Right: Esther Rosati, Founder of the East Longmeadow Garden Club

at a pot-luck luncheon with members Regina Retynsky on left and Liz Levine in middle

EAST LONGMEADOW GARDEN CLUB CELEBRATES ITS 40^TH YEAR

Forty years ago, on June 10, 1969, the East Longmeadow Garden Club was formed and the founder, Mrs. Warren (Esther) Rosati, was elected its first president. The EL Garden Club was immediately popular with 69 local women who became charter members. The meetings were held once a month on Thursdays from 12:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m., a time chosen so mothers would be home to greet their children when they came home from school. The meetings were held in the meeting room of the earlier East Longmeadow Library. Since 1969, the club has been providing the library with displays of fresh and dried flowers and plants.

In addition to featuring interesting and inspiring speakers at their monthly meetings since 1969, the EL Garden Club and EL Conservation Commission have co-sponsored an Arbor Day Program in conjunction with Mapleshade School and Mountain View School for fifth grade students. Since 1969, the EL Garden Club has presented a tree or bush seedling to every 5^th grade student with instructions how to plant and care for it in each child’s yard. Also, since 1969, the EL Conservation Commission presents both schools with a tree to be planted on school property. The teachers, principals, staff, music directors, and 5^th grade students plan a delightful program on environmental awareness for the Arbor Day Ceremonies held at each school.

In 1974, the EL Garden Club, in cooperation with the Chamber of Commerce, promoted a beautification program for the center of East Longmeadow. The goal was to have every merchant in town place a floral display in front of their respective places of business. May 24-26, 1974 was declared “Beautification Weekend.”

A second phase of the Beautification Project was planned for the 1976 Bicentennial. The Rotary Club donated money for the purchase of five tubs for the islands in the center of town and two more tubs were purchased by the Department of Public Works for placement on Shaker Road. The Garden Club planted the tubs with red, white and blue flowers in commemoration of the Bicentennial year. The garden club has continued to tenderly plant, maintain, and care for the plants in the tubs since 1974. The Department of Public Works has been dedicated to watering the plants and taking care of the center islands. It has been a successful, cooperative effort. In 1974, window boxes were made by students at Roger I. Putnam Vocational and Technical High School and placed in the immediate surrounding areas near the center. In addition, the EL Garden Club presently tends to the following gardens: EL Town Hall front walkway, planted with roses; the War Memorial Garden on the side of the EL Town Hall; and the Memorial Garden at Center Hill Park.

At holiday time, members of the EL Garden Club continue to fill the tubs with evergreens and make swags for the lampposts. With the help of the DPW, the festive evergreen swags and ribbons are attached to the lampposts, making all our spirits merry and bright.

The EL Garden Club sponsors a Plant & Bake Sale every spring at Heritage Park. Perennials, herbs, interesting houseplants, and delicious baked goods are available at reasonable prices. Recently, wooden garden signs and birdhouses carved by a local resident have been for sale. Soil testing is also offered. Proceeds from the sale go to the garden club’s scholarship fund.

In 1978, the EL Garden Club established a Scholarship Fund to be awarded to an East Longmeadow resident. The requirement is that a student must be planning a career relating to environmental science, such as, horticulture, landscaping, forestry, conservation, plant/environmental sciences, or other related fields. The 2009 ELGC Scholarship recipients were Marcella Maki and Andrew Fenton.

Marcella Maki will be a senior at East Longmeadow High School. Marcella was accepted to The School for Field Studies during the summer of 2009. She was accepted in the Sustaining Tropical Ecosystems class accredited through Boston University, and she went to Alenas, Costa Rica this summer to do research on the environment in the national parks. Marcella is the daughter of Lisa and Don Maki of Chestnut Street, East Longmeadow.

Andrew Fenton is an Environmental Science major at the University of Massachusetts with a 3.5 grade average and was highly recommended by his professor. He is the son of Deborah and Timothy Fenton of Porter Rd., East Longmeadow. Andrew is currently employed for the summer at A. W. Brown’s in East Longmeadow. He likes to hike. Andrew has a keen interest in the natural world, and he is very knowledgeable regarding the environment and all that it includes.

Please join the East Longmeadow Garden Club as we continue in the spirit of our beginnings, offering you an opportunity to enjoy a year of special friendships, interesting programs and field trips, and delightful times to remember. Our Constitution states that a member shall be one who is required to participate in two or more activities during the year. We welcome men and women from East Longmeadow and surrounding towns to join. You do not have to be a gardener to belong, but you should have a keen interest in civic beauty, conservation of natural resources, appreciate the beauty of flowers & plants, and strive for a better environment for our town and our world.

EL Garden Club information can be found on: www.eastlongmeadowweather.org

Date: Meetings are held September through May, usually on the 3^rd or 4^th Thursday of the month

Time: 12:00 noon

Location: Fellowship Hall, EL Congregational Church at the rotary

Dues: $15 Active Membership; $20 Sustaining Membership; $2 Guest Fee

Contact: Nancy Heath, Co-President at 413-525-6206,

or Bev Gray, Co-President at 413-525-4694