July 11, 2007

Last Meeting
July 11, 2007

Reporter – Barry Johns

President Beetle opened the meeting followed by the invocation by Rod Funderburk. John Hanson introduced several guests. Lyman Whitehead delivered our Health and Happiness and recognized several birthdays and anniversaries.

Chuck Larson made an announcement about the Irmo Chamber’s outing at Pine Island Wednesday evening. He also complimented the performances of Haley Hendrix, “Miss Irmo” and Katie Love, “Miss Teen Irmo” in the Miss South Carolina pageants.

Molly Cousins announced that she had accepted a new assignment with Kelley that would require her to move to Lynchburg, Virginia.

Lyn Richards challenged us with local, regional, national, and international statistics about Rotary fund raising projects. A particular emphasis was placed on becoming a Sustaining Member to help support the Polio Drive.

Carey Hite inducted two new members, Jeff Allen and David Isbell. Beetle Bailey announced two resignations, Jim Jeffers and George Staples.

Our newest members with their sponsors Carey Hite, Dave Isbell, Jeff Allen, Ben Heritage

Eddie Robinson introduced Andy Cabe, Curator of Horticulture for Riverbanks Zoo and Botanical Gardens. Over 95,000 visitors enter the Gardens each year from the West Columbia entrance. We learned that the Horticulture Department has 17 people and operates with at $750,000 budget. Five of the 17 employees work at the Zoo and the other 12 work at the Gardens.

The Horticulture Department conducts education activities for children, garden clubs, and individuals. They host tours, programs, and other outreach activities such as Sprout Camp, Junior Master Gardener Programs, and Master Gardener Programs. The Botanical Gardens also hosts several events each year such as “Chili Pepper Fiesta”, “Bamboo Day”, “Old Rose Festival”, “Orchids on the River”, and “Language of Flowers”. They also set up two offsite exhibits. One exists at the Charleston Garden Festival and the other is at Brookgreen Gardens. Additionally, Riverbanks has worked in partnership with Clemson University since 1997.

The Horticulture Department has 4 large greenhouses for growing their own plants. They conduct several plant sales to generate revenue during the year. Last year, they raised $21,000. from the plant sale, $17,000 from the bulb sale, and $14,000 from the plant cart.

A major local project for the Horticulture Department is the repopulation of the Rocky Shoal Spiderlily that grows in the Saluda River. To learn more about this project visit their web site at www.riverbanks.org.

Bettle Closed with Happy Dollars of which several were given in honor of Molly.



Our Speaker (courtesy of Eddie Robinson) Andy Cabe, Curator of Horticulture, Riverbanks Zoo and Botanical Gardens