Planting the Promise to stay drug free. As
part of Red Ribbon Week to Stay Drug Free, Quail Valley Garden Club members
helped children prepare the soil and plant 100 red Tulips furnished by Ann
LeTulle of Gary Greene Prudential Realtors ®. Barbara Thompson, Donna Hogan and
Janice Scanlan worked with QV Elementary Counselor Myrtle St. Julien to plan
the event.
And it was a hot bed of activity! The students were engaged, well-mannered and fun to work with. They were eager, helpful and asked great questions as well as made insightful comments that only children can make that leave you with a smile.
We were graced with a beautiful day . . . so we did what any good gardeners do . . . we weeded, composted and used bone meal to feed the Tulips, which were ordered pre-chilled so they'd get a "dormant" period before they start to grow!
The enthusiasm of the staff, faculty and administrators was gratifying . . . we all agreed that we could understand how Quail Valley Elementary, on it's second school year after being re-built, had already achieved Recognized Status.
Despite the work, there were a lot of waves and smiles from all ages.
Myrtle St. Julien had the children organized by grade, so each grade planted a segment of the Tulip garden.
Then there's "the heavy work crew" who did heavy weeding, tilling of the soil, incorporating compost and bone mill so others could plant.
We know we made some lasting impressions, as Assistant Principal Alena McClanahan wrote to us,
" I want to thank you again for coming out and helping us plant the tulips. We cannot wait to see them grow. The children were very excited to have the opportunity to come out and help plant them. My own children enjoyed it so much that we went out to get bulbs for our flower beds so that we could plant them at home. Please tell Ms. Thompson, Ms. Lindsay, and Ms. Hogan again thank you so much!!!"
Well the pleasure was all ours. On Halloween night, I was thrilled. One of he boys who worked full time with the heavy work, came to our door Trick or Treating with friends. At first he didn't recognize me because I was wearing glasses, but then we got to talk about the planting and Tulips. Now that's what "Growing better community" is really about! Two former strangers have a connection.
That and teaching two little girls that it's okay to get your hands dirty if you wash them afterward.
Principal Amelia Perez wrote, "We are grateful for all you have done for our children. Thank you for making them a successful part of the community."
The Fort Bend Independent was impressed as well with the above picture featured on its 11/04/2009 front page. Pictured in the foreground of the photo is QV Garden Club President Nancy Lindsay and other volunteers working the children. As Nancy commented, “It is certainly easy to see why QV Elementary just achieved Recognized Status with such young people and faculty.”
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