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Algonquin Garden Club celebrates 90 years

The Algonquin Garden Club celebrated its 90th anniversary with a luncheon June 18 at Boulder Ridge Country Club in Lake in the Hills.

John Regan from Twisted Stem, an independent, family-owned floral boutique in Crystal Lake, gave a wonderful presentation on creating floral arrangements.

The 90 years of service given by the Algonquin Garden Club to the community has proved to be a rewarding and notable addition to Algonquin history.

The club would like to take this opportunity to thank the community for their support of its spring plant sale. It was a great success and has allowed the club to continue its work to beautify the Algonquin Honor Gardens in town, as well as support future students with an interest in horticulture.

This spring, club members went out to make sure that the River Memorial Gardens were looking good and that they would honor the nation's fallen heroes who are represented in these gardens. It is a labor of love and each club member is grateful for the opportunity to care for these spots and to remember these American heroes.

This spring, the club also gave scholarships to local students who are pursuing degrees in the natural sciences and education fields. These students embrace endeavors that will ensure a truly green future for Algonquin and the communities they serve.

Ashley Stennett is the Dianne Connelly Memorial Scholarship recipient. She has had a love of science for many years and pursued this interest at Jacobs High School by taking AP Biology and AP Environmental Science. She is now attending the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, a school she chose because of their highly respected environmental science program. Her concern is for the quality of the air and CO2 emissions. Plant life is crucial to the improvement of air quality and a key in continuing to face challenges within our environment! With her passion and drive to improve our environment, there will be quality improvements in the future!

Erin Hajek received the Algonquin Garden Club Memorial Scholarship. She is concerned with the environment and the future. Erin is inspired by former President Theodore Roosevelt and would like to ensure the integrity of the National Parks. Her passion for a healthy and rich future that is rooted in the parks, is motivating her to become an expert in environmental sciences and to use political avenues to educate Americans and influence us all to care for our earthly gifts. Boise State University, in that same western area that inspired Teddy, will be the place that she will use to begin this journey!

The third recipient of the Algonquin Club Memorial Scholarship is Abigail DeDina. The sophomore at University of Wisconsin, River Falls Campus is studying agriculture education and is planning to work at a high school after graduation, to build or continue an FFA program. She has been a member of the Hampshire Jr. Farmers 4-H Club since she was 8 years old and raised rabbits and chickens to show at the county fair each year. This will be her last showing, so be sure to stop by at the Kane County Fair and stop by her area. Her passion is agriculture and she plans to share and cultivate this passion in the next generation! She feels the FFA, or National FFA Organization, is the way to go and her hope is to develop a program for her home school, Hampshire High. No matter where she ends up, though, the students in her path will be well-informed about the importance of the nation's agricultural future!

To learn more about the Algonquin Garden Club, visit algonquingardenclub.org or follow the club on Facebook.

Thank you from the Algonquin Garden Club to all of Algonquin for the energy that makes this a great place to call home!

Centerpieces created by Algonquin Garden Club members went home with some lucky winners at the club's 90th anniversary luncheon. Courtesy of Algonquin Garden Club
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