The online expense reimbursement form has been updated to allow you to attach your receipts as photos (either JPGs or PNGs) as a PDF, or as a document such as Word. The submitted form and its attachments goes directly to Bob Chapman.

... is what comes to mind when you walk up the winding driveway, so wear your sturdy shoes. Meredith is our sister member who invites us to her Heaven. Her design and hands-on touch is everywhere you look, and this is the season that sings “Oh My Lloyd”. Open Garden of Meredith Bergmann 3:00 to 5:00, Friday Oct. 28, 2022 Click here for address Marilyn Zaret

Garden Therapy members brightened a rainy morning at The Cliffs at Eagle Rock this morning, leading residents through the the creation of some excellent petite designs. See some photos below.

See below for winners in each class. Click on each photo to see larger. For photos of other exhibits on SmugMug, click here. Class 1: Traditional Mass Design (Provisionals only) Karen Fricke Class 2: Freedom of Style (all except provisionals) Ist Place: Michele Tomasik (shown here) 2nd Place with 90+: Tova Narrett 3rd Place: Virginia Woo Honorable Mention: Wendy Stahl Honorable Mention: Carol Callahan Class 3: A Grouped Mass Design (all except provisionals) 1st Place: Fran Ackerly (shown here) Fran also received the Kay Maclane Van Deusen Rose Award 2nd Place with 90+: Susan Brady 3rd place with 90+:Cynthia Corhan-Aitken Honorable Mention with 90+: Floss O'Sullivan Honorable Mention: Cheryl Slutzky Honorable Mention: Suzy Straten Class 4: Botanical Design - Decorated Wreath (open to all) 1st Place: Carol Callahan (shown here) 2nd place with 90+: Floss O'Sullivan 3rd place: Marie Donnelly Provisional entry - Karen Fricke And of course the beautiful dahlias on the Tea Table - Maureen Sprong

From 2-5 tomorrow -- before the rain -- don't miss the dahlias as well as everything else in Maureen Sprong's beautiful open garden. Click here for her address.

The proposed planting at First Congregational Church planned for November 6 and 7 has been postponed. We will let you know when it has been rescheduled.

The grounds of the First Congregational Church in Montclair were designed by the Olmsted Firm in early 1900s but there is no evidence that the design had ever been implemented. Last fall the plans and plant list were found, and with help from a landscape architect, and a funder, the planting is ready to begin on Nov 5 and 6. While the garden is on church grounds, they intend it to be a community space and want the community involved right from the beginning. The Church is seeking anyone who is willing to help plant. The ground will be prepared by the professional landscaping team. They need people (with their own tools) to actually dig and plant. If you are interested, sign up for a two-hour shift by clicking here.

And what a roaring success it was. Marc Hachadourian, senior Curator of the New York Botanical Garden Orchid Collection and Director of Glasshouse Horticulture at the Garden, told the jammed room at Union Congregational Church everything we wanted to know about orchids. He paced around the room with an upside-down orchid peeling off old moss while answering dozens of questions at the same time. The many entries in Flower Design, Botanical Arts, and Horticulture were judged by NJC accredited judges Gail Bassolino and Teddie Falcone (see photos and results very soon). After the lecture, members repaired to a sumptuous tea table, laden with contributions from the Hospitality committee, including Gretchen Prater's delicious and impossible rose cakes and graced with Maureen Sprong's glorious dahlias.

This year a number of members planted a “Miss Muffet” caladium bulb in the spring to be judged in the fall. Tomorrow we will see some success stories, but the sad emails, below, show why we need a Club where we can share our sorrows and get good advice. "After a slow start, my Miss Muffet looked bright and lush in September, now it is almost past due and lost its luster. Definitely not competition worthy." MT "My little Miss Muffet fell off her tuffet And couldn’t eat curds and whey The cold and the rain Just caused so much pain She had no nice leaves to display! "I’ll nurse her and warm her Thru winter and spring And maybe just maybe Next year she will sing!!" BB "Miss Muffet and I had a lovely relationship through the summer and she was so kind about my inability to influence the weather, tolerating and appreciating what I could do for her. But she got tired of looking gorgeous and has decided to get ready for a vacation and wait for another day. So disappointed!" FW "Not a good outcome for my Miss Muffet." KW "Same story. It was a beautiful summer and a swift fall to oblivion last week." DH "Me too! It went from struggling to perky to very dead." SY "She was so pretty this summer and brought me joy but the the cold snap did her in but for four leaves. Poor Miss Muffet!" MS "As unlikely a story as it might be, mine, after a good summer in CT, came home to Montclair and was eaten by the dog!" SS "We all tried!" CC

