July 2024
July’s Commercial Landscape of the Month
July’s Commercial Landscape of the Month went to Casey Granger’s State Farm Insurance Agency Office at 1505 S. Burnside Ave. Landscaping is very well maintained and pleasing to the eye. Conifer and privet hedges are used at different heights, broken up with cone shaped holly trees. Red vinca at the door entrance gives the annual color.
July Residential Yard of the Month
July Residential Yard of the Month belongs to Clay and Wanda Berthelot on Conway Village Ave. They have done a wonderful job making a haven for hummingbird and butterfly watching while sitting on their inviting front porch. Foundation plantings of azaleas, holly, and knockout roses are well placed. A mix of perennials and annuals adds year-round color. They include celosia, peppermint vinca, Gerber daisy, dianella and purple salvia. Pots of pink hibiscus greet you at the front steps.
Jambalaya Park Butterfly Garden
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Mary Jo Pohlig is a gifted gardener who grows mostly pollinator and native plants. Mary Jo and her best friend Barbara McCormick tended to the Jambalaya Park Butterfly Garden for years. On this day in 2021, they installed a sign built by her husband and painted by the River Region Art Association.
Goodbye to Three of Our Best
Barbara Guillot, second from left, was inducted into the Louisiana Garden Club Federation Circle of Roses in 2015 along with Conchita Richey. At left is Then-Club President Priscilla Monson, at right Circle of Roses Chairman Jamie Trisler.
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In 2021 GGC President Jamie Trisler granted Barbara a commemorative pin to acknowledge her 30 years of service to the club.
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Everyone in the garden club had begonia plants grown from cuttings from Miss Lorraine.
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Goodbye to Three of Our Best - Three names will be missing from next year’s Gonzales Garden Club roster: Barbara Guillot, Lorraine Gautreau and Mary Jo Pohlig.
Barbara Guillot was a tireless member of the Gonzales Garden Club for 34 years. This spring, she moved to Lafayette to be near her daughter. She served the club in so many roles: Civic Involvement Chairman, Arbor Day Chairman, Publicity Chairman, Membership Chairman, Recording Secretary, Corresponding Secretary, Parliamentarian, President and Circle of Roses Honoree.
Her membership in other community groups included the Friends of the St. Elizabeth Hospital, Council on Aging, St. Theresa Catholic Church, Gonzales Woman's Club and Girl Scout Leadership. She was married for 62 years and has three daughters, seven grandchildren and a growing number of great-grandchildren.
As reflected by GGC President Jamie Trisler, “Barbara was always encouraging and supporting in every facet. She had a twinkle in her eye and a pleasant disposition.” The garden club, her neighbors, and community members miss seeing Barbara and wish her happiness in her new surroundings.
Sadly, the parish, city and club lost the irreplaceable Lorraine Gautreau. She stopped actively attending club functions in 2020. Miss Lorraine passed away April 13, 2024. She had become an Honorary Gonzales Garden Club Life Member. During her many club officer positions including club president, she filled nine binders with snapshots, news clippings and program brochures of local and statewide garden club events.
Lorraine saw garden clubs evolve from tongue-in-cheek costume/fashion shows and formal floral design classes to PowerPoint presentations and native plant propagation. She hosted 33 of the September club meetings in her home serving jambalaya out of a black iron pot and giving away cuttings of her patio plants. She was the first to welcome new members and the last to end the cleanup chores.
She was a club member for 44 of her 92 years, nearly half her life. She said she joined for the flowers but stayed for the people. Jamie Trisler remarked, “She always had a smile, a funny story to share and garden wisdom to give.” Miss Lorraine was revered as Gonzales Royalty and the Queen of the Gonzales Garden Club.
GGC President 2007-09 Loretta Speligene said, “Lorraine Gautreau and Barbara Guillot have served as backbone members. They were first on the scene whenever and wherever the club needed. These two ladies were some of the best blooms in GGC.”
One of the most inspirational club members moved to Florida in June in time to celebrate the birth of her first grandchild, a healthy baby boy. In Mary Jo’s 12 years of garden club membership, she was enthusiastic about all things in nature. She cheerfully characterized her avid passion for gardening this way, “It’s not an obsession. It’s a gift!” Her specialized interests guided her to join the Burden Horticultural Society, Friends of Hilltop Arboretum at LSU, Sundowner’s African Violet Society, African Violet Society of America, National Audubon Society, Louisiana Ornithological Society and Ascension Master Gardeners.
