At 10:00 am on
Saturday, April 2, 2016, members of the Gulf Hills Garden Club gathered at the
Memorial Garden on Shore Drive in Gulf Hills for our annual Arbor Day
commemoration. This year was the 144th anniversary of the founding
of Arbor Day and the 184th anniversary of the birth of J. Sterling Morton, the founder of Arbor Day.
The
atmosphere was just wonderful. A
delightfully cool morning with copious amounts of the most perfect sunshine! It was just spectacular.
We started
off with local Singing
sensation Jessie Hill performing a masterful rendition of the old hymn “In the Garden”.
Followed by our Gulf Hills Garden Club President Dickie Roberts leading us all in the Gardener’s Prayer:
Followed by our Gulf Hills Garden Club President Dickie Roberts leading us all in the Gardener’s Prayer:
“Father,
from thy hand, we have been given the world as our garden. Teach us to live day by day that we may at
all times show our love for thee by the way we cultivate the Holy garden of
life”.
Dickie Roberts offered us introductions and welcome,
during which a large bird of prey holding a huge trout like fish, majestically
flew low over our group perfectly on cue to what was being said! It was just a magical National Geographic
Moment!
Faye Mosley then
offered the Tree Dedication for the two Japanese Magnolias that have been planted on
either side of the concrete bench, in gratitude for our active Club members and
for those who have gone before us this year, especially Tem Shields’s sister:
Jeana Blair Feazell Crevasse.
Mary Ann
Westfall proceeded to give a Prayer for the new trees.
“Lord, our
new trees are strangers to us and we to them.
Remind us whenever we may pass by, to make them feel at home by speaking
to them with love and a blessing. May
these plants’ cousins in the garden welcome them and help them to recover from
the shock of being moved. As blessings,
peace and life were God’s gifts to us through his Son, Jesus. May those same blessings, flow from this
garden which we tend in Your Holy Name. Amen”.
Michael
Moses did a poetry reading of Plant a Tree by Lucy Larcom
Jessie Hill then performed the classic song “What a Wonderful World”.
We concluded
our morning with a round of thanks to members of the Gulf Hills Garden Club for
all their extensive committee work. Our President presented Maureen Schmidt with a special limited edition print of the Arbor Day Invitation designed by Michael W. Moses for this occasion.
After which excellent
lite refreshments were served and enjoyed by all.
Over all I
must state that it was just a totally pleasant and inspirational morning.
A very
special thank you to Maureen Schmidt, Molly Penrod, Beth Margherio, and Faye Mosley.
