The Presence of Flowers

​“Simply being in nature or the presence of flowers is known to reduce stress and improve our mood. Just the presence of plants can help kids to learn better, remove toxins in our indoor and outdoor environment, help us to heal faster, concentrate better, be more productive, and even promotes compassion for one another.”  The Petal Republic

Teri Burch

My mother loved having a flower garden. She had a rose garden and a mixed flower garden with dahlias, tulips, crocus, daffodils, bleeding hearts, daisies, snapdragons, geraniums, foxglove, gladiolas, zinnias, and iris. She also had lilac bushes, forsythias, and pussy willows. At Easter we would give her a pot of Easter Lilies to place on the fireplace, and on Mother’s Day we would give her a basket of flowers to hang out front.

As she got older, she downsized to the duplex my brother owned and didn’t have the big garden. My sister-in-law gave her a large rose bush to have on her small back deck. I gave her a tub with dirt and seeds to plant a small garden for the deck. We gave Easter Lilies at Easter and a flower basket on Mother’s Day.

The Easter Lilies came from Albertsons, but the Mother’s Day flower basket came from the flower basket sales at First Presbyterian. The first flower basket sale I remember was a fundraiser for GloryBea Preschool. It was named Glory after Lori Arthur Morman and Bea for the long-time nursery care provider Bea McDonald. 

Bill and I continued to buy flower baskets from the sale even after the preschool moved to another location and the Children and Family Mission Team took it on to raise funds for camp scholarships.

Now Bill and I are on the C&F team, and we will be helping to sell flower baskets to benefit 1st Pres kids who want to go to Camp Spaulding or Camp Lutherhaven. We will also buy a basket to honor my mom and a basket for my own Mother’s Day. I will hang one out front and one out back.

The baskets are filled with either geraniums (pink, red, or orange) or a mixed variety of colorful lovelies (million bells, petunias, etc.). They are gorgeous and long-lasting when carefully tended.

You can purchase baskets for $40 each now through May 7th. There will be a table in Krueger Hall, or you can call the office to place your order. We encourage you to prepay for your flowers (either in-person or in our giving portal), but you can pay for your baskets when you pick them up. Pick-up is Wednesday, May 10th from 9 am - 3 pm either in the gym or in the back parking lot, depending on the weather.
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The flowers appear on the earth, the time of singing has come, and the voice of the turtledove is heard in our land. Song of Solomon 2:12 (ESV) 

​In His Name, Teri