Committees
Special Committees
HOLIDAY MARKET AND LUNCHEON- BENEFIT FOR SCHOLARSHIP AND COMMUNITY PROJECTS
Our Holiday Market and Luncheon formerly known as our “Benefit” is our largest fundraiser and is always held the Monday after Thanksgiving at the Penn Harris Hotel and Convention Center Trademark Collection by Wyndham in Camp Hill. This event features holiday shopping, luncheon, raffles and always a wonderful luncheon which is followed by an informative and entertaining program, generally a floral designer.
The proceeds from the Holiday Market and Luncheon are used for community landscaping and beautification projects, area horticulture student scholarships, horticulture therapy work, and the purchase of garden-and floral design related books for local libraries.
To ensure a successful Holiday Market and Luncheon and to support volunteers, a booklet of Chairman duties was published.
Some of the ways Members can participate in the luncheon are by purchasing a ticket and attending and bringing a friend, by donating greens, silent auction items, ways and means sales items, and by purchasing raffle tickets.
We will be accepting new or slightly used items in good clean condition with no blemishes for our Holiday Market at our October meeting. After that date you may bring them to a member’s home which will be announced in advance. Each year our Holiday Market Luncheon has a wide variety of lovely, classy items for ways and means to sell. This is a popular feature of the Holiday Luncheon Market. We also accept items for the new and popular Christmas Corner – decorations, lights, wrapping paper and other holiday themed items. Additionally, the silent auction accepts higher end donation.
HERB TEA
The Annual Bertha P. Reppert Herb Tea will be held at the May regular meeting. Over Fifty-five years ago, Bertha Reppert organized an Herb Tea held every spring. Bertha was PCGC’s president from 1965 to 1967, founder of the Rosemary House and author of several books on herbs
The Herb Tea Committee selects dishes with herbs and presents recipes to members at the January and February meetings. Members volunteer to prepare the food, which is served buffet style. Table centerpieces are created by the Floral Designers Guild. Pre-registration is requested. Guests are welcome for a donation of $10.00
Each year the Annual Herb Tea Party has a different theme.
PLANT SALE – SPRING
The annual spring plant sale supports the community by providing low cost plants and gardening items, along with gardening advice. Monies collected support civic beautification, as well as Natural Disaster USA and Global Partners Running Water. Natural Disaster USA funds helps replant, restore and beautify public areas that have been damaged or destroyed by a natural disaster. Global Partners Running Water helps bring safe drinking water to villages in Latin America.
All member are urged to support our plant sale by providing plants, bulbs and seeds; garden items; and baked goods.
Standing Committees
BIRDS, BEES, AND BUTTERFLIES
This committee seeks to learn about responsible stewardship with a focus on birds, bees, and butterflies. Trip events are planned each year to which all PCGC members and guests are welcome. All members contribute cancelled commemorative postage stamps to benefit The Florida Audubon Center for Birds of Prey to help offset their costs for care and rehabilitation of injured raptors. Please mark your calendars for upcoming trips.
CIVIC BEAUTIFICATION
The Civic Beautification Committee carries out landscape and container projects in five of our communities (Camp Hill, Enola, Lemoyne, Mechanicsburg, and New Cumberland).
The projects include 8 landscapes and 48 containers. The sites include a Community Park, Community Garden, Charitable Organization, Church, City Welcome Sign, Historic Site, Library, Municipal Building, Museum, Post Office, Veterans’ Memorial, and City Street Containers.
Plus, the Committee purchases and plants trees that pay tribute to outgoing club Presidents.
CONSERVATION/ EXPERIENCE AMERICA BEAUTIFUL
We support natural resource protection, clean air, pure water and fertile soil. We promote toxic-free landscapes and work to improve and enhance life support systems for wildlife and people.
We celebrate Pennsylvania Bird Day on March 21, Earth Day on April 22, Arbor Day on April 27 and World Environment Day on June 5. Contact chairman to register your Wildlife or Pollinator Habitat.
Join us for special conservation discovery meetings. Guest speakers are often invited to discuss current issues regarding the environment. Bring your curiosity and your beverage mug. We meet at the Community Room in the Camp Hill Giant, hospitality at 9:15 AM, discussions from 9:30-11:30 AM. All members and guests are welcomed. See monthly meeting information for specific dates.
