"The Garden Club Weeder"
-Highlights from the April 2010 Newsletter-
They are coming up. Yes they are!!! The beautiful wildflower (Gaillardia pulchella) seeds that we procured for the City last year are blooming again. I hope you will notice them on your next drive down SR 100 just past the traffic light heading towards Palatka on the left hand side of the road. They are planted in the median between the Rails to Trails and the street. We have applied for a Paths of Sunshine Award for this project. Thanks again to Art Burnett who was FFGC District IV Director for his help in getting the seeds and Keystone Heights Mayor Hildreth for her help in arranging for the city staff to help with the planting project. Also, special thanks to Kenny Hall of the Maintenance Division of the City for his hard work in tilling the soil and spreading the seeds.
Most of the Gaillardia have beautiful red flowers with yellow tips. However, there are several all yellow ones in the planting. If you look closely there is quite a variety of variations in the amount of red and yellow on the petals and also variation of red hues from deep red to almost pink and orange. They are truly a pathway of sunshine for hikers, bikers and people driving through our city.
Picture taken 4/16/10
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Important Dates to Remember
April 22-24 FFGC State Convention - Boca Raton
April 24 9 am – 3 pm Plant Sale – Natural Park
May 4 9 am District IV Meeting – Ribault Garden Club Jacksonville Beach
May 13 10:00 am Flower Show & International Pot Luck Luncheon Club will provide beverages
May 15 10 am – 2 pm Fleming Island Garden Tour ($5 tickets) Call Jackie if you need a ride.
June 26 6:30 pm Night at the Opera
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Outstanding Member of the Month
Elsie Mills, Treasurer
Elsie always has a positive attitude and has been an inspiration to all of us for her dedication to the garden club and as a cancer survivor. She is supportive of all club projects and can be counted on to help in some way whether she is working behind the scenes or on the front line. She is also a fantastic gardener and has a beautiful yard. Her husband Jim also has helped the garden club with many projects over the years, especially the Veterans Memorial Pathway. Elsie has served as Secretary and Treasurer for the club and is well known also for her wonderful brownies and baked goodies. In addition Elsie takes care of our website
Elsie & Jim Mills
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Night at the Opera
by Jackie Host
The word is out and people are really getting excited about the “Night at the Opera” on Saturday, June 26th being hosted by our club with the Keystone Heights Woman’s Club. As you know this is a fund raiser to help the Lake Area Ministry with their building fund for a new place to store and distribute food for those in need. Tickets will be available at our next meeting and will be $15 for adults and $10 for children. The donation includes free refreshments and a wonderful evening of entertainment.
We now have recruited a Soprano, a Mezzo, a Baritone and a Tenor for the performance. They will be performing some of the world’s greatest arias from opera’s including Mozart’s “Marriage of Figaro” & “Magic Flute”, Puccini’s “Madama Butterfly” & “La Boehme” and Andrew Lloyd Webbers, “Phantom of the Opera” and “Evita”. The Garden Club and Woman’s Club will provide the refreshments. Tony Dressler has designed a beautiful garden setting for the stage. Kelly Thomas and another employee from Ace Hardware are dressing up in Tuxedos and will be ushers at the event. That alone would be worth coming to see. Here is a little info about two of our performers:
Angela St. Pierre, Soprano - Angela received her undergraduate degree in music from Westminster Choir College. Due to its proximity to New York, Angela was able to sing at the New York Philharmonic, Carnegie Hall and Philadelphia Orchestra regularly with the Westminster Symphonic Choir. As a member of the Westminster Choir she toured the United States and also sang in Spoleto, Italy two summers. She performed in opera and opera scenes in college which made her want to continue learning about performing. She obtained a Master’s in Vocal Performance at Florida State University and while there was in more operas. She performed the Haydn Creation under Robert Shaw and still performs as a soloist frequently. She also is an elementary school music teacher and lives in Maryland with her twin sons and husband David. In addition, she teaches voice at the Maryland State Boy Choir. As a National Board Certified teacher she endeavors to inspire a new generation of children to love music.
