THIS WEEK’S FOCUS
The Garden Club of Georgia
Last modified on 2012-04-20 03:21:57 GMT. 0 comments. Top.
The Garden Club of Georgia, Inc. is a non-profit organization established in 1928 by 12 ladies in an antebellum drawing room in Athens, Georgia. Their goal was: to promote beautification, conservation and education. “Little did they realize that they were lighting the candle that half a century later would be casting its beam throughout a great nation , shedding rays of light, beauty and happiness in the paths of thousands of followers…”
What are they doing today? The Garden Club of Georgia is governed by a Board of Directors consisting of the State Chairs of the various programs, District Directors, State Officers and former Presidents. It is divided into seven geographical districts: Laurel, Azalea, Oleander, Camellia, Magnolia, Dogwood, and Redbud which incorporate 407 clubs and 11,768 members. Its goals are the same: beautification, conservation and education.
What does the Garden Club of Georgia do? In the last two years over $100,000 was raised for scholarships. Basic Design and Landscape Design courses are offered. Blue Star Markers are placed in National Cemeteries and along highways. Community projects are encouraged, performed and awards are given. Workshops are offered on subjects like: Community wildlife, Conservation, Garden Therapy, and Native Plants. Historic Preservation is encouraged and a fundraiser is offered each year. This grant has been in existence for 14 years and to date sixty-eight landscapes have received matching grants totaling more than $115,000. This year the Laurel District is hosting such a fundraiser in the form of a tour of the new Gibbs Gardens in Ball Ground. The tour is set for May 11, 2012 and all are welcome. Stop at the Garden Club of Georgia booth at the convention for a registration form.
Now you may ask why the Garden Club of Georgia would have a presence at the Georgia Master Gardeners Association convention and the answer is: Why not?
Both organizations have education and conservation in their mission; both promote community involvement; and both offer scholarships to students who want to continue their education in the landscaping and gardening area. Many members from both organizations like to “dig in the dirt,” while others continue that theme by designing floral arrangements. Both organizations offer seminars and workshops that support their goals. Many garden clubs have members who are Master Gardeners and many Master Gardeners belong to a garden club.
Voila! The synergy from one carries over into the other. Thank you GMGA for inviting GCG and welcome GCG to the GMGA convention!
SAVE THE DATE
FRIDAY, APRIL 20th and SATURDAY, APRIL 21st are days you don’t want to miss, so mark your calendar.
Cherokee County, Georgia will be hosting the only Georgia Master Gardeners Association (GMGA) Conference for 2012. That means we have to do it “up right” and we are. We’re inviting you all to come to “our house” for great speakers, good food, beautiful and informative tours, and a great variety of vendors. We’ll have interesting door prizes, some exciting silent auction pieces and to start you off - a fun goodie bag.
This website is specifically for conference information giving you the what, when, where, who and why. We want you well-informed, excited about and registered to come early so that you won’t miss out on a thing.
Initially, please carefully review the site. We have all the basic information here, but over the next five months we’re going to give you so much more detail in each area as we get closer and closer to the conference. So, subscribe using RSS by clicking this link and you’ll be notified when we post new information!
Each week we are going to feature and highlight a specific area. Over this same time span we want to hear from you. What else do you want to know? What else would you like to see? Give us your “two cents” worth – we want to hear and get you involved.
REGISTRATION
If you choose to register online, please visit our Registration page to use PayPal. Once you have registered you will receive a registration confirmation. Do not throw it away – that is your ticket to enter. If you want to register by mail, download and complete the PDF Registration form and return to GMGA 2012 State Conference, 12195 Highway 92, Suite 114-174, Woodstock, GA 30188-3603.
SIGN IN
You’ll receive your tickets for the tours, goodie bags, your name tag, all instructions and agenda information when you sign in at the Conference.
On Friday you may sign-in at the Cherokee County Conference Center from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm. Friday evening at the Funk Heritage Center between 5:30 pm to 7:00 pm.
On Saturday April 21 sign-in from 8:00 am to 1:00 pm at the Conference Center. Need directions? Click here.
CONTACT INFO
If you have questions regarding the conference, please contact:
Gerald Phillips – Conference Chair gphilli@hotmail.com
Diane Walton – Registrar waltond@bellsouth.net
Dot Martin – Publicity mdot@ymail.com
If we don’t know the answer, we’ll find someone who does.