Brooklyn Heights

100 members of the Garden Club of America enjoy Promenade Conservancy’s tour

GCA members take a guided tour of the Heights

September 21, 2016 By John Alexander Brooklyn Daily Eagle
Members of Promenade Garden Conservancy prepare for tour. Photo credit: Eleanor Levinson
Share this:

On Sunday, Sept. 18, the Promenade Garden Conservancy (PGC) volunteers gave a guided tour of the Promenade to 100 members of the Garden Club of America (GCA), and the PGC was thrilled with the turnout and the response.

Donna Ganson, President of the Garden Club of Lawrence Chapter thanked everyone for coming and called the event amazing and emphasized how much everyone loved it.

Neil Calet, Project Director of the PGC said, “To our delight, these serious gardeners had designated the Promenade as a horticultural must see for their visiting members.

PGC volunteer Helen Bierenbaum expressed her pleasure with the tour members, saying “My geographically diverse group; Little Rock, Arkansas, Santa Fe, New Mexico, Columbus, Ohio, etc., were fascinated with the entire experience and even had me lead them into some of the Heights streets to view the historic homes.”

Koren Volk, a member of the PGC and Calet saw this as a great opportunity to introduce the PGC’s achievements to gardeners and garden enthusiasts from beyond the borough’s borders. Volk added, “The Promenade and the Promenade Garden are treasures open to the whole city. It seems appropriate that we share it with the whole country.”

The Promenade tour began at the Montague Street entrance at 3 p.m., where 12 PGC volunteers were waiting to act as guides for the tours. The larger group was divided into smaller groups of about 10 people with a PGC volunteer guide leading each one. 

Each volunteer guide provided a brief background on the design and building of the BQE and Promenade in 1950, the history of the gardens, the Brooklyn Heights community’s interest in the gardens, the formation of the PGC (Public-Private Partnership) in 2009 and volunteerism.

Volunteer Rob Donohoe voiced his enthusiasm for being a tour guide saying, “I had a good time and enjoyed doing the research to hone up on my history. It was a very nice group with whom to share our Promenade!”

Phyllis Starkman, another volunteer, called the event a “terrific experience,” while volunteer Diana Prizeman praised the GCA members saying “They were all lovely and I think it went well. I walked them to the end of the promenade and pointed them in the right direction for their tour of Brooklyn Bridge Park. They seemed pleased with everything and told me to keep up the good work.”

The PGC is already preparing for their next event, their annual fall bake sale on Nov. 5, which also will be held on the Promenade.

 

Subscribe to our newsletters


Leave a Comment


Leave a Comment