Jeff Prillaman, Lyric Tenor - Jeff is the founder and executive director of the Da Capo Institute in Richmond, Virginia, an organization dedicated to building communities through music. His versatile repertoire and experience has provided performances ranging from Dvorak Hall in Prague, Czech Republic, to opera and concert stages in Italy, France, and Germany, to the vaunted stages at Lincoln Center in New York City. While completing his Master of Music degree at the Juilliard School, he was a winner of
the NY Vocal Artist Competition and enjoyed a Carnegie Hall debut with the Opera Orchestra of New York. He is also an accomplished conductor with a passion for ministry through music. He has served as the Minister of Music for churches in both NJ and VA. He holds a Bachelors Degree, summa cum laude from Westminster Choir College in Princeton NJ. Jeff resides in Virginia with his wife, Tracee, his 3 daughters and one son.
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DISTRICT IV MEETING – Tuesday May 4th
Be sure you register for our District Meeting!!! Contact President Jackie Host at 473-8095 if you need a ride or Elsie Mills at 473-9545 for registration forms. There will be an excellent program and registration is only $15 which includes breakfast snacks and lunch. It’s a real deal!
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WE’RE HAVING A PETITE FLOWER SHOW!
Please join the fun and bring a petite flower arrangement and a horticulture entry (potted plant of any kind) to the next meeting. Even if you have never done an arrangement just try and you may be surprised at how creative you can be. This competition is just for fun but there will be 1st, 2nd and 3rd place ribbons for both divisions and Ace Hardware gift certificates for Best of Show and 1st place winners. Call Jackie or Shirley if you have any questions or need help. This is a special meeting as it is the last one until next September. There will be a surprise announcement to honor one of our members and a delightful lunch. Guests are always encouraged and welcome!
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“The Garden Club Weeder” is made possible by Bryan’s Ace Hardware 251 E. Walker Drive, Keystone Heights Phone (352)473-4006
Ace Hardware has everything you need for all of your home repairs, garden and landscape projects. You can fix it up and make it beautiful with help from their knowledgeable staff in the Home and Garden Centers. For unique gifts and floral needs visit Sweet P’s which located conveniently located inside the store. Ace also has stores located in: Melrose (871 HWY 21) and Starke (1101 S. Walnut)
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Miss Outstanding Clay Teen Taylor Kennedy
Taylor met with Downtown Native Plant Committee (DNPC) Members (L-R) Joan Valentine, Jackie Host, Zaire Ankeney and Sharon Knapp to help weed and plant new plants. We had run out of money and needed a new flag for the Butterfly Garden and both Joan and Taylor got new ones for us as a surprise. Thanks Joan and Thanks Taylor!!! Now we have one in reserve for when we need it again. The DNPC takes care of the Veterans Monument & the Moon Tree near the Library, the Butterfly Garden in the Natural Park, and the Patriotic Tree at the Fire Station.
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Opera, Weekiva & Cook Books
By Shirley McKendree Opera
Thank you to all who signed up to bring food at the last meeting. We still need white and yellow cheese (10), crackers (5), and green olives (1). If you would like to donate $5 instead of bringing food that will be a big help in getting whatever is still needed. We also need “stuff” to put in our baskets for the silent auction. Your help will make this event a huge success and possibly be the fund raiser that makes the new building for LAM a reality! Weekiva & Cookbooks-Thanks to your support 3 children go to camp this year. If we sell the rest of the cookbooks we can send 4 or 5 next year. I will have the cookbooks at the next meeting for the low price of $15. They make great gifts.
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THIS MONTH THE BOOSTER SPOTLIGHT SHINES ON:
FLOWER PETALS
370 Sylvan Way
Keystone Heights, FL
Phone: (352)473-9201
Email: Sandy@flowerpetals.com
Please stop by and let Sandy know you appreciate her being one of our Boosters!
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The Save Our Lakes Organization needs your help. The SOL is a local service organization that is working to gain support and attention to the plight of the lakes in our area. Your voice is important. Join them at City Hall, the 2nd Monday of each month at 7 pm.