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Sheryl Morningstar Murphy was a passionate gardener with a far-reaching vision. She saw that within the sprawling Chateauguay Valley community there were many people who shared her love of working with plants and the earth. Sheryl wanted to bring these folk together, both novice gardeners and “old hands”, to share ideas and information and learn from each other. She also wanted to organize group trips to the Montreal Botanical Gardens and other inspiring places we always promise ourselves we’ll visit “someday”! The vision was a little slow in materializing. In early 1991, Sheryl placed an ad in the Huntingdon Gleaner, to which she received one response. Sheryl and Jennifer Gill had a lengthy phone conversation exchanging ideas and possibilities. Within a short time, a little networking among friends expanded the founding membership to a grand total of five, here listed alphabetically: Judy Farrow, Jennifer Gill, Sheryl Murphy,Maureen Wahba, and Sharon Weippert. On August 26, 1991, we set off as a group for a day at the Botanical Gardens, and in these beautiful surroundings, we were inspired to start our club. A meeting at Sharon’s house on October 5th was duly planned and advertised, and we anxiously awaited the arrival of a flood of enthusiasts. Four people showed up! We had plenty of coffee and cookies left over that evening! Undaunted, Sheryl wrote an article for “The Gleaner”, including a group photo taken on our trip to the Botanical Gardens, and an invitation to a second meeting. On November 26, twenty-four people arrived on the doorstep. This time, we scrambled for refreshments! The first season was launched in 1991 with a visit to Varin’s Greenhouse in Ormstown, followed by a visit to Jennifer’s “work in progress” garden where landscaper Isa Lane spoke and demonstrated to enthusiastic members. The Spring and Fall Perennial Exchanges were also started that year, along with the ever-popular tours of local gardens. In the following spring, we purchased Mammoth Russian sunflower seeds and gave them out to interested members. The result was a friendly “grow the largest sunflower” contest! The first-ever bus trip was organized in the fall of 1992. It seemed appropriate to revisit the Montreal Botanical Gardens, where the first plans for the club had been hatched. In those days we used a yellow school bus for transportation! Over the ensuing years, the late Stuart Robertson of the Montreal Gazette visited the Valley several times to speak about various aspects of horticulture. A variety of other speakers came as well, enriching our concept of “gardening”. Gradually, the founding members handed over the reins to other capable members. Sadly, Sheryl Murphy passed away on October 4th, 2002 after a courageous battle with cancer. She remained bright, beautiful and optimistic, never losing courage and handling her fate with grace. The traditions we started continue, people move on and new people join. Some people have remained as members since the beginning, but we all share a love of plants and gardening, and the fellowship that this brings when we get together. Sheryl’s original vision has become a living reality.
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