President's Letter - May 2021

Greetings, Garden Friends –

The progress of spring has been impressive, with abundant daffodils, flowering shrubs and trees, and herbaceous garden plants reappearing (or not) after a winter underground. Now May is here and the pace is picking up, in the garden and on our calendars, as more of us get vaccinated and we feel safer going out and about, still masked but getting together with friends and family. We know we must remain vigilant, and careful, but the possibilities are opening up and we’re enjoying every bit of it!

We’re planning to hold the Annual Meeting in person and outdoors at Ruth Eppig’s on June 29. We don’t have speaker programs for our Annual Meetings but we do announce awards and we recognize women who are marking milestone years in their SLGC membership.  This year we have a very special one: we will celebrate Clara Rankin’s 75th year as a member of our Club! My personal friendship with Clara began years before I joined SLGC, when she and her husband Alfred hosted an annual family picnic for every lawyer at Thompson, Hine and Flory. The event typified Clara’s spirit – her warmth, generosity, and attention to all their guests, young and old. The children loved the games, hayrides, pool activities, the barbecues, and the adults enjoyed the kind of companionship that made the law firm a great place to work. (Our very young son thought the Rankin farm was where his Dad worked – it WAS Thompson, Hine and Flory.) 

She extended the same welcome to Shaker Lakes members, sharing her garden, designed by Ellen Shipman, on many occasions. Clara has maintained an active interest in our programs and activities for all these years, attending meetings regularly, well past her centennial – she will celebrate her 104th birthday on May 13 – and the example of her active participation has inspired us. Garden Club is not her only interest: the Cleveland Museum of Art, The Cleveland Orchestra, the Cleveland Institute of Music, Hopewell House…her curriculum vitae is long, and the greater Cleveland community has benefitted in many, many ways from Clara Rankin’s generosity and interest. So join me and hundreds of others in wishing Clara a very Happy Birthday on May 13, and we hope she will join us on June 29th for her official SLGC 75th anniversary recognition!

Leigh