Past Events October 6, 2001 Free Information Session: Putting Your Garden to Bed for the Winter Blair County Extension Director Tom Ford offered a FREE information session about preparing your garden for the winter. At Discovery Garden in Legion Memorial Park, Hollidaysburg the 90-minute presentation included a garden walk. September 17, 2001 Dedication Ceremony Representatives from local government, agencies serving individuals with disabilities and area businesses gathered with other Discovery Garden supporters to celebrate the completion and official opening of the garden. Dedication Ceremony, Sunday, September 17, 2000 A Message to The Community from Karen and Larry Claton What a wonderful day to celebrate! The support our community and each of you has shown for Discovery Garden is overwhelming. We now have a beautiful community garden where we can enjoy the peace and serenity that the birds and butterflies provide. From the inception of this project my personal goal has been to create a beautiful and lasting memorial to our daughter Courtney Cone that would be enjoyed by individuals of all ages and abilities. With the help of everyone present today, hundreds of businesses and individuals who are not present, and especially of the dedicated and hard-working individuals on the steering committee, that goal has been accomplished. Thank you to all who helped make the dream of Discovery Garden a reality. Karen and Larry Claton Program Invocation, Reverand Dr. D.L. Brinton Shafer, First United Methodist Church of Hollidaysburg Welcome Master of Ceremonies David M. (Mike) Rice, Ph.D., President & CEO, Skills of Central Pennsylvania, Inc. Speakers Randy Manning, President, Hollidaysburg Borough Council Sandy Recker, Past President of the Hollidaysburg Area Womens Club Special Presentation by Robin Havens Stoehr, President, Hollidaysburg Area Womens Club Thomas (Beau) Bourne, Vice President of Strategy and Development, Skills of Central PA, Inc. Karen Claton, Discovery Garden Project Coordinator Ribbon Cutting Jean Johnstone, Representing Bon Secours Holy Family Hospital Robert Medvesky, Representing Dominion-Peoples TBA, Representing Ronald McDonald House Charities Mike Rice, Representing Skills of Central Pennsylvania, Inc. Leslie Smith, Representing the Hollidaysburg Area Womens Club Sean and Liam Claton, Representing the Claton Family Edgar Smithe, Representing FL Smithe Machine Company Anthony Misciagna Rosemary Jorden, Representing North American Communications Sue Port Simon, Representing the Port Family Foundation Randy Manning, Representing the Borough of Hollidaysburg Amy Faris, Representing Skills Adult and Vocational Training Services TBA, Representing Blair Senior Services Jacob Pramuk, Representing Hollidaysburg Area Students May, 2000 Free Gardening Classes Blair County Extension Director Tom Ford presented a series of FREE gardening classes open to the public. Participants learned how to avoid the most common mistakes made by amateur gardeners, and Tom revealed expert tips on maximizing a garden's potential. Topics included perennial care and culture; landscape management techniques; soil preparation and conditioning; insect and disease management; and much more. Tom has an extensive background in horticulture and is the commercial horticulture agent for Blair, Bedford, Cambria and Somerset Counties. The first two classes were held in a classroom setting at the Hollidaysburg Borough building and the last two were held at Discovery Garden in Legion Park for hands-on gardening experience. Participants were asked to give 25 hours of their time (five hours per month) from May through October either during the day or in the evenings at times convenient to the volunteer. They were given the option to help with planting; weeding; deadheading; garden tours; special events; and educational activities involving students from Hollidaysburg Area School District, the horticultural therapy program of Skills of Central Pennsylvania, Inc., and other community groups. Classes will be offered again in the spring of 2002. Check back for class times, dates and locations.
Other Discovery Garden projects Discovery Garden focuses on community involvement and has been assisted by the two classes at Longer Elementary School; Mrs. Codd's second grade and Mrs. Guyer's fifth grade classes visited the Penn State Altoona Campus to collect research for the garden. This event was covered by the Altoona Mirror, click here for pictures.
The Community Day of Service, was sponsered by the Learning Through Service program, on April 15. Senior High students gave up their time to help at Discovery Garden by collecting river rocks and cleaning the area. Students from Longer Elementary
and some from the Senior High made the stepping stones that became a part
of Discovery Garden. We'd like to give our thanks to all who gave their
time to help.
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The
Ground Breaking was April 6, and we'd like to thank everyone involved.
Discovery Garden is now in need of volunteers more than ever.
