The Selma Times-Journal

Don’t let the name fool you.

The Garden Club does more than plant flowers.

They plant seeds in the future of the Black Belt.

The Butterfly Capital Garden Club of

Selma was the

host of The Garden Club of Alabama, Inc.’s

67th annual meeting

with over 100 in attendance &045; roughly 25 clubs represented from Auburn to Greenville to Clanton.

The meeting was held at the Central Alabama Farmers Co-Op building on Oct. 18 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. One would probably guess the meeting was mostly about plants, seeds and potting soil.

It was about planting seeds, but no so much in the soil as in the future leaders of the Black Belt.

Thanks to the Garden

Club, six students are awarded scholarships to Auburn University to study in the fields of forestry, horticulture and landscape design.

And not only that, the Garden Club is involved in many &8220;Kids Count&8221; classroom projects at local elementary schools in their areas.

The group heard reports from the previous year, presentations and were presented with one of this year’s fundraisers, which will be to collect used ink and toner cartridges that will be redeemed for &8220;dollars for schools.&8221;

Grant writer Judy Manning was present and shared with the group that there are 139 grants awarded to 21st Century Learning schools that range from $50,000 to $200,000 &045; one of which is Selma’s Clark Elementary School.

On top of all of that, GCA President Jacki Quisenberry reported that $70,000 in grant money has been designated for the &8220;Green the Gulf Coast Project&8221; for garden clubs in Florida, Alabama, Texas, Louisiana and Florida &045; areas devastated by hurricanes.

As if all that is not impressive enough, the Garden Club will be at the State Capitol with Gov. and Mrs. Riley at the Every Light of Prayer for Peace ceremony on Friday, Dec. 1.

The Garden Club is seeking new members as they have many projects and a lot of ground to cover &045; pun intended.

Mayor James Perkins Jr., and Judge Johnny Jones spoke at the meeting welcoming the group and offering encouraging

words.

He encouraged the garden club to &8220;keep on planting.&8221;

Jones shared his green thumb

&045; more like brown

thumb &045; experiences with the group and expressed his admiration for the groups ability to plant and keep the plants living which yielded many laughs.

The very anticipated Tale Teller, Kathryn Tucker Windham joined the group after lunch.

Windham said her father told stories and her mother &045;

though not much of a housekeeper &045; loved flowers.

She said her mother’s idea on ironing was that &8220;you shake it and walk fast.&8221;

The Tale Teller told a love story of Hiram and Sarah, a loving young couple that was married, torn apart, and brought back together when they were old and both remarried.

According to Windham, a bridal wreath bush still blooms in testament of their love.

At the end of her story, a still room came to thunderous applause and a standing ovation.

Receiving awards were Pride of Greenville, and Youpon Garden Clubs with Youpon taking home 10 of the 13.

The Garden Club’s 2007 meeting is scheduled for Oct. 17.

The Diamond Jubilee Meeting is scheduled for April 24-26, 2007 at the Embassy Suites Hotel in Montgomery.