Blog Post

Holiday Luncheon Recap

Anna Thurmond Class of ’17 • January 19, 2022

A few words about some great work: as President for 2020 and 2021, I was confronted with some unusual situations. It became apparent early on that everything was going to be done differently, and many times I wondered if we would be able to accomplish much as Master Gardeners in the traditional way.


Needless to say, we all adapted and continued with our goals. A few individuals found creative ways to keep our goal of educating the public, and others worked tirelessly to keep us up to date on changes and ways of staying connected as a group. It was important to recognize those members who played a huge role in keeping us successful.


For those who did not attend the December luncheon, I have included the presented awards.


MASTER GARDENER VOLUNTEER OF THE YEAR AWARD


Our way of meeting and conducting business came to a screeching halt due to the pandemic.


When changes happen to our usual way of doing things, some people have a hard time coming up with a solution and then making that solution work.


 Thankfully that is not the case with this Master Gardener. With a whole load of responsibilities to deal with on her plate routinely, this volunteer found a solution and then taught us how to use it successfully. We called upon her time and time again to solve problems, schedule more and more meetings, have rehearsals, edits, closed captioning, and on and on, the list goes. She met every request with a smile and a positive attitude. Knowing how to make a video or submit an application with pictures for an award, this person was always available and said, “I’ll take care of it, no worries.” A volunteer with this dedication and can-do attitude is truly worthy of this award.

It is an honor and privilege to present the MASTER GARDENER VOLUNTEER OF THE YEAR AWARD FOR 2021 TO …………… JOEY ROTHGERY

Anna Thurmond, Joey Rothgery and Chris Epes


OUTSTANDING SERVICE AWARD – BARB WILSON


This person is the backbone and glue of this organization. She answers our questions and keeps us on track. She is always willing to help us when we fear stepping into something new. Better Impact required a lot of work to get the system ready to use. Please be as kind to her as she has been to us...Hours for 2021 were to have been entered by January 5th of this year.



Barb Wilson, we are so lucky to have you as our Secretary, and we proudly recognize you for your outstanding service to NMG.

Anna Thurmond, Chris Epes and Barb Wilson


OUTSTANDING SERVICE AWARD – KATE MELHUISH AND WILL REDFERN


When times were bleak, and we couldn’t have a training class or plant sale, and we all wondered if the pandemic was going to wipe us out financially, these two individuals on the Training Committee came up with a brilliant and successful idea, “Master Classes for public education.” It was an instant success, with 320 signing up for the series. Now the hard work had to be done: Getting speakers, zoom rehearsals, arranging and rearranging schedules, edits, all of which consumed many hours. Master Classes were months of hard work and dedication for Kate and Will to pull all of this together. This endeavor generated $7,429 on Eventbrite. We have them to thank for keeping us going financially during a very uncertain time.


Kate and Will, we are so grateful for your outstanding service to NMG.

Will Redfern, Chris Epes and Kate Melhuish


HIGHLIGHTS OF SPECIFIC ACCOMPLISHMENTS: CHUCK GIBSON EMERITUS STATUS


Advanced MG Water Steward - Stormwater management project at Knitting Mill Creek community garden which resulted in a rain garden. Lafayette Wetlands Partnership Sharing Shed, where Norfolk residents can check out tools and materials to use in wetlands restoration projects. Chuck also led the bird count activity for Bio-Blitz for the years 2016-2019 Hermitage. Co-lead for the Docent Program. He enjoyed teaching children and adults about how human activity affects water quality. He taught square foot gardening at the Hermitage for spring and summer campers. As a photographer, he used his skills to capture close up photos of flowers which he submitted to the Germinator. Contributed his photos monthly to Gardener’s Eye feature of the newsletter. In summary, we recognize Chuck for his continuing significant contributions to the positive environmental impact for Norfolk.

Chuck Gibson and Chris Epes



You can also see a list of Milestone Award recipients in Joey’s email of January 12!


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