Happy Spring, Lovely Ladies of Kenilworth Garden Club!

 

It's here at last. Snowdrops are blooming, daffodils are smiling and the forsythia is unbelievable yellow! Finally!!

 

Speaking of blooming, so is KGC! Four new members have joined us this year, Kim Piekos, Cathie Murphy, Wendy Irwin, and Catherine Hurtgen. Please give them a warm welcome when you meet them. Thank you to Jeanne Daniel for shepherding the applications through the process and for welcoming them into the Club.

 

Spring brings one of our favorite things, too: the KGC Benefit. Beth Glass, Kathy Elmer and their committee have planned a lovely event for us and our guests. Please send in your r.s.v.p.'s as soon as you can. That way, things won't be delayed in the mail by Easter travel. The invitation should have found its way to your mailbox. Isn't it gorgeous? Just like Sybil's new book! 

Thank you to our Benefit Angels! Polky Kibler, our Angel Chair, has received some donations. Please do be an "Angel" to the Club and benefit. The Chairs have told me that KGC Angels will go straight to heaven....or maybe I'm just making that up.....

It's going to be another fabulous benefit with a little surprise thrown in just for the fun of it!! See you at Glen View Club on Thursday, April 27 ^th.

 

We won't be having a club "meeting" this month, just the benefit program. Please watch your mailbox for your invitation to our Annual Meeting on Wednesday, May 17 ^th at Beth Glass' home. We'll be voting on the budget and a slate (nominating is still at work, so "just say yes"!) and presenting GCA and Club awards.  I'm also happy to tell you that both the Ware Garden and Maggi/North Parks Storch Fund requests were approved by the Kenilworth Park District Board.

 

Easter is just around the corner. Wishing you a Happy Easter filled with family, friends, flowers and love.

 

Always,

Horticulture Workshop Tuesday, April 4 -- 7 p.m. Church of the Holy Comforter 222 Kenilworth Ave., Kenilworth Show of Summer Houseplant and Cuttings tuneup. Bring the Show of Summer Schedule and a pen/pencil to take notes. "It's Five O'Clock Somewhere" refreshments will be provided!

Spring Benefit Thursday, April 27 -- 10:30 a.m. The Glen View Club 100 Golf Road, Golf Don't forget to RSVP!  Also, note that  the book can be preordered.  It would make a great Mother's Day gift.

A Bryan Johnson photo

March Meeting Recap

Our March program speaker, Susie Schreiber.  Photos by Shelley Galloway

The lion of March arrived just in time for our meeting at Ann Jones' house. After several inches of snow, we gathered at Ann's beautiful Lake Forest home for a conservation meeting. Our club welcomed Jean B. "Susie" Schreiber, Chairman of the Waukegan Harbor Citizens Advisory Group, to discuss Lake Michigan conversation and nearshore issues that face our community.

 

Susie began by introducing us to the Lake Michigan watershed and how our subwatersheds affect water and conservation throughout the Great Lakes and our own northshore. The Great Lakes, together, make up 20% of the world's fresh water. Each one of these lakes comprises its own share of watershed and pollution issues. The increase of manufacturing in the Waukegan Harbor area led to massive changes in area wetlands and ecosystems. Through her work with the Waukegan Harbor Citizens Advisory group, Susie has led a massive project of reform and decontamination. Once the largest area of PCB contamination in the world, the harbor and surrounding areas are now coming out of transition into a clean and safe harbor.

 

Susie also introduced us to the IJC (International Joint Commission) which combines leadership of both the U.S. and Canada to remediate many of the water quality issues that threaten the Great Lakes.   Initially started as a treaty to address water use and trade issues, it has evolved into a remarkable bi-national organization with hundreds of scientists and researchers working toward the common goal of clean Great Lakes.

 

We were so grateful to have Susie introduce us to so many organizations working toward a cleaner future. It was a great way for the KGC to welcome spring!

                                                                                       --Elizabeth Dugan 

http://www.gogreenwilmette.org/plantsale/

http://www.lfola.org/go-native-plant-tree-sale

http://www.ill-inps.org/native-plant-sales/

                                                                               -- Joan Dodson

To get the latest Horticulture news from our zone rep Liz Lavezzorio, click here.

Mariano's in Glenview continues to donate gorgeous flowers for repurposing at JourneyCare.
Here is Tina Rice's car overloaded with containers!

Good News for Kenilworth!  The Kenilworth Park District approved Beautification's request from the Storch Fund for $52,300 to renovate Maggi and North Park on the West side.  Kenilworth Garden Club's request for $6,000 from the Storch Fund, by a unanimous vote, was also granted for continued improvements to Ware Garden.   March 16, 2017 was a good night with these Kenilworth Park District decisions.  Both Beautification and KGC are grateful and thank the board.
 