Promoting the safe disposal of Pharmaceuticals – call your municipality; useable household items to Mission Central or New Digs (620-9735 or 766-1533); unusable items to Claremont Barn.
They promote less lawn more garden without invasive plants, the use of personal beverage containers instead of plastic bottles; natural organic pest control instead of toxic lawn treatments nor systemic herbicides and pesticides; buying items from reused materials and creating a wildlife habitat.
FLORAL DESIGNERS GUILD
The Floral Designers Guild is members interested in learning how to arrange flowers according to the ‘Principles and Elements of Design’ as explained in the NGC Handbook for Flower Shows. Join us as we learn how to create arrangements and designs using a variety of garden flowers, purchased flowers, greens and other plant material. Beginners as well as advanced designers are welcome. The Guild provides centerpieces and designs for special club events, area business and with flowers donated by area grocery stores to Homeland Hospice patients.
The Floral Designers Guild meets for workshops at 10:30 AM on the last Monday of the month. Please bring a container, pruners and plant material to each workshop to make an arrangement. An arrangement of the month, created by anyone, will be placed on the white pedestal at the regular meeting. Design of the month is created by a member of the Floral Designers Guild and placed in the rear of the room.
PCGC has an account with a wholesale floral supplier: Zieger & Sons Inc., 2300 Woodlawn St, Harrisburg, PA 17104, (800) 245-2175.. Zieger’s has lower prices and a huge variety. Specific flowers can be ordered at least three weeks in advance. At checkout you tell them the account is for Penn-Cumberland Garden Club.
GRANTS
HORTICULTURE
Horticulture is the science and art of cultivating plants. Horticulture Committee meetings include work study sessions that focus on specific plants. (Workshops and demonstrations may be included.) Plus, members contribute to the Plant of the Month, Horticultural Hint, and mini-flower shows at membership meetings. We tour gardens of club members and the community, and have other garden and nature related tours. Our participation in the Horticultural Division of flower shows encourages members to exhibit their plants and visit the flower show. All members are offered formal horticultural training by attending NGC Flower Show Schools and Gardening Study Schools.
HOSPITALITY
This committee is responsible for the lunch provided at regular meetings. Each PCGC member is asked to provide reusable place settings, napkins and cutlery for themselves and their guests at meetings, except for Herb Tea. Please avoid using paper products. Since the kitchen will not be available for washing dishes, members are asked to bring something to take their used dirty dishes home. The hospitality committee assists in the set-up and cleanup for every meeting. They are responsible for monitoring the food service at each meeting.
The September and June meetings are covered dish luncheons. Members are asked to bring 10-12 servings of food to share. Put your name on each serving piece.
During other months each PCGC member (except Associates) is assigned to provide sandwiches (or soup in January, February or March), salad or dessert for at least 30 (other suggestions welcome), with two 4” x 6” cards listing the ingredients. All food must be cut into serving sizes (tea-sized) and placed in two serving dishes. Refrigeration is available. Hot food should be brought in a crockpot or an insulated container.
Please see the monthly meeting pages of the yearbook for your name. If you are unable to serve, find a replacement and notify Sandy Green, 717-421-6053 or e-mail: sandy.green133@gmail.com). Members of the monthly hospitality committee should be in the kitchen by 9:30 AM and will either set up or clean up after the luncheon.
LIBRARY LIASON
Book selections for the past year were made by the three libraries in our area that we support. Checks are delivered in person to each library. All books have book plates indicating that PCGC donated the books. Often we donate books in memory of members who have passed away. Libraries receiving books are Cleve J. Fredricksen Library, New Cumberland Library, and Joseph Simpson Library. The Library Liaison also coordinates gardening programing and displays in the showcases for Penn-Cumberland Garden Club.
MEMBERSHIP
Membership maintains a current list of members and accepts applications for new members. At regular meetings, membership keeps the attendance list, distributes nametags, welcomes guests and collects fees for guests. The membership chairman is in charge of the greeters and shall instruct greeters in being helpful and welcoming. When a new member joins, she will be given a Yearbook, a coffee mug (as long as they are in inventory) and a membership pin. Membership pins are purchased from T.D. Mills Promotional Products, 1020 Cocoa Ave., Hershey, PA 17033. A membership tea will be held to inform new members about PCGC.
