P.O. Box 487, Spring Lake, NJ 07762-0487

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THE GARDEN CLUB OF SPRING LAKE
CONTINUING PROJECTS

 

#* Adopt-A-Station   NJ Transit has given our club permission to beautify the Spring Lake Train Station.  Members plant and maintain flowers and shrubs around the train station.


 

Arbor Day   The Garden Club celebrates by purchasing and planting a tree in one of our local parks. The mayor of Spring Lake and students from the fourth grade at Spring Lake H.W. Mountz School join club members in poetry and song to commemorate the day. The aim is to educate the public and particularly the youth of Spring Lake in the importance of planting and caring for trees.

 


# Civic Beautification      Our club plants and maintains large flower containers at the North and South End Pavilions on the boardwalk in Spring Lake.

 


* Conservation/Environment  Environmental newsletters are presented at our monthly meetings disseminating up-to-date information on the protection and conservation of our water and natural resources, techniques for organic gardening, and suggestions for the use of nontoxic products in and around our homes.


Donations   Through the efforts of members, money is raised and last year donations totaling $2,155 were given to the following organizations: St. Andrew Methodist Church ($200), St. Catharine-St. Margaret Catholic Parish ($200), and Holy Trinity Episcopal Church ($300) to help defray the expenses involved with landscaping projects at these churches; Sisters Academy to help fund its student garden club ($300); a Sisters Academy scholarship in memory of Dr. Jack Harrigan ($260); the Spring Lake Community House ($200), and the Spring Lake Community House Christmas Fund ($695).


Fall Luncheon   In October, a luncheon will be held at the Spring Lake Golf Club where we will honor the floral design styles of America’s First Ladies. Peter Trimmer, of Mueller’s Florist, will explore the evolution of the use of plants from the production of vegetables in the White House gardens to the use of flowers as “Floral Diplomacy” with visiting dignitaries. Floral arrangements depicting the First Ladies’ unique design styles will be raffled to our guests.


Floral Design   Workshops in creative design are held for members throughout the year. In addition, floral arrangements are placed at the Spring Lake Borough Library and the Municipal Building to promote an appreciation for flowers and strengthen community outreach.


Forget-Me-Nots Newsletter     Members are kept abreast of local, state, and national garden events through this newsletter.


* Garden Therapy  As part of our award-winning project, club members help residents of Brandywine Assisted Living in Wall Township make floral arrangements. The team members engage with the residents to provide assistance, friendship, and sharing in the beauty of flowers.


* Garden Tour    Annually we host a garden tour that this year included eight Spring Lake gardens. The tour attracts many visitors from the tri-state area. Visiting plein-air artists capture the gardens on canvas and later display the paintings at a local gallery. Light refreshments are served throughout the day on one of Spring Lake’s most beautiful front porches.


* Holy Trinity Landscaping    An ongoing landscaping project at Holy Trinity Episcopal Church, an 1880 summer church that is on the National Historic Register, continues throughout the growing season with planting, pruning, weeding, and watering


Operation Sunshine   During the first week of May, we remember people who need a little sunshine in their lives and distribute floral arrangements to senior facilities in the area. Throughout the year, homebound club members are remembered with cards and small flower arrangements.


# Perennial Garden    Located at the Spring Lake Municipal Building, this garden is landscaped with perennial shrubs and flowers that the club then carefully maintains. It adds color and beauty to a side/back yard on Borough property.


#* Plant It Pink   To promote breast cancer awareness, pink flowers are planted both in the spring and fall at the Welcome to Spring Lake sign opposite the Spring Lake Municipal Building.


# Rain Garden   The club maintains a rain garden in Spring Lake at St. Catharine School. This garden has permanent signage identifying each plant with the use of QR codes.


* Random Acts of Beauty   The front gardens of homes and businesses in Spring Lake are a gift to the community providing those who pass by with a sense of beauty and awe. In mid-summer, committee members select homes and businesses within our town that display the most beautiful front gardens. Certificates of appreciation and framed pictures of the homes and businesses are awarded at our September meeting.


Scholarship   Each spring, seniors from local high schools who plan to study horticulture or environmental subjects in college are invited to apply for a Garden Club scholarship. Our scholarship committee evaluates the applications, selects the finalists, and presents the winners with their scholarship awards at our May meeting. Additional scholarships are given for continuing education. In 2018, we awarded a total of $12,000 in scholarship money to nine students, including a Rutgers University Foundation intern.


Spring Lake Community House Christmas Fund   Members participate by donating funds and buying, wrapping, and distributing gifts to needy families at Christmas. In 2017, members contributed $695 to the fund.

Student Horticultural Education    This project offers assistance to Sisters Academy in Asbury Park for a May-July student garden club by donating funds and supporting its school program. A structured plan for 5th grade students includes classroom instruction about plants followed by outside hands-on work in the raised garden beds. The students prepare the soil and plant and label vegetables, herbs, and flowers. In addition they weed, harvest, and take home the produce for consumption.


* Wellington Estates Gardens (formerly Wexford)   Each spring, club members design and plant a raised-bed garden at Wellington Estates Assisted Living in Wall Township with vegetables, herbs, and flowers. The garden offers residents something beautiful to look at, something to care for, and then a bit later, joyful eating.


#* Whistlestop Gardens  The Garden Club collaborated with other Spring Lake civic groups to beautify Potter Park, the gateway to Spring Lake. Members developed a landscape plan that they implemented and are now maintaining. As a result of our initiative, the town has renovated the gazebo and walkways around the park.


* Wreaths Across America   This organization was founded in 1992 to honor veterans. Our club participates in the project by laying wreaths at veterans’ memorials. The mayors of Spring Lake and Spring Lake Heights and council members attend the ceremonies. Also attending are representatives from the local American Legion Post and fire/first aid organizations, as well as local residents.


# The Borough of Spring Lake generously provides funds for these projects

* Has won an award from The Garden Club of New Jersey

 

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