Contributed
The spirit of volunteering is essential in Seven Lakes. The willing hands of volunteers built our communities and sustain them today.
Formed in 1990, Garden Club activities were landscape beautification. There were also beatification committees. Initial plantings and landscaping were accomplished by the willing hands of those groups.
The Lakeway Garden in Seven Lakes West is a testament to volunteering. It is flanked by the entrance and exit roads of Lakeway Drive and features two ponds and lush plantings.
Huge volunteer efforts over the years created and maintained this garden. Most notable was the work of Ronnie and Betty Milligan, who raised $20,000 from contributions. They used the funds for a landscape plan and put their backs into laying irrigation pipe, planting, mulching, pruning, and weeding.
Today, a landscaping company conducts the routine maintenance.
In 2018, the Garden Club again became engaged with the Lakeway Garden, taking on the role of advocate and educator concurrently with an effort to revitalize the garden.
Recently, we noticed a need for a lot of pruning and cleanup of deadwood. Recognizing that this work is not part of regular maintenance, the Garden Club struck a deal: we’d prune and the company would pick up the debris.
Good thing we like to prune and have all the stuff. Over a two-day period, nine Garden Club volunteers attacked the deadwood and the overgrown. The result is very satisfying. As one volunteer said, “It feels good to work hard at something and see real results.”
The Weeping Cherry now looks like a Weeping Cherry with all its volunteer spikes removed. The Native Yellow Dogwood has air and light to grow minus its invasive neighbor Illicium. Deadheading occurred everywhere, from the Western Red Buds at the top of the garden through the Hydrangeas and Spirea, and down to the Elderberry and Beauty Berry bushes. The really good news was that all those piles of “yard waste” were promptly removed.
The volunteers: Judy Lauber, Carl Wheeldon, Jo Cermele, Tracy Cicatelli, Debbie Chaney, Yvonne Merrill, Jerry Ward, Mary Ellen Buckley, Gayle Carpenter, and Carolyn Sink.
In addition, the Seven Lakes Garden Club celebrated the end of another good year of fellowship and learning. Members gathered in June at the Longleaf Pavilion on Lake Longleaf at the SLN Clubhouse to share good food and conversation.
Everyone was invited to bring a chair, a favorite beverage and a sweet or savory dish to share. The Garden Club provided spiral ham, water, plates, utensils, and a variety of fun raffle prizes. Each attending member household gets a ticket and trusts they will be a lucky winner who gets to select a prize.
The weather was beautiful with the rain waiting patiently until the party was over. The prizes this year were six SLGC Gift bags each with a theme created by a board member, four gift cards to the garden centers at ACE and Burney’s, and an original art piece donated by Jo Cermele.