NEWSLETTER
Our newsletter is “The Flower Press”. The newsletter editor compiles, edits and distributes a newsletter for September/October, November/December, January/February, March/April and May/June. Committee chairmen are responsible for submitting articles and event dates by the newsletter deadline. Members with email receive a PDF color copy; others receive a black and white printed copy. The newsletter can also be found on our Website. Newsletter deadlines: February 1, April 1, August 15, October 1, and December 1.
PROPERTIES
The club rents a storage unit at Life Storage outside Mechanicsburg. Items owned by the club are stored in this unit. It is the responsibility of the properties chairman to maintain a current inventory of the club’s physical properties. Most items in the storage unit are stored by and for the use of specific committees. If members need to use items in the unit, they should contact the chair, assistant or keyholders identified in the PCGC Yearbook. Members that have a key may transport items when needed. Any club other than a federated club that requests the use of property from PCGC may be asked for a donation. Items in storage that are available to members include:
- Hospitality: Tablecloths, trays, plates, silver tea service, coffee and tea urns
- Pressers: Clear boxes of project supplies
- Holiday Market: Signs, table easels, cash boxes, ticket envelopes, gold raffle boxes, PCGC banner, sign holders, wooden stands, tall columns,
- Flower Show: Totes, clear plastic risers, bottles, Book of Evidence, bed trays and documents
- Plant Sale/Garden Tour: Five tent canopies, 4 card tables, 4 long tables, collapsible wagon and pink aprons.
- Ways and Means: Raffle tickets.
PRESSED FLOWER DESIGNERS
The “Pressers” are members interested in learning the Art of Pressed Flower Design. Collecting, pressing, storing, and design are taught in our monthly workshops. All items created in workshops are sold and the revenue is included in the club’s budget as income.. Plus, there are opportunities to create educational exhibits and participate in flower show competitions.
Workshops are the first Monday of the month (except for Monday holidays, then we meet on Tuesdays) 9:00 AM-Noon, at the Giant Community Room, Camp Hill, PA. No experience required. We always have extra pressed flowers and materials, or you are welcome to come and just observe. There is a nominal fee for guests who are not members of Penn-Cumberland Garden Club
PROGRAM
Continuing in our efforts to serve our communities through education, beautification and improvement of our environment, we present a well-balanced schedule of programs at regular meetings, representing the objectives of PCGC, GCFP and NGC. The Program committee shall schedule members Sharing Your Passion displays for each month.
SCHOLARSHIP
PCGC scholarships support local students in studies in Horticulture, Floriculture, Agriculture, Landscape Architecture, Environmental Sciences, Conservation, Urban or Regional Planning, Forestry, Botany, or allied plant or ecology related studies.
Also, PCGC members passing courses offered by GCFP and NGC may apply for partial reimbursement. Scholarships are funded by the Scholarship and Community Projects Benefit.
WAYS AND MEANS
Sponsors fund-raising activities, sells merchandise and conducts monthly raffles to provide income
- A Holiday Market Benefit and Luncheon is held annually. Speaker is acquired, money is raised through ticket sales, vendor booth fees, bake sale and white elephant sales. Items acquired from donations of members, businesses are raffled off. Floral designs are awarded as door prizes.
- Restaurant fundraisers are planned to raise funds and as a get-together.
- Plant sale offering plants from members’ gardens and donations from commercial nurseries. Garden-theme items and bake sale goods are sold.
- Members donate to Terracyle recycling not only to keep items out of the landfill, but to raise funds.
- The Pressed Flower Designers sell their wares at regular club meetings, district meetings and other venues.
YOUTH ACTIVITIES
Our youth gardening programs involve after school programming, summer gardening classes for students at local libraries, and assisting Brownies and Girl Scouts with environmental badges or gardening badges and working with Eagle Scouts as needed. Members of this committee are required to obtain PA child abuse clearance for volunteers. The clearance PA Child Abuse History Clearance and PA State Police (PATCH) Criminal Background Check are easily acquired online and free of charge.
