of information about their particular committees.
We started with a prayer by our Chaplain Mary Thornhill followed by an all member vocalization of “The Pledge Of Allegiance”. Vice President Pat Graves, sitting in for President Jennifer Allen, asked for a motion to accept the minutes by Secretary, Karen Granier and Treasurer’s report by Phyllis DiBenedetto and then began to call on committee chairs.
Glenda Nelson was first up for her report on the Keeping Hammond Beautiful meeting and asking members to attend to help give out supplies even if you can’t manually pick up trash because the judges for the Cleanest City Contest were coming the end of this month.
Next up was Linda Ross that actually gave the winner for February for the Link Award, (remember we weren’t at our, HGC meeting in February) which went to the Southeastern Alumni Center on Morrison Blvd. We were told it was beautifully planted with Sweetbay Magnolia, large and dwarf camellias, dwarf Japanese yew, azaleas and snapdragons, shasta daises and dusty Miller. At that time a Link Award for March hadn’t been chosen.
Another committee (Kathleen Bohlinger chair) that again did not get mentioned in February, was our Arbor Day planting, (which was at the end of January). The project took place at the Holy Ghost Catholic School’s Campus in their Prayer Garden by Mrs. Pierce’s 8th Grade class and it was a Magnolia Grandiflora tree that was beautifully planted.
Our next committee report comes from our VP Pat Graves who elaborated on our Second Annual “Arts In Bloom” which Pat says is going to be sooo much better and bigger this year. It will be held on April 28-30, starting at the Columbia Theater. We will have room for more Floral Competition for the designers and there are three new professional Floral Exhibition designers in the lobby of the Columbia Theater. Added, there will be entertainment by a strolling Barbershop Quartet, Playwriting Competition, Gardening Lectures and an Art and Flower Market. This is just a sampling of all that is planned, there will even be an event for the children. Sheets were handed out to the members for help in greeting the crowds as they enter the lobby.
So you see folks, we’ve been here, been working on the coming years events, hoping there is something out there that will be inviting for you to see, to visit the gardens we’ve told you about. Come one, come all! We hope you will enjoy the beauty of our toils and God’s beauty that we try hard to take care of that which He has given us.
The Hammond Garden Club is a proud member of District VI, Louisiana Garden Club Federation, Inc. and the Deep South Garden Clubs, Inc. doing our best to unify and beautify our homes, gardens, our city and our nation every day to the best of our ability. God Bless America and God Bless the City of Hammond!
by Linda Broussard she is a member of the Hammond Garden Club
Then February came and it was time for our Annual Joint Meeting which we take turns with all the area garden clubs and this year it was The Gardenettes turn which made it hard to write about a party/meeting that wasn’t yours! So, again I opted not to send in a column in February. (however their party had the funny “Miz Maudie” the inspirational and country speaker that I’m sure they told you about). (It’s our turn HGC next year).
And now it is March and our meeting, where it is full of what we have going on, (which I’m going to tell you about), but our speaker wasn’t able to come so I had no pictures to send in with the column. But…we did have some of our own members full of information about their particular committees.
We started with a prayer by our Chaplain Mary Thornhill followed by an all member vocalization of “The Pledge Of Allegiance”. Vice President Pat Graves, sitting in for President Jennifer Allen, asked for a motion to accept the minutes by Secretary, Karen Granier and Treasurer’s report by Phyllis DiBenedetto and then began to call on committee chairs.
Glenda Nelson was first up for her report on the Keeping Hammond Beautiful meeting and asking members to attend to help give out supplies even if you can’t manually pick up trash because the judges for the Cleanest City Contest were coming the end of this month.
Next up was Linda Ross that actually gave the winner for February for the Link Award, (remember we weren’t at our, HGC meeting in February) which went to the Southeastern Alumni Center on Morrison Blvd. We were told it was beautifully planted with Sweetbay Magnolia, large and dwarf camellias, dwarf Japanese yew, azaleas and snapdragons, shasta daises and dusty Miller. At that time a Link Award for March hadn’t been chosen.
Another committee (Kathleen Bohlinger chair) that again did not get mentioned in February, was our Arbor Day planting, (which was at the end of January). The project took place at the Holy Ghost Catholic School’s Campus in their Prayer Garden by Mrs. Pierce’s 8th Grade class and it was a Magnolia Grandiflora tree that was beautifully planted.
Our next committee report comes from our VP Pat Graves who elaborated on our Second Annual “Arts In Bloom” which Pat says is going to be sooo much better and bigger this year. It will be held on April 28-30, starting at the Columbia Theater. We will have room for more Floral Competition for the designers and there are three new professional Floral Exhibition designers in the lobby of the Columbia Theater. Added, there will be entertainment by a strolling Barbershop Quartet, Playwriting Competition, Gardening Lectures and an Art and Flower Market. This is just a sampling of all that is planned, there will even be an event for the children. Sheets were handed out to the members for help in greeting the crowds as they enter the lobby.
So you see folks, we’ve been here, been working on the coming years events, hoping there is something out there that will be inviting for you to see, to visit the gardens we’ve told you about. Come one, come all! We hope you will enjoy the beauty of our toils and God’s beauty that we try hard to take care of that which He has given us.
The Hammond Garden Club is a proud member of District VI, Louisiana Garden Club Federation, Inc. and the Deep South Garden Clubs, Inc. doing our best to unify and beautify our homes, gardens, our city and our nation every day to the best of our ability. God Bless America and God Bless the City of Hammond!
by Linda Broussard she is a member of the Hammond Garden Club