The San Saba Garden Club will begin their 86TH YEAR of meetings soon with a gathering of interested folks coming to the historic San Saba Garden Club building in Mill Pond Park on Tuesday, September 6th, at 2 p.m.
An overview of the year’s programs, tours, and parties will be given, and snacks and fellowship will be overflowing! We would love to have you come join us and see what San Saba Garden Club is all about! Note this: our San Saba Garden Club Creed: 'I believe in my community, I believe in her people, boys and girls, I will endeavor to make this a more beautiful place in which to live.
I believe in trees and grass instead of ash heaps and tin cans.
Flowers instead of weeds!' The yearbook committee has planned some exciting programs for our monthly, first Tuesday meetings. Our club theme, again this year, is 'Plant America ...Enjoy the Journey!' At meetings, we will hear from accomplished speakers, nature craft instructors, go on tours to surrounding notable garden areas, enjoy learning of our own hometown history, and finding new ways to improve our environment.
These are some things we enjoyed doing last year: San Saba Garden Club hosted a Fall Decorating Contest for residential yards and commercial store fronts. Our community responded favorably and 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners were chosen by committees of Garden Club members. Some members baked pies, breads, and candies appropriate for the season to give as prizes.
Messy, but fun…our historic building was the place to make a garden stepping stone last October. Some beauties were crafted!
Members enjoyed a “nearly local” tour of Fiesta Winery in November on a brisk fall day to enjoy the finely groomed rolling vineyards, taste the aged fruits of the vines, and strolling through the “gardens of the world” themed landscape of the historic Baxter family home.
San Saba Garden Club members and their guests began a glorious Christmas holiday season with a “barn party” delighting in the lights, music, refreshments, and cheer on a cool fall evening in December. The following week, Garden Club members hosted a Christmas Carols Sing-a-long at the local San Saba Rehab and Nursing Facility and provided hot chocolate and goodies for the residents and staff there. Gifts for residents were also given for their annual Christmas Party.
San Saba Garden Club celebrated the club’s birthday in January honoring those courageous ladies who barely saved the mill structure’s demise from the crashing wrecking ball many years ago. This year’s delightful presentation was given by Parks Department employee, Wayne Yarborough, who displayed rarely seen photos of pens of sheep that were being sheared and wool being sacked for transport to the railway station across town. The pond outside our current clubhouse was used for a watering source for animals in that time frame of history.
Sherie Clarkson, our own San Saba Garden Club member who travels the farthest distance from Mason, Texas, for Club meetings, shared her expertise and gave suggestions on using your own harvested garden herbs to prepare delicious dishes in her program presentation in February.
Our March meeting was a treat when Beth Erwin, horticulturist and Texas Garden Club’s District V Assistant Director, presented the program, “Responsible Weed Control.” The District V Director of Texas Garden Clubs, Janice King, was also in attendance. At the District V Texas Garden Club spring meeting in Liberty Hill, SSGC received $100 for an increase of 16 new members in the last year! SSGC received 1st Place for Kids Nature Kamp event, “Youth Environmental Education Award.” SSGC received 1st Place for “Community Concern Award” due to our events and Christmas gifts at the local San Saba Rehab and Nursing Facility. SSGC received 2nd Place for our Club Yearbook. SSGC received 3rd Place for our President’s Report.
In April, our “Tour of Homes Committee” led us to the rural gardens and residences of two Club members who live across the Colorado River bridge in neighboring Lampasas County.
The following week, Garden Club members dug in the dirt, added good soil and numerous plants to the Keyhole Garden at the local San Saba Rehab and Nursing Facility backyard. Perennials and annuals were planted to provide a beautiful outdoor display of nature for the residents and staff there. Ongoing maintenance of the garden is sponsored by the Garden Club’s Therapy Committee.
Twelve ladies gathered early in May to travel and tour the beautiful Chandor Gardens in Weatherford, Texas. The weather surprised us by changing from 73 degrees when we left home to being in the 50s all day in Weatherford, north of us. The famous gardens are noted for capturing both the ornate design of ancient Chinese architecture and the elegance of a formal English Garden.
At May’s high school graduations, two deserving San Saba County High School Seniors were awarded $500 scholarships by the club. We have a memorial fund to specifically fund this endeavor.
May was a celebratory month for our club! I’m not sure that it has ever happened that SS Garden Club won a first place award at the South Central Region National Garden Clubs, but this past year, we did!! That covers New Mexico, Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Texas! We won for our “Kids’ Nature Kamp” that we brought back last summer following a forced Covid break. Our Nature Kamps have been outstanding each year, and gladly, we carried on again this last June, the 7th annual Kamp, with children ages six to 10 learning about our area nature, it’s history, taking care of nature and our resources, and appreciating it all! This all happens at our historic Garden Club building and it’s wonderful surrounding parks. And it rained some two of those days!
During our summer break, we celebrated on July 2, remembering Independence Day by enjoying our green space at the San Saba Garden Club Building, eating and fellowshipping with spouses and friends while participating in the Mill Pond Park happenings with vendors, music, games, and watching the festive fireworks display at dark.
Thanks to all you San Saba Garden Club members for making this such a GREAT Garden Club year! Together we can accomplish so much and have fun doing it!
So if these activities seem enjoyable to you, we hope you'll join us on September 6th for some fellowship and refreshments and learn of the plans for the new year of San Saba Garden Club!