Over the years, Mary Jo served as Vice President, Corresponding Secretary, Jambalaya Park Chairman, Kidz Kove Discovery Park Co-Chairman, Hospitality Chairman and Yearbook Committee Member. She hosted club meetings at her home with speaking engagements from Baton Rouge Audubon Society President Jane Patterson, Director of Conservation Science Erik Johnson, Society of Louisiana Irises Regional Representative Patrick O’Connor and LSU Professor Emeritus of Horticulture Dr. Allen Owings. She projected the speakers’ presentations onto her den TV. During the pandemic, she kept the club going by producing the monthly meetings via Zoom.
Parliamentarian Barbara McCormick, Mary Jo’s sidekick, expressed, “We will miss her leadership and her enthusiasm. Her knowledge of the butterfly garden will be sorely missed.”
Treasurer Cynthia Cagnolatti said, “I will always remember Mary Jo as our tech girl and her husband Chris, also. She was a fantastic speaker and hard worker who went beyond her job description. She was always very eager to help anyone and very passionate about her interests.”
President Jamie Trisler summed up her sentiments about Mary Jo this way: “Mary Jo has made a positive impact on our club during her membership. She has chaired the Butterfly Garden at Jambalaya Park. Plants that attract butterflies as well as pollinators has been her focus. Recently she focused on adding native plants to the garden. Mary Jo served several terms as Vice President and was an asset in this position. She took on special projects including Zoom meetings during COVID. As President, I appreciate she always offered a listening ear and was a voice of reason.”
Club Vice President Janis Poche commented, “These three ladies all contributed so much to our club in so many different ways, making our club a great civic club for our community and just an awesome club to be a member of. They will be missed.”
Barbara Guillot was a tireless member of the Gonzales Garden Club for 34 years. This spring, she moved to Lafayette to be near her daughter. She served the club in so many roles: Civic Involvement Chairman, Arbor Day Chairman, Publicity Chairman, Membership Chairman, Recording Secretary, Corresponding Secretary, Parliamentarian, President and Circle of Roses Honoree.
Her membership in other community groups included the Friends of the St. Elizabeth Hospital, Council on Aging, St. Theresa Catholic Church, Gonzales Woman's Club and Girl Scout Leadership. She was married for 62 years and has three daughters, seven grandchildren and a growing number of great-grandchildren.
As reflected by GGC President Jamie Trisler, “Barbara was always encouraging and supporting in every facet. She had a twinkle in her eye and a pleasant disposition.” The garden club, her neighbors, and community members miss seeing Barbara and wish her happiness in her new surroundings.
Sadly, the parish, city and club lost the irreplaceable Lorraine Gautreau. She stopped actively attending club functions in 2020. Miss Lorraine passed away April 13, 2024. She had become an Honorary Gonzales Garden Club Life Member. During her many club officer positions including club president, she filled nine binders with snapshots, news clippings and program brochures of local and statewide garden club events.
Lorraine saw garden clubs evolve from tongue-in-cheek costume/fashion shows and formal floral design classes to PowerPoint presentations and native plant propagation. She hosted 33 of the September club meetings in her home serving jambalaya out of a black iron pot and giving away cuttings of her patio plants. She was the first to welcome new members and the last to end the cleanup chores.
She was a club member for 44 of her 92 years, nearly half her life. She said she joined for the flowers but stayed for the people. Jamie Trisler remarked, “She always had a smile, a funny story to share and garden wisdom to give.” Miss Lorraine was revered as Gonzales Royalty and the Queen of the Gonzales Garden Club.
GGC President 2007-09 Loretta Speligene said, “Lorraine Gautreau and Barbara Guillot have served as backbone members. They were first on the scene whenever and wherever the club needed. These two ladies were some of the best blooms in GGC.”
One of the most inspirational club members moved to Florida in June in time to celebrate the birth of her first grandchild, a healthy baby boy. In Mary Jo’s 12 years of garden club membership, she was enthusiastic about all things in nature. She cheerfully characterized her avid passion for gardening this way, “It’s not an obsession. It’s a gift!” Her specialized interests guided her to join the Burden Horticultural Society, Friends of Hilltop Arboretum at LSU, Sundowner’s African Violet Society, African Violet Society of America, National Audubon Society, Louisiana Ornithological Society and Ascension Master Gardeners.
