Wollaston Garden Club Receives

State and National Awards For Civic Projects

 

On June 5, 2013 at the 86th Annual Meeting of the Garden Club Federation of Massachusetts (GCFM) in Mansfield, Massachusetts, the Wollaston Garden Club received formal recognition for their civic beautification work at both the Peace and Atrium Gardens at the Thomas Crane Library, the club-designed Intersection Planters around the city, and other club projects.

 

The Atrium and Peace Gardens at the main branch of the library needed renovation and garden club members, with the support of Friends of the Thomas Crane and the hard work of the Operation Days Work students and their advisor, Ron Adams, from Broad Meadows Middle School, have worked to beautify the grounds with new shrub and perennial plantings. Claire Fitzmaurice, WGC civic beautification member and board member of the Friends of the Thomas Crane Library has been the both the creative and driving force in the restoration of these gardens with support from both the Quincy Parks Department and the Quincy DPW Grant Program. The GCFM recognized these gardens by awarding Wollaston Garden Club, the Virginia Thurston Landscape Design Award for design and on going maintenance of the Peace and Atrium Gardens at the Thomas Crane Library.

 

The Intersection Planter Program of the garden club, with support from the Quincy Parks Department, began in 2009, led by the garden club’s civic beautification chair, Jo Costello, and dedicated members of the club’s civic beautification committee. The goal of this program is to beautify Quincy’s intersection planters with drought-tolerant shrubs and perennials, providing four season interest. The garden club designs, plants, provides horticulture support, along with greens for winter interest and protection; and the city plants annuals and waters the planters during summer’s hottest days. The garden club was awarded the GCFM’s Continuing Civic Projects Award and a National Garden Club, Inc Civic Achievement Award for the planting of thirteen city planters at Quincy’s busy intersections.

 

The club also received a First Place award for their 2012 Yearbook/Directory which each member receives to keep track of the club’s calendar and contact information; a Second Place award for their 2012 Press Book; and a Certificate of Appreciation: Protecting Aquatic Ecosystems from the New England Region for the club’s advocacy of the Town Brook. The club’s Awards Chair, Colleen Lawler is “excited that the Wollaston Garden Club is receiving state, regional, and national recognition for its civic work.”

 

 

 

 

Wollaston Garden Club Wins State and Regional Awards

            At the Fall meeting, October 25, 2012, of the Garden Club Federation of Massachusetts at the Andover Country Club, the Wollaston Garden Club received awards for their work in Civic Beautification, Conservation, and Community Education. Jan Clifford, WGC president; Anita Fasano, 1st Vice President; Colleen Lawler; 2nd Vice President; and Pat Artis, former club president, received the awards on behalf of the club.

            The first award received was a silver compote, The President’s Bowl, awarded by the Garden Club Federation of Massachusetts, to the Wollaston Garden Club, “for beautifying the City of Quincy roadsides by planting many of the intersection planters located at different city gateways and busy traffic intersections in Quincy, with hardy perennials and shrubs.” Jo Costello, garden club civic beautification chair commented that “the garden club has really appreciated the support we have received from Mayor Koch, the Quincy City Council, Kristen Powers of the Quincy Park Department, and Park Department employees, including Mike Burke; along with the many garden club volunteers who care so much and work so hard to keep the intersection planters looking good.”

            The second award, The Nancy H. Atwell Trophy, a New England Regional award is given annually to a club from one of the six member states for “the most outstanding publicity incorporating regional and national garden club objectives.” The Wollaston Garden Club’s Board, decided in 2008, to work on and advocate for the “new” national garden club goal of protecting “aquatic ecosystems”. Work began then in collaboration with the Quincy Environmental Network, to educate the community and advocate for more day-lighting of the Town Brook. Pat Artis, former club president said she is “proud of our continuing work and advocacy to protect aquatic ecosystems and educate the public on the importance of and historical significance of the Town Brook and the Town River to the City of Quincy. Special thanks to the Quincy Sun and its editor, Bob Bosworth for his commitment to Quincy and its citizens” This year the garden club is sponsoring both a high school essay contest and grades K-9 poetry contest (deadline Nov 15th) with themes based on “protecting aquatic ecosystems.” Last June, the garden club received the Mildred S. Parker Conservation Award form the Garden Club Federation of Massachusetts for the garden club’s “commitment to educate the public regarding the need to daylight the Town Brook and to work to protect the fragile ecosystem.”

            Another regional award was received, on October 25th, by Wollaston Garden Club for its 2011 Press Book - a Third Place for large clubs, 100 members and over. The garden club, in its 85th year, is a member of The Garden Club Federation of Massachusetts, Inc, and the National Garden Club, Inc.