September Newsletter
Artistry by Pam Nelson
Greetings, everyone!
There’s a certain relief that comes with the arrival of September. The number of days left of summer heat can likely be counted on one’s fingers, the hydrangeas are at their peak, fields of sunflowers in their glory stop traffic around the edges of town, tomato season has begun, and the Garden Club cocktail party is upon us!
September Meeting Notice
If you missed the email notice sent out on August 25th, our party on September 20th at will be held at Erika Rodriguez’s house, from 5 to 7 (her address is in your directory, both the paper one in a pile somewhere, and digitally on the members’ resource page of this website). Try to park only on Erika’s side of the street and make sure to leave enough room for other cars to get by. You can park all the way around the circle, but stay off the steep part of the hill, per police orders.
Light appetizers and drinks will be served. Please RSVP to Lauren Huyett at 7huyetts@gmail.com
Ag Day 2023
Carol Hryniewicz, Hilary Robinson, Nan Gustafson, Pam Nelson, Sarah Beguelin, Kathy Venne
The town center section of Main Street was closed Saturday morning for Concord’s annual celebration of our farming community. Many agricultural and land-oriented organizations enthusiastically participate, and it is the Garden Club’s practice to be there to answer garden questions, promote our projects, and field applications for our Grants Program. In spite of the moody weather, our tent did not lift off thanks to the tent weights Wendy McNally sourced for us. They arrived too late to use last year, but were the perfect defense against the occasional breeze yesterday morning. The rain held off, and members set up and chatted with passersby. Ray Stay (below) dropped by to thank us for his Spring Outreach bouquet. He said it made his day, but it more than put a smile on the faces behind our table.
As usual, a couple of town residents asked about how to join. We do currently have a few openings so we are welcoming applications.
Sandra Conrad, Cris VanDyke, Kathy Venne, Carol Hryniewicz.
A fun new feature of this year’s table, aside from featuring pamphlets from the Native Plant Trust, was a free raffle we held for the native planted pots we used to brighten up the booth, and for the spectacular floral arrangement featuring many native florals that was generously donated by Pam Nelson for the table. Guess who won the arrangement? Reader, it was me. You will find it featured at the top of this post, at the center of attention in my kitchen. Thank you, Pam! And also to Joan Campbell who insisted I enter the raffle, and to Hilary Robinson for dropping it off.
Archive Project
Carol Haines with Anke Voss, Special Collections Curator at the Concord Free Public Library
from Carol Haines:
For the past year, I have been reviewing and organizing the archival files of the Garden Club of Concord with a goal to donate a portion of the materials to the Special Collections of the Concord Free Public Library. That goal was accomplished this July as I passed along two linear feet of files from 1928-2009 to Anke Voss, Special Collections Curator. Anke will be working with interns this upcoming year who will be tasked with cataloguing these new materials in order to incorporate them into the Garden Club file of previously donated papers.
A second part of the archival files includes materials from 2010-2023. These will be safely stored by the Club President and reviewed in five years with a donation then to the Library of files from 2010-2015. This process should then continue every five years. Many thanks to Sandy Conrad, archivist extraordinaire, for her assistance with this project, to former and current Club presidents, Julia Farwell-Clay and Lauren Huyett, and to the many past presidents who so carefully preserved records during their tenure.
I am grateful for the opportunity to have read through all these papers and learn more about the many amazing contributions that our Garden Club has made to the Town of Concord. I hope that future researchers will be able to turn to these papers at Special Collections for fascinating stories of women’s history, community activism, and a shared love of nature. And speaking of the library . . .
Flowers for the Concord Free Library’s 150th
The Garden Club will be decorating the front portico of the Concord Library ahead of the reenactment on October first for their Birthday Party. The Library has planned to start on the Town Hall steps at 2pm, with local and state officials commemorating this historic day, reenacting the original Library dedication event 150 years ago. Immediately following, everyone is invited to parade from the Town House to the Main Library Front Lawn – with music and fun signs provided! Our own Jeanne Hamilton is organizing the decorations of the library’s entryway that will greet the parade and frame the following ceremony and has already organized a talented and capable committee, but if you are super interested in joining to help out, you may contact her directly.
Do you have an extra artificial Christmas tree?
The decorating committee for this year’s Concord Museum Family Trees is looking for an artificial tree to use for our decoration this year. A donated tree would be put to use during the whole month of December. If you have one taking up space in your storage area, please contact Mary Pope or Julia Farwell-Clay. Thank you!
Tuna Cans, Please
If you’re using tuna, please save the can for Ellen Whitney. We use tuna cans as the bases of the little Christmas trees we prepare at Cans for Caring in December. Bring empty tuna cans (no cat food cans) to Ellen at any garden club meeting or drop off her house at 315 Lexington Rd (corner of Ridge Rd & driveway off Ridge).
Thanks!