Southwest Gardners have found niche

The Southwest Gardeners organization is comprised of a group of 30 women whose mission is to beautify the community, find pleasure in gardening through education, and help fund the education of a deserving high school student. It is also the story of women libbers!

At one time, the Southwest Gardeners women were auxiliary members of the Green Valley Men’s Garden Club. At one of their board meetings, it was decided the club would host weekly seminars by master gardeners to be held at a local church. Some of the (male) board members decided that the auxiliary ladies could serve the coffee and cookies. They rose up as one voice and said, “Coffee and cookies indeed! Enough is enough,” recalls member Bettie Thayer. And so was born the Southwest Gardeners which had its inception on November 3, 1997.

The club’s purpose is to promote an interest in gardening with membership open to anyone who likes to garden and has artistic talent. President Maureen O’Reilly-O’Shea tells us many of the women grow flowers in their home gardens, then, bring the blossoms to be dried for their many projects. They also receive baskets of fresh flowers from friends to help their cause.

Now comes the artistry. The first step is to dry the flowers. With the dried flowers the women then ma with many beautiful designs. The next step is to sell the items at the County Fair, the Spring Fling and various outlets in Green Valley.

The proceeds are then presented to a deserving Sahuarita high school senior. The gift is $500, which enables a student to cover book fees upon entering Pima College. A board member contacts a guidance counselor at the high school, who then looks for a student with potential and few resources to continue their education.

Thayer and O’Reilly-O’Shea tell us they also helped fund the Children’s Clinic in Nogales, Green Valley Animal League, Habitat for Humanity, Green Valley Food Bank, Median Green, San Xavier co-op farm, among others. Recently, they weeded and planted flower boxes for Casa de Esperanza.

The monthly programs of the Southwest Gardeners are of great interest. One guest was Suzanne Blodgett, a volunteer with the beautification people who have been beautifying the Green Valley roadway medians. Kamon Lilly, of Avalon Gardens Farm and Ranch were guest speakers one month. Shirley Fandelands presented a slide show of Saguaro National Park with its unique cacti. The group has had entomologists speaking of their travels and their 1.25 million bugs.

There have also been field trips for the women to enjoy, such as Green Things Nursery with their 20,000 poinsettia plants in preparation for the holidays, which included lunch at Firebird’s at La Encantada. !

Aqua Caliente Park was another day trip. This is a picturesque park off of Soldier Trail in the Catalina foothills. The group enjoyed the natural beauty ate lunch at water’s edge, and toured a historical ranch house on the grounds. In summation, these women have a lot of fun while doing worthwhile community projects!

“Some husbands have come to our monthly meetings with their wives to enjoy the speakers,” says Thayer. She wants it known that men are not excluded from membership. “We are always looking for new members.”

Maureen O’Reilly-O’Shea can be reached at 393-7855, Bettie Thayer at 648-7952 for more information.