Garden Club brings together gardening, charity and friendship
The Garden Club kicks off each new year with a luncheon in September. This year it was held at the home of one of the board members. The club is actively seking new members who share a love of gardening and an interest in charitable causes.
By Amy Shanahan; photo courtesy of Joan Fessler
The Castle Pines Village Garden Club (CPVGC) held its first meeting of the year in September and is ready to kick off its year by bringing in additional members. The club is open to anyone who is interested in gardening, charitable work, and making new friends. Members need not live in Castle Pines Village.
The CPVGC was started in 1994 by a group of women from Castle Pines Village. Today the club has approximately 120 members and a very active executive board that oversees the club’s programs and events. The club holds meetings once per month, and additionally hosts field trips and special events. The monthly meetings are educational and often feature guest speakers or classes on various aspects of horticulture, and other interesting topics.
The club members share a love of flowers and gardening. Several members are master gardeners, but many of the members only have an interest in learning how to create beautiful container gardens, or floral arranging. Club president Pamela Elston remarked, “We welcome anyone to join, regardless of their gardening capabilities or size of their lot. We have all levels represented in our club!”
Another primary focus of the club is charity work. Each month when the club meets they receive a list of needs from the Douglas/Elbert County Women’s Crisis and Family Outreach Center. Members generously donate money and much needed items to this wonderful cause. Social events take place throughout the year, which include spouses, a fun time, and a charitable cause. The holiday party is an event that the club looks forward to each year, and significant money is raised for the Crisis Center at that time.
The garden club is active in the community, and members provide their services to maintaining two public gardens. The Tweet Kimball Memorial Garden at Cherokee Ranch and Castle is a gorgeous garden where club members work twice per month. Members also maintain the Serenity Garden, a xeriscape demonstration garden located inside Castle Pines Village on Village Lake.
“Our club is full of well-rounded diverse ladies,” stated Elston. “They love to dress up for our events, but they also don’t mind getting into t-shirts and jeans and getting dirty. Our members are interested in community and giving back with hard work.”
To learn more about the CPVGC, please visit www.cpvgc.org.
