Local Garden Club celebrates 90th anniversary in special ways

Twin Valleys Garden Club has been cultivating gardens and gardeners in northern Chester County since 1927. The club’s program theme this year —“Learning, Growing, Sharing” — celebrates both the purpose of the club and its members among whom are avid gardeners, horticulture enthusiasts, floral arrangers, and friends.

TVGC has celebrated its 90th Anniversary in two special ways so far this year. Early this spring a group of members from TVGC and local sister garden clubs and their guests traveled by chartered bus to tour the Hillwood Estate and Gardens near Washington, D.C.

Recently around 30 current and past members and guests gathered at Stonewall in NW Chester County for a 90th Anniversary Luncheon. Among the audience were past club presidents, relatives of past members, and winners of many club awards, including the coveted Mabel Irwin Bowl, named for the club’s founder.

Attendees enjoyed a slide show of club photos, past and present, and reminisced over decades of scrapbooks from the club Archives. Large floral table arrangements in yellow and other bright colors created by club members were gifted to past members.

Current club President Susan Aggarwal of Malvern observed in her luncheon remarks, “Twin Valleys GC has been a big part of many families over the years as evidenced by the attendance of daughters and granddaughters representing their family members.”

One gardener, formerly of Phoenixville and now living in Audubon, recalls attending TVGC meetings as a young girl with her mother who, very early on, had driven them to meetings in a horse-drawn wagon. One newer member has spent the last year landscaping her new home with native plant material carefully selected to reflect the climate and soil of the Chester Springs area.

TVGC takes pride in living its traditions of hosting and competing (and winning awards) in flower shows, from Joint Flower Shows with other garden clubs to the annual Philadelphia Horticulture Society Flower Show. Additionally the members over the years have become increasingly focused upon sharing their love of gardening with and for the community.

Noted Aggarwal , “Three years ago, [the club] created a position called Outreach Coordinator because we found that a huge amount of our efforts go to community support” in our gardening projects with local organizations such as Historic Yellow Springs, the Coatesville Veterans Medical Center, and Camphill Soltane.

Aggarwal encouraged the luncheon audience to “celebrate and continue the work that was begun 90 years ago and find new ways to fulfill our goals [as we move toward] our 95th and our 100th Anniversaries.”

For more information on Twin Valleys Garden Club, readers may visit www.twinvalleysgardenclub.wordpress.com . For interests in membership, upcoming programs, and community projects, please email twinvalleys@ aol.com .

Current TVGC members and guests surround their Happy 90th Anniversary Strawberry Cake created by member Sheila McFadden of Malvern and her daughter for the club luncheon celebration.

Oldest known photo (circa 1929) of the founding members of the Twin Valleys Garden Club. Do you recognize an ancestor who was a member of TVGC? If you can identify the stone building in the background, please let the club know at twinvalleys@aol.com .