What a beautiful day! What a special event! What a tremendous community!
THANK YOU! The Secrest Garden Fair on June 13th was a huge success. The weather was perfect, and it was wonderful to see so many smiling faces filling the grounds.
A Community Effort—A special thank you goes out to the 40 volunteers who made this event possible. As the saying goes, “It takes a village,” and we truly could not do it
without your hard work. We also owe immense gratitude to our committee members, who spent countless hours planning and ensuring every detail was perfect. This team was simply awesome!
Record-Breaking Plant & Shed Sale—The plant sale thrived this year under the guidance of a talented committee: Lori Everett, Sue Cook, Karen Edgington, and Susan Sivey. Between local growers and some plant donations from our Secrest gardening community, we offered 1028 plants for sale—a huge increase from last year! Attendees scored big with a wide variety of perennials, herbs, shrubs, and beautifully arranged planters designed by the committee.
Our new “Shed Sale” was also an incredible hit! Melissa Dundr coordinated donations from our Master Gardener and Friends of Secrest communities to gather a fantastic mix of pots, tools, baskets, and books. The gates opened to high excitement, and we were thrilled by how quickly these treasures found new homes.
Talented Artisans & Local Vendors—We are incredibly grateful to the talented artisans who shared their crafts with our community. Our attendees always look forward to seeing both familiar faces and new creators.
Merry Gentry did a wonderful job making our vendors feel welcome. We have already sent out a vendor survey to help us expand our marketplace next year. One vendor shared, “We are very pleased with how the show is organized. The staff is so helpful and friendly.”
Fun for the Whole Family—The kid’s craft station was a hit! We welcomed crowds of young creators making paper birds, bird nests, and hummingbird banners. The activities were so popular that we ran out of all 162 craft kits by 1:30 PM. We are already planning to expand our youth activities for next season. Of course, the day offered even more to explore—including delicious food trucks, informative workshops, and guided tours of the beautiful Secrest Arboretum. Thank you to everyone who attended, volunteered, and supported this spectacular day!
--Karen Lesiecki, Master Gardener Volunteer