GCA Zone X Meeting Scholarship Report
Leslie Marting
The GCA Scholarship committee is proud to have awarded scholarships to 86 deserving recipients in the amount of $335,500 for 2017-2018. The Garden Club of America Montine M. Freeman Scholarship in Native Plant Studies has just been created, and will be available for student applications next year. I am pleased to report that two Zone X Clubs proposed candidates for the Elizabeth Abernathy Hull Award this year, and both the Cincinnati Town and Country Garden Club, and the Garden Club of Dayton achieved success!
Additionally, the Katharine M. Grosscup Scholarships in Horticulture, named for a member of the Shaker Lakes Garden Club and managed by three members each of SLGC and The Garden Club of Cleveland, awarded 7 students a total of $18,500 for their studies. Please look for the GCA Summer Bulletin, dedicated to Scholarship, for photos and information about this year’s outstanding scholars. One of them might make an excellent speaker at a Club meeting.
At the GCA Annual Meeting in Baltimore, we were privileged to hear from Dr. Ari Novy, the Executive Director of the U.S. Botanic Garden and a 2007 recipient of the Caroline Thorn Kissel Summer Environmental Studies Scholarship. His message was about the importance of creating urban landscapes and community gardens as a vehicle for healthy and happy citizens. He also emphasized how much winning a GCA scholarship had meant to his career.
Do you have a Twitter account? If so, you can follow the GCA Scholarship Twitter account and learn first-hand what some of our scholars are doing.
Zone X is well represented on the GCA Scholarship Committee. As we thank outgoing Chairman Julie Johnson of the Little Garden Club of Columbus for her excellent leadership, we welcome another Zone X member, Kathy Keller of the Akron Garden Club as our Chairman. Way to go, Zone X!
As always, we on the Scholarship Committee want to thank our Zone X clubs and their members for their generous contributions to the GCA Scholarship funds. Without your support, we could not carry out the important work of supporting the best and the brightest as they strive to create a better word for all of us.
Leslie G. Marting
Zone X Scholarship Representative