Fourteen members of the Great Bend Garden Club met on Dec. 15, and, with many wearing colorful Christmas sweaters, they shared stories of their childhood Christmas memories. Interesting to note was that there was quite a variety of family traditions, from actual candles on the trees, to waiting until Christmas Eve to decorate the tree, to trudging through deep snow in the mountains to cut down the Christmas tree, to celebrating St. Nickolas Day on Dec. 6th, to recording the voices of elderly family members telling of their own childhood Christmas memories, to children performing in Christmas pageants, to opening just one gift before attending the Christmas Eve church service, and to the sound of Santa actually stomping across the rooftop.
Nancy Swafford presented a short informational program on Pyracantha, a large, thorny evergreen shrub with the common name Firethorn. The Pyracantha which can be seen growing in Great Bend produces white flowers in the late spring and beautiful red or dark orange berries in the late autumn. If not eaten by birds, the berries last through the Christmas season making it a colorful addition to Christmas landscapes. The Pyracantha is easy to grow in a sunny location for best production of berries, and it provides a dense cover for roosting and nesting birds
During the short business meeting conducted by President Nancy Swafford, the by-laws were reviewed and it was determined that the policy of the club’s treasury providing names of present and past active members on the memorial plaques should remain unchanged.
The cost for other individuals wishing to put names on the plaques remains at $25 for a single name and $40 for a married couple. Alice Young, Rose Garden chairman, thanked Kerry Lampe and her husband for painting the memorial plaque poles.
Delicious and attractive refreshments were served by Kerry Lampe. The next meeting of Great Bend Garden Club will be help on Jan. 19 at 10 a.m. in the Barton County Extension Meeting Room. Hostess will be Sharon East and a program will be given by Alice Young.