Betty Harris Lamborn August 2, 1935 - September 17, 2022 Betty H. Lamborn passed away September 17, 2022. A longtime resident of Essex Fells and Montclair, she left a legacy of benevolence, philanthropy, loyalty, and kindness. Born in Wheeling, West Virginia in 1935 to Betty Bloch and Wilmot L. Harris,she was called “Bubbles” by her father. Happy, fair, quietly competitive, and very observant, she lived a grand life, one that she cut out for herself, quietly. She attended The Holton Arms School and Briarcliff College. By 1957 she moved to New York City and earned the job of Assistant to the CEO of I. Miller shoes, headquartered in the Empire State Building, on the 82nd floor. Two things about this job changed her life. First, by accounts, she was the first female Director of Marketing and Public Relations of a major corporation in New York. Second, she was petrified of heights. Around this time, she met George Lamborn through their best friends, and the group hit the clubs and made their rounds. After marrying in 1959 they moved to Essex Fells, where they made their home and raised two daughters. Betty’s active community life began. A member of Montclair Golf Club since 1959, she took it upon herself to organize and “host” The Fourth of July festivities and other special events for many years. She also joined the Junior League of Montclair-Newark and began a storied career. First, she organized a grocery run project with members to drive with their children into downtown Newark during the riots and supervise the children as they delivered grocery bags of food to the local children. Next, Betty suggested a cookbook as a fundraiser. Entirely Entertaining, edited by Betty, Joan Crowther, and Patsy Coward, became the number one selling Junior League cookbook in the country at that time. Its first printing was in 1968, and it was printed into the 1980s. In 1974 she and Joan edited and published Fifteen Affairs to benefit the Essex Fells PTA. In 1991 she joined The Garden Club of Montclair. Awarded Emeritus Status in 2019, she served on the Board of Trustees as well as on many committees until 2016 when her illness intervened. For 25 years she gave generously of her talents as a cook, hostess, connoisseur of food, and cookbook writer. She had a natural flair for creating ingenious ideas for events to raise money for the benefit of the Club and the community. It was a love and passion of hers to create events that were fun, memorable and profitable... and of course beautiful. Among her events, Ways and Means contributions, and much more, she edited a third cookbook for The Garden Club, Whisk Right In. Her daughters, Elizabeth (Lisa) Lamborn Adams and Shelly L. Lamborn survive her, as do her siblings, Mike, Jessie, and Randy Harris, as well as many, many nieces, and nephews. She is also survived by Dora Casas, her 55 year-long confidant, aide, and dear friend, and by Mitzi Benoit, her adored companion and nurse. She loved her life-long friends from all over the world. May we all share her grace and compassion for others. She is hosting her last luncheon at The Montclair Golf Club on October 27, at 11 a.m. Garden Club friends who wish to celebrate Betty’s life are welcome to attend. Please RSVP to Lisa by October 20, text or cellphone (404) 556-1914. Condolences may be sent to Lisa at 256 Harding Place, Belle Meade, TN 37205. In lieu of flowers please consider donations to The Garden Club of Montclair.

Provisionals and novices attended Flower Design 101, run by Fran Ackerly and Barbara Baletti. As you can see, it was well-attended. Fran demoed two traditional American designs, and she and Barbara reviewed all design basics with a “What’s in My GC Toolbox?” display and discussion. Susan Benner was on hand with boutique items to show and sell. Need a refresher prior to GCM's monthly competitions? We have online videos for flower design styles and pointers for exhibiting horticulture from Florence Leyssène and Debbie Moran, NGC accredited Master Flower Show Judges. Click here to access the videos (which do require you to log in to the website. Questions about how to log in? Ask Sue Young.)

Our fellow member, Debbie Fitzpatrick, is suddenly in need of driving assistance to get her to and from Robert Woods Johnson Hospital in New Brunswick where her husband is very sick. We have set up a sign-in sheet, and hope that some of you will be able to volunteer for either the morning or the evening drive. Please contact Sarah Stransky for details.

