Good afternoon,
I am enjoying a quiet Sunday afternoon after spending three busy days
at the WNFG Annual Meeting. Everyone had a great weekend from the
moment they were greeted by buzzing bees at the registration table,
thanks to a few of our brave MFG members. Our gifts bags were a real
HIT! On Wednesday night, Susan served a delicious fried chicken
dinner accompanied by a variety of delicious vegetables. The dinner
ended with a dessert of frozen honey and lavender custard, circled with
fresh strawberries laced with rose water, and little bees topped the
custard. Bright and early Thursday morning, we met at the Natick
Crown Plaza and made our way into Boston for the famous Duck Tour and
lunch at the Harvard Faculty Club with a speaker who educated us about
the very talented gardener, Norah Lindsay. The heavens were with us,
we managed to get through the day without a drop of rain despite the
forecast.
Friday, we got down to business, heard reports from other divisions
and branches, brainstormed ideas on increasing membership, and
marveled at the wonderful branch projects. The rich history of WNFG is
one to be admired along with the dedication of its members. We hope
to be able to share this with the women of Mayflower FG. We were
very fortunate to sell some of our bags as well as raffle tickets to a
two night stay at Hotel Sofitel of Philadelphia. As the day went on
the rain to came and went. We hoped for another blessing from the
heavens, which was answered, the sun shined and the temperatures
warmed as the large bus, which brought the majority of members to the
annual meeting, once again carried them down the windy, back streets
of Sherborn to Faith’s home for a traditional New England clambake.
We strolled the magnificent gardens listening to a jazzy, blues
singer, sipped white wine and shared conversation with our new friends.
It was truly an unforgettable evening.
Bright and early on Saturday, we continued our business meeting with
our WNFG President, Faith Tiberio presiding. After lunch we headed
over to the amazing Garden in the Woods. Our member, Sylvia Anderson,
aided the guides with her great breadth of knowledge on native plants.
It was wonderful to walk among the natural beauty of nature. What we
assumed was native to New England, we soon learned that our friends
from Ohio and Michigan had similar plants as well. It was fun to
share our gardening stories with each other.
Saturday evening the ladies dressed in their finest and we shared in
the frenzy of a silent auction, a presentation of awards and the
drawing of the raffle. Barbara Hochstettler was delighted to have
her name picked. Hugs all around, we said our good byes and promises
to meet next year in Buffalo.
We hope many more of you can join us next year.
Keep a lookout for more news this summer.
Fondly,
The Lisas