Rosalia Garden Club marks 70th anniversary

Front row from left, Lillian Fulton, President Rana French and Mary Ann Bowman. Second row from left, Laura Fulton, MarvaLee Peterschick, Cheryl Gillespie, Betty Gingrich, Terrie Tucker, Ann Widman, Roseanna Hester and Penni Barringer. Members attending but not in the photo: Edie Beddoe, Jennifer Snead and Leila Van Dyke.

This special anniversary cake consisting of cupcakes formed into a “70” was designed by Laura Fulton who also organized the food for the event.

Rosalia Garden Club celebrated its 70th anniversary April 5 with 35 people at the Rosalia United Methodist Church.

The club was started in 1947 and originated as one of the various sections of the Rosalia Alpha Club.

The first official meeting of the Rosalia Garden Club took place Oct. 1, 1947, with Mrs. John (Katherine) Horlacher as its first president. At this time, the club joined the Inland Empire District of Washington State Federation of Garden Clubs. Rosalia has continuously maintained its membership with the federation, which includes National Garden Clubs, Inc.

The current president is Rana French.

Special guests were WSFGC President Terry Critchlow from White Pass along with former RGC presidents Sheryl Porter, Viola Heinemann and Kathy Hilliard plus members of two other area clubs, St. John Country Cuzzins and Colfax Late Bloomers.

The special anniversary cake consisting of cupcakes in a “70” was designed by Laura Fulton who also organized the food.

Cheryl Gillespie did the centerpieces that contained pansy plants. They were given as door prizes.

MarvaLee Peterschick did a historical display which included scrapbooks and original minutes of the club from 1947 along with yearbooks dating back to 1956. She stressed how important it is for an organization to keep its history up to date.

Rosalia Garden Club has continued to serve the community with civic development plantings not only in Rosalia, but the surrounding areas as well. The club currently has 19 members with new members welcome.

Program speaker was Paul Warnick, Director and Horticulturist for the University of Idaho Arboretum and Botanical Gardens. He gave a Power Point presentation showing how the arboretum has developed in the past 40 years. The Arboretum is located on 63 acres south of Nez Perce Drive, adjacent to the U of I golf course. More than 5,600 named woody plants and trees, plus flowering plants are maintained, and visitors will find one of the largest lilac collections in the Pacific Northwest blooming from mid-May through the first part of June. A visit is well worth the time of a plant enthusiast or casual visitor.

The club will perform seasonal work in the mini-park on Monday afternoons from 1-3 p.m. Anyone interested in helping club members is welcome.

Upcoming events include a trip to Arborcrest in the Spokane Valley in May to observe the tulip plantings.