The Landscape Architect company, Teska Associates, Inc., created the landscape plan for Maggi and North Park "using low curving berms covered in tall grasses, shrubs and trees, filtering the view of passing and parked cars...Trees, shrubs and perennials were selected for their extreme hardiness, drought tolerance and low maintenance, as well as beauty," in the Jens Jensen spirit and Kenilworth's naturalistic landscaping style.  The landscape contracting company, Grundstrom Landscape Maintenance, Inc., presented the lowest bid of four received.  They plan to start the project in mid-to-late April, 2017.  Both of these companies have "performed well" for Kenilworth as evidenced by the work they did in Centennial.
 
From the metal sign (made by Great Lakes Art Studio) to a tree, to an entire bed, there are opportunities for individuals, community groups and garden clubs to donate.  The result of such generosity would be a living legacy for all to enjoy.  "The new plantings will...create a unified visual identity connecting to the east side of Greenbay Road by using the same grasses and catmint installed 20 years ago by Beautification."
 
What to do?  We have all seen the huge Booster Station for the new water connection with Wilmette on the west side of Maggi Park at the curve formed with Ashland Avenue and Kenilworth Avenue.  Discussions are presently going on with the landscape architect and others about what exactly can be done to minimize its dominating presence.  I'll let you know when a decision has been made and what the proposed design will look like; shrubs, trees or structures, or a combination of these.   It will be interesting to see the camouflaging solution for such a challenge.
 
Fundraising letter design is being finalized.  Whichever design is settled on, it will be eye catching!
                                                                                       -- Cheryl Anderson, Civic

Cheryl has been bringing spring into her home by forcing branches.  Watch for her article in an upcoming issue of Kenilworth Life.

Member Spotlight

Charlotte Walsh has a new email address -- cwalsh@clearbridge.com

Additions
2017 New members:

1. Hurtgen, Catherine (Nick)

2. Irwin, Wendy (Mark)

3. Murphy, Cathie (John)

4. Piekos, Kim (Mark)             

NEWS TO DINE OUT ON:

 

Did you know that physicists are wiring roses to store electricity? We are not making this up. It's utterly fascinating and will definitely impress your dinner partners. Here's the link: http://www.physicscentral.com/buzz/blog/index.cfm?postid=4623627182429703206

	For those who missed it, Stacey DeLuca attended the Orchid Show at the Chicago Botanic Garden in March and took these beautiful photos of a few of the creative displays and the gorgeous plants that were featured.

A big, bright KGC Spring thank you to:

 

Ann Jones for hosting our March meeting, and to our hostesses, Penny Parke, Elizabeth Dugan and Kelly Chestnut;

 

Karin Balsbaugh for representing KGC at the GCA National Affairs and Legislation Conference in Washington, D.C.;

 

Benefit Co-Chairs Beth Glass and Kathy Elmer, and their Committee, Katherine Buehler, Terri Lorenz, Tina Rice, Kendra Cunningham, Anne Brown, Joan Senko, Pam McClamroch, Kelly Chestnut, Sharon Hayes, Martha Spaulding, Mary Glerum, Helen Balch, Carla Stevens, Mary Lois Hakewill, Jeanne Daniel, Charlotte Walsh, Shelley Galloway, Sue Cozzens, Stacey Van Metre, Stacey DeLuca, Chris Wiedrich, Polky Kibler, Marty Shaw and Julia Kyle for EVERYTHING that you are doing to make the benefit beautiful, fun and a great success;

 

Heather Blackwell and Joan Dodson for organizing the Show of Summer New Member Challenge and to Jeanne Daniel' for all of her help and support, too;

 

Jeanne Daniel for all that she does as Membership Chair, including all of those things above and beyond the call of duty;

 

Helen Balch, Kelly Chestnut, Kendra Cunningham, Catherine Hurtgen, Wendy Irwin, Cathie Murphy, Kim Piekos, Carla Stephens, Charlotte Walsh & Chris Wiedrich for participating in the Show of Summer New Member Challenge;

Diane Phillips, and the Finance Committee members Katherine Buehler, Leslie North and Mary Lois Hakewill for their work on the 2017-18 budget;

 

Shelley Galloway for getting the Award applications completed and submitted;

 

Mary Lois Hakewill for pinch hitting for me at the March meeting;

Elizabeth Drake and Joan Senko for Show of Summer Clerk Chairmanship;

Stacey DeLuca and Shelley Galloway for Show of Summer Photography Chairmanship;

Lyn Little and Nancy Kurz for coaching the Show of Summer Floral Design team; 

Terri Lorenz for her creative and inspired leadership of the Class I Show of Summer Challenge;

and,

All KGC members who have entered or will enter Show of Summer.