The San Saba Garden Club yearbook for 2011-2012 recently won first place in the Texas Garden Clubs District V Bronze category, and third place in the statewide competition. The District competition included entries from 28 counties in Central Texas including clubs from large counties like Travis, Hays and Williamson. The statewide competition covered more than 400 clubs.Our members were really pleased to win these awards. None of our current members could recall the Club ever receiving such a high degree of recognition at the State level. The yearbook award is particularly coveted because it is based on a set of specific criteria assessing how well it “presents a picture of the club’s goals, the continuity of its objectives from year to year, and details on meetings, members and special events.” San Saba’s yearbook received a score of 97 out of 100.Last year, the Garden Club collaborated with several organizations to pursue a variety of projects including the Butterfly Garden at the LCRA Park and the community garden at the senior center. In addition, the Club offered a Tour of Gardens in June 2011; hosted the Zone meeting in November; worked with the American Legion and others to honor all veterans on Veterans’ Day; offered a Christmas Tour of Homes including a Youth Design Competition and selected an Outstanding Yard of the Month during the growing season. We also worked with County Extension Agent Carolyn McDowell to offer a Master Gardener Course in the spring of 2012. In addition, the Club supported several charitable projects. The Club and several of our members contributed items to be auctioned at the Catkins Ball, sponsored two containers in support of the Keep San Saba Beautiful downtown beautification project and contributed to Mission San Saba.As we all know, the presentation of information is often as important as its content. Our Yearbook (themed Launching the Legacy) took on award-winning charm thanks to the creative design skills of Yearbook Chair Trish Fullerton. Trish and her family came to San Saba in 1960. She later attended the University of Texas at Austin received her Bachelor of Arts in Art. She became an advertising art director with two of the top three advertising firms in Dallas. Trish returned to San Saba in 1980 to work in her family’s business for 17 years, and then moved to California for 11 years before again returning to San Saba to bless our community with her creativity.She has worked for a variety of businesses and other organizations in San Saba including The Great San Saba Pecan Company, Alamosa Wine Cellars, Bagley Pecans, the Economic Development and Tourism Office of the City of San Saba, San Saba Chamber of Commerce and San Saba Olive Oil Company. She has also volunteered her talents for EMS, the First Baptist and First Presbyterian churches, the Pecan Jam and other community organizations including the Garden Club.The members of the Garden Club are grateful for all the support we receive from the community especially the City of San Saba, the Lower Colorado River Authority, the San Saba News and the many others who support our work with time, talent and treasure. We all feel blessed to be a part of the effort to make our county a more beautiful place to live.