Garden Club shares birthday celebration with new mothers
For the month of May, new mothers admitted to Highland District Hospital went home with a charming arrangement of red carnations, a gift from the Hillsboro Garden Club.
The project originated with longtime Garden Club member and former president Carol Gorby.
“This May marked our club's 85th anniversary," Gorby said. "We wanted to do something special to celebrate – something with flowers, of course, and something that commemorated the memory of the club's founding members. Extending the tradition of flowers and Mother's Day in May to floral arrangements for the new moms in our community seemed perfect.”
Melanie Phillips, marketing coordinator for the hospital and an enthusiastic supporter of the plan, says, “We were delighted that the Garden Club selected our OB patients as recipients of their beautiful bouquets. They were an unexpected surprise for our new mothers. It was so kind of the ladies to donate their time and talent, and it was truly appreciated by the hospital and the new mothers.”
HDH generally welcomes about 400 new babies each year and had advised the garden club to expect 25-30 arrivals in May.
“They were right on target," Gorby said. "We delivered 24 arrangements and only missed one mother who came in late and left early. We used red carnations, the state flower, accented with greenery and baby's breath in the floral design. The decorative wooden birdcage served as a container and added a touch of whimsy.”
Gorby, Nancy Sonner, Leona Gabriel and Pat Lawrence made the arrangements together at the Floral Hall, and Gorby called the hospital each day to see if there was a delivery.
“On two occasions, there were four babies for that day and we had to scramble to get all the arrangements ready in time," Gorby said. "Fran Larkin should get frequent flier miles for all her trips to the hospital.”
The Hillsboro Garden Club is a member of the Ohio Association of Garden Clubs and meets on the fourth Tuesday of each month at the Katherine Granger Floral Hall on the Highland County Fairgrounds. The club also recognizes local residence and business gardens for excellence in design, sponsors three flower shows each year and conducts two annual plant and bulb sales.
-Submitted by Pat Lawrence, Hillsboro Garden Club