2015 Summer BOD: Fort Lewis Lodge

December 1, 2022

The “spouses included” weekend retreat was held at Fort Lewis Lodge in Millboro on July 17-19, 2015. Attendees gathered Friday evening for cocktails in the pavilion, followed by dinner in the dining room.

President Jeanette Cadwallender called the meeting to order Saturday morning and welcomed guest Katherine Whitney for a strategic planning discussion. Katherine presented a draft plan that included key focus areas — member clubs, Centennial, governance, programs and communication.

Centennial Committee Chairman Anne Cross provided a comprehensive update on plans for an exhibition at Virginia Historical Society, estimated to cost $40,000. The VHS will assign a staff member to this project in the summer of 2016. By 2017, the GCV Exhibits Committee headed by Johanna Catron and including Heidi James, Janet Rosser, Elizabeth Bickford and Margaret Bemiss, will determine the themes of the exhibition and issue a call to the membership for items for the exhibition. The call for exhibition items itself could be a prelude to the 2020 Celebration. Unofficially the themes emerging are obvious — conservation, restoration, beautification and exceptional women making a difference. The working title mentioned by the VHS president at our first meeting is “Virginia: A Landscape Saved.”

Anne then presented developments with the Partnership for Parks, noting that the GCV collaboration with two agencies – the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation and the Virginia Association for Parks presents complications. She addressed confusion concerning the overall cost of the Partnership for Parks project, explaining the GCV is committed to only $500,000. The GCV has hired part-time consultant Ruth Ellett to guide the partnership in putting together a credible campaign at the grassroots level. Anne then gave status reports from individual parks requesting funds. She concluded by saying, thus far, the partnership has been guided by the letter of intent signed by Jeanette Cadwallender and then Director of State Parks Joe Elton when we informed them of the GCV pledge. Now we are working with Clyde Cristman, Director of DCR; new Director of State Parks Craig Seaver; consultant Ruth Ellett and Secretary of Natural Resources Molly Ward to ensure success of the collaboration.

The Historic Garden Week Committee proposed a statewide advertising opportunity to partner with Virginia wineries during HGW 2016. The proposal was supported by references to numerous individual tour partnerships with local wineries in past HGW Guidebooks. Director of Development Karmen Gustin collaborated with Laurie Aldrich, Executive Director of the Virginia Wine Association, and submitted a $10,000 grant request to the Virginia Wine Marketing Board. The grant was fully funded. In the meantime, two member clubs shared strong objections to the partnership. Following a lengthy and difficult Board discussion, a decision was made to cancel the partnership.

The Development Committee met on June 2 at KVH. Ruth Modlin Ellett, fundraising consultant for the Partnership for Parks, was introduced. She framed the campaign phases for this public/private statewide partnership. The Development Committee has decided to put off any capital fundraising for GCV until the results of the Strategic Planning Committee are complete. The committee also decided that member club donations to the Annual Fund would no longer be compared competitively. Committee chairman Jean Gilpin reported an increase in Annual Fund giving, even though member club giving has decreased. Karmen made a presentation to HGW’s Boot Camp on how to secure and manage tour sponsorships. She composed a chapter for inclusion in HGW’s Insider’s Guide publication, which addresses how clubs might handle quid pro quo contributions. New guidelines specify that clubs seeking sponsorships over $5,000 must work with Karmen to coordinate the request. The change has sparked discussions with member clubs but, thus far, she has received requests from four tours seeking support.

The Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation will host an exhibition entitled “In the Pursuit of Useful Knowledge: Clayton, Catesby, and the Natural History of Virginia” at Jamestown Settlement for six weeks, beginning November 2016. The Foundation has requested the loan of 16 Garden Club of Virginia Catesby engravings for the exhibition. Bland Crowder, Executive Director of the Flora Virginia Project and curator of the exhibition, along with Peter Armstrong, Director of Museums for Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation; Jane Hohensee, Registrar, Curatorial, for Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation; and Terry Buntrock, member, Williamsburg Garden Club and Arts Coordinator for the Historic Triangle, visited the Kent-Valentine House June 4 and selected the sixteen engravings that represent native plants of the tidewater region.

The Garden Club of Virginia will be given special credit for the loan as part of the exhibition. As with past agreements of this nature, GCV staff will oversee logistics to guarantee safe handling of the art. After reviewing logistics, the Board approved a motion to lend 16 Catesby engravings to the Jamestown Yorktown Foundation for display in the museum at Jamestown Settlement as part of the museum’s exhibition.

Denise Revercomb and her husband graciously hosted attendees for cocktails and dinner at their lovely cabin retreat in Millboro on Saturday night. An optional trip to Douthat State Park was offered on Sunday.