Over the years, Mary Jo served as Vice President, Corresponding Secretary, Jambalaya Park Chairman, Kidz Kove Discovery Park Co-Chairman, Hospitality Chairman and Yearbook Committee Member. She hosted club meetings at her home with speaking engagements from Baton Rouge Audubon Society President Jane Patterson, Director of Conservation Science Erik Johnson, Society of Louisiana Irises Regional Representative Patrick O’Connor and LSU Professor Emeritus of Horticulture Dr. Allen Owings. She projected the speakers’ presentations onto her den TV. During the pandemic, she kept the club going by producing the monthly meetings via Zoom.
Parliamentarian Barbara McCormick, Mary Jo’s sidekick, expressed, “We will miss her leadership and her enthusiasm. Her knowledge of the butterfly garden will be sorely missed.”
Treasurer Cynthia Cagnolatti said, “I will always remember Mary Jo as our tech girl and her husband Chris, also. She was a fantastic speaker and hard worker who went beyond her job description. She was always very eager to help anyone and very passionate about her interests.”
President Jamie Trisler summed up her sentiments about Mary Jo this way: “Mary Jo has made a positive impact on our club during her membership. She has chaired the Butterfly Garden at Jambalaya Park. Plants that attract butterflies as well as pollinators has been her focus. Recently she focused on adding native plants to the garden. Mary Jo served several terms as Vice President and was an asset in this position. She took on special projects including Zoom meetings during COVID. As President, I appreciate she always offered a listening ear and was a voice of reason.”
Club Vice President Janis Poche commented, “These three ladies all contributed so much to our club in so many different ways, making our club a great civic club for our community and just an awesome club to be a member of. They will be missed.”
June 2024
National Garden Week - June 2-8, 2024
Members attending the National Garden Week Ceremony with Mayor Ryland Percy, III (center) are, from left, Flo Hernandez, Marilyn Rice, Dale Bowman, Mayor Percy with proclamation, Elizabeth Saffell, Jamie Trisler, Conchita Richey and Pat Mouton. Photo by Joyce Sigler, APL Marketing Coordinator
National Garden Week is spearheaded by National Garden Clubs, a nonprofit organization that promotes the love of gardening, floral design, and civic and environmental responsibility. According to National Today, the week is about bringing more awareness to the importance of gardening and preserving gardening traditions and practices by passing on knowledge to new gardeners. Most importantly, it is about simply enjoying gardening.
Chairman Janis D’Benedetto arranged for Interim Mayor Ryland Percy, III to sign a proclamation designating June 2nd – 8th as National Garden Week in the city. Incorporated into the occasion was the annual presentation of children’s books to the public library system. The chosen hardbacks, which are recommended by National Garden Clubs, Inc., are My Green is Gone and Network with Nature, both by Brenda Moore.
Members brought floral arrangements and plants to the June 3rd ceremony which they then delivered throughout the community. City Hall, Gonzales Library, Gonzales Police Department, Our Lady of the Lake Hospital, Ascension Health Department, Charlie’s Place, Dutchtown Library, Assessor’s Office and Council on Aging were the entities that received the garden inspirations.
Chairman Janis D’Benedetto arranged for Interim Mayor Ryland Percy, III to sign a proclamation designating June 2nd – 8th as National Garden Week in the city. Incorporated into the occasion was the annual presentation of children’s books to the public library system. The chosen hardbacks, which are recommended by National Garden Clubs, Inc., are My Green is Gone and Network with Nature, both by Brenda Moore.
Members brought floral arrangements and plants to the June 3rd ceremony which they then delivered throughout the community. City Hall, Gonzales Library, Gonzales Police Department, Our Lady of the Lake Hospital, Ascension Health Department, Charlie’s Place, Dutchtown Library, Assessor’s Office and Council on Aging were the entities that received the garden inspirations.
