‘GATEWAY TO WICKFORD’ DRAWS NATIONAL ATTENTION
Plum Beach Garden Club Recognized for Civic Beautification Efforts
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NORTH KINGSTOWN, RI – June 13, 2014 – Plum Beach Garden Club (PBGC) has received national recognition for its 2013 renovation of one of the three Blue Star Memorial By-Way islands which form the gateway to historic Wickford Village. The project was named a runner-up for the National Garden Club’s “Operation Wildflower Roadside Award,” garnering a certificate of recognition and a $600 monetary award for the club.
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Members of PBGC completed the original renovation and landscaping of the three neglected traffic islands in 2009. It was the club’s most challenging and ambitious civic beautification project to date.
“The intent of this most recent renovation was to create a more aesthetically appealing overall presentation, plus provide a more cost-effective, environmentally sound island maintenance program,” said Barbara Dawson, President-Plum Beach Garden Club.
Club members worked with NewLeaf Landscaping of North Kingstown to develop a planting scheme for the island which offered a more cohesive look with the two other islands while also incorporating native plants that would withstand the rigors of the roadside location and provide seasonal color and interest.
The island renovation was funded through a variety of PBGC activities, including luncheons, raffles, plus the sale of commemorative bricks for Wickford’s Old Library Park, another civic beautification project the club maintains. Additional funding for the project came from Donna Coutu, a North Kingstown resident who made a donation to the club in her son’s memory. In recognition, PBGC erected a sign on the island to honor her son, Matthew, who was killed in action in 2005 while serving in Iraq.
The Operation Wildflower Roadside Award was announced at the National Garden Club’s annual awards ceremony in Norman, OK, last month. The Blue Star Memorial By-Way islands, which received significant state and national recognition when they were originally renovated in 2009, are also a Rhode Island DOT Adopt-A-Spot.
