Jan Davidson
Oh my goodness! We are coming up to the last meeting of the SunBird Garden Club for this session. We started our meetings in November of 2021 after a COVID-19 hiatus for 2020-21. It feels like we just had that first meeting a few weeks ago, but it has been five months already. Speaking as one of those who didn’t make it to Arizona for the hiatus period, it was sure great to be back this fall. And for those who continued the work on SunBird Garden Club projects during that trying time, the grounds looked so good when we first came through the front gate. Thanks for holding down the fort.
Congrats to Julie Anderson and team for another successful Home Tour, and a great big thank you to all the homeowners who offered their homes for viewing. Many thanks also go out to all the volunteers who looked after each house, those who took care of the refreshments, and to those who baked all those delicious cookies. It really was a fun time.
Just a reminder: At our January meeting, we voted to have our first fall meeting in October as opposed to November, as we have done previously. This additional month will allow time to get ready for our plant sales at the HOA Community Day that is traditionally held on the second Wednesday in November. It will also give our executives and members more time to come up with ideas for the program for the rest of the season. As a result of this change, a reminder note to all of our members and to those who would like to join the club: Our first executive meeting will be held on Monday, Oct. 10, with our first general meeting on Friday, Oct. 14. For the remainder of the season, the executive meetings will be held on the second Monday, and the general meetings on the second Friday of each month.
Looking back, what a season we have had. Our plant sales were a success, we added 20-plus new members, and we had some great speakers, including potting and repotting our desert plants, farmer’s market gardening, and birds and foul found right here in SunBird. In addition, we had a lovely Christmas brunch and Valentine tea as well as a very successful Home Tour. And we still have our fieldtrip this April to Desert Horizon Nursery and Landscape Design to round out this session.
Success comes with a lot of hard work and involvement, so here are some special thanks:
Thank you to our “weeders” and our hands-on gardeners who did a masterful job of keeping our grounds healthy and looking wonderful. As well, many thanks from the club go out to our hardworking executives who did such a great job over the past three years. You are appreciated more than you could ever imagine. It really takes many people to keep this club going, so hats off to all of you who participated this session in one way or another!
Lastly, we bid a fond adieu to those of you who will soon be heading back to cooler climes. Safe travels, and we hope to see you in the fall. And to those of you who are full-time Arizona residents, we say, stay safe, and keep cool! Goodbye until we meet again next October.