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Accepting donated books presented by GGC President Jamie Trisler (right) are Assistant Library Director Carrie Goodall (left) and Library Director John Stelly (center). Photo by Joyce Sigler, APL Marketing Coordinator |
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May 2024
Year-End Banquet - May 5, 2024
Members gathered under Clarion's pavilion are from left, seated, Flo Hernandez, Razzie Cagnolatti, Rita Bourque, Katherine Stagg (kneeling) and, standing, Zanna Brewer, Conchita Richey, Raakhee Malani, Kathy Guidry, Loretta Ramirez, Dale Bowman, Mabel Savoy, Phyllis Charrier, Marilyn Rice, Paola DiNatale, Janis D’Benedetto, Dana Teepell, Barbara McCormick and Jamie Trisler. (Pat Mouton, not pictured)
A meeting room at the Clarion Convention Center was the setting of the May 5th commencement banquet for award presentations and review of the Gonzales Garden Club’s year. President Jamie Trisler was recognized for 15 years of service with eight years spent serving her current post. Treasurer Razzie Cagnolatti was recognized for 30 years of membership with the majority of her time spent serving in her current position. Phyllis Charrier was celebrated as the newest member; she was given her personalized embroidered tote bag and nametag. Janis Poche, Raakhee Malani and Phyllis Charrier received prizes for winning their divisions at the April Garden Inspiration Exhibit. Perfect attendance certificate recipients were Dale Bowman, Zanna Brewer, Janis D’Benedetto, Kathy Guidry, Flo Hernandez, Raakhee Malani, Barbara McCormick, Marilyn Rice and Dana Teepell. Janis Poche was nominated for installation into the Louisiana Garden Club Federation Circle of Roses and will be honored at a ceremony in October. The garden club’s Live Oak Society Conservation Committee recently qualified seven trees on the Clarion grounds for state registration, noting that one is a centenarian. The club is in the process of sponsoring those trees for registration into Louisiana Garden Club Federation’s Live Oak Society. The list of Ascension Parish registered oaks can be found at https://www.lgcfinc.org/live-oak-society.html .
ABOVE: Receiving Perfect Attendance Awards are, from left, Raakhee Malani, Barbara McCormick, Zanna Brewer, Dana Teepell, Flo Hernandez, Janis D’Benedetto, Kathy Guidry, Dale Bowman and Marilyn Rice.
RIGHT: Newest Member Phyllis Charrier received a personalized tote bag fashioned by Member Ellen Posey. |
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April 2024
Plant Sale - April 19, 2024
Members working the GGC plant sale were, from left, Janis D’Benedetto, Janis Poche, Barbara McCormick, Razzie Cagnolatti, Jamie Trisler, Elizabeth Saffell, Flo Hernandez, Paola DiNatale, Marilyn Rice, Patti Mouton, Dale Bowman, Gwen Heck, Conchita Richey, Dana Teepell, Zanna Brewer, Raakhee Malani, Phyllis Charrier, Kathy Guidry, and Jade Thibodeaux.
GGC Ways and Means Co-Chair Janis Poche has been involved in the club’s annual plant sale for the 17 years she’s been a member. In her highly organized fashion, Janis’ guidelines delegated assignments for sign installment, table setup, plant placement, garden items section, raffle ticket station, baked goods table, cashier counter, customer assistance and noon clean up. It all came together in the parking lot of City Hall on April 19 for the club’s keystone fundraiser.
The arrival time for lead workers was 7am. Janis and Harlan, Flo Hernandez and Rodney, and Marilyn Rice and Curt teamed up to unload their trucks and trailers. Members arrived thereafter with more plants, resale items and baked goods. Before the 9am start time, a few eager customers had arrived to scope out the best bargains.
This plant/bake sale turned out to be the most successful in the club’s history. Janis’ propensity for planning inventory, involving members and following through until the last item sold was key to the bottom line. Members took in feedback for possible changes for improving next year’s prospect. The club is grateful to the public for their loyal support and generosity.
The arrival time for lead workers was 7am. Janis and Harlan, Flo Hernandez and Rodney, and Marilyn Rice and Curt teamed up to unload their trucks and trailers. Members arrived thereafter with more plants, resale items and baked goods. Before the 9am start time, a few eager customers had arrived to scope out the best bargains.
This plant/bake sale turned out to be the most successful in the club’s history. Janis’ propensity for planning inventory, involving members and following through until the last item sold was key to the bottom line. Members took in feedback for possible changes for improving next year’s prospect. The club is grateful to the public for their loyal support and generosity.
This Mexican hand-painted ceramic wall hanging was won by Sherri Rachal in the plant sale raffle.
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