The Flower Design Committee is eagerly awaiting the Design Competition on Monday, October 17. The design schedule has an exciting new look! There are Flower Design and Botanical Arts Design divisions and a choice of design class to enter. There is a limit of six (6) entries per class. Please email Fran Ackerly no later than Wednesday, October 12 to register your design and receive an entry number. Designs may be eligible for the Kay Maclane VanDeusen Rose Award, see Yearbook pg.31. Designs may be dropped off Monday, October 17 at Union Congregational Church, Cooper Ave., Montclair between 8am – 9am. They must be picked up by 3:30pm that day. Enter through the doors on the porch. Parking is on the street only. You may not enter the driveway. If you have any questions do not hesitate to contact us. Fran Ackerly and Barbara Baletti, Flower Design Chairs

Log on to the Flower Show Award Winners, to see who won, and photos of their sophisticated and beautiful entries. This photo shows Tova Narrett's creation, blue ribbon winner of Class 6 as well as winner of Designer's Choice Award and the Barbara Slockbower Schaeberle Award. Congratulations to all our talented Members. And congratulations also to the photographers who documented this massive event. We'll soon put up many more less formal pictures of the show, but first Floss O'Sullivan — who coordinated this web page — needs to provide a formal document, the Book of Evidence, to the National Garden Club.

National Garden Club judge Heidi Muschick — member of our Club — led a large group of provisions and novices through the arcane world of horticulture exhibits at Avis and 60 South Fullerton yesterday evening. Said one attendee: "Every single thing she said was new to me." Expect a large number of exhibits on October 17!

The Avis crew and many other friends of Claire Stepleton gathered at Avis this morning to raise their cups and scones to bid farewell to one of the most loved and hard-working members of our Club. We will miss you so much, Claire, for all your different contributions, from serving as a bed captain to your writing skills and your glorious, nationally recognized photographs. We wish you the best of luck in everything you are planning to do, and hope you will never forget us because we will never forget you. Photos by Barbara Baletti

The Flower Design Committee is trying a new design schedule format for this year. See this website or the Yearbook for full schedule details. Except for the Provisional class, designs will no longer be grouped by the designers’ levels. Much like a formal Flower Show, there will now be four different design classes. The Flower Design Division will have three classes. One class is limited to Provisionals only and will be critiqued not judged. The other two classes will be open to Novice, Intermediate, Advanced, and Advanced Plus designers and will be judged. There will be a limit of six entries per class. The Botanical Arts Division will have one class, either Botanical Arts Design or Botanical Arts Artistic Craft. This class will be open to all design levels and it will be judged. There is a limit of six entries. This new format gives designers a choice of design type and style each month. It also gives designers more opportunity to try designs that previously were not open to them. Most of all, have fun designing!

Sign up for the first Horticulture workshop of the year with Heidi Muschick, an NGC Accredited Flower Show Judge. Learn how to choose and groom plants for competition and see how to stage specimens for best presentation. Weather permitting, Heidi will demonstrate plant selection in Avis Campbell Gardens Wednesday, September 28th 5:30 – 7:00pm and in the Club Room. (Note that this is an evening class.) Discussion of sections, classes and botanical nomenclature in the Horticulture division will be included.

A Masterpiece was Arts & Flowers Our thanks to all who spent long hours Writing the schedule, finding the theme, Using Victoria’s portrait meme, Enlisting designers whose own creations Far exceeded our expectations, Consultants to keep our designers informed And Chairs to insure that arrangements conform Soliciting judges, training our clerks All making sure that everything works Staging and signage was done with aplomb Informing the visitors soon to come The Docents came from far and wide They monitored, guarded, their rooms with pride Greeters with smiles did welcome our guests (How easy to see that they were impressed.) Showcasing Photography, Avis, and Trees Our teams were masters and put us at ease Banners, media, and website tech Brought hundreds into the Van Vleck A Judge’s Luncheon surpassed expectations (They marveled at Janet’s preparations) On Saturday night we toasted our show Hors d’oeuvres, were passed, wine did flow. It took a village to make this show shine You all made it happen, it was sublime! Barbara and Cynthia Show Co-Chairs

Garden Therapy will be resuming its floral delivery program for the nurses at Mountainside Hospital beginning with delivery for October 3. This is a fun project for designers to practice their designing skills working either by themselves or with a few others. The nurses loved these last year. Who doesn't have their spirits lifted when they look at a bouquet of fresh flowers? Garden Therapy covers a $25 budget for the flowers. Once you sign up, additional details will be provided. Any questions, please contact Sarah Olson or Susan Dumont. Click this link to add your name to a month!