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What We Do? |
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When Do We Meet Our winter meetings are held the last Monday of each month at the Irvington Presbyterian Church, 55 Johnson Avenue, located behind the Irvington Branch of the Indianapolis Marion County Library, which fronts the corner of Washington and Audubon Streets. During the summer months we assemble, again at 7 PM, in the gardens of club members. Our July meeting is usually a picnic and held on the grounds of one of our beautification projects, the Webster Avenue Pocket Park, 32 South Webster Avenue. We do not have a November meeting. In December we host a holiday party at Irvington's historic Benton House, and on a frosty, early February morning we gather for breakfast and celebrate Ground Hog Day. All of our meetings except our holiday gathering are open to the public. Thus, we invite you to visit us at any time. Where Are We We are located in Irvington, a historic east-side community in Indianapolis, founded in 1870 by two politically inspired abolitionists, Jacob Julian and Sylvester Johnson. Our name sake is Washington Irving (1783 - 1859) the author of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, Rip Van Winkle and other works. Within our neighborhoods of winding tree-lined streets, lush, rich green lawns: and some remaining two acre lots you will find outstanding examples Second Empire, Dutch, Gothic and Tudor Revival, and Queen Anne architectural styles. Somewhere, if you traverse the right one, you'll come upon a brick street built long ago. Beginning in 1875, and for nearly half a century, we were home to Butler University, one of the first schools to admit women on equal status with men and to accept African-American students. Although Butler is no longer In our community we remain proud of it's cultural contributions. Today, besides our public schools, we've two charter academies and a host of local organizations including a community council, development organization, art league, photography club, neighborhood crime watches, and a women's club established in 1892. We're folksy people who enjoy concerts at Irving Circle, spend part of our mornings at coffee shops, dine on the deck of local eateries, or bourse books at a local bookstore. We relish hearing the bells and hymns broadcast from atop church steeples which dot our skyline. Irvington held it's 65th Halloween Festival last year, eagerly awaits it's annual cleanup event, Celebrate Irvington Day, delights in Christmas shopping at local merchants including several antique shops, and taking charming, candle lit walks during our 35th winter luminary in December. In 1987 our original neighborhoods were placed on the National Register of Historic Places. Not one to rest on our laurels, we have been the recipient of two, separate one million dollar, federal Department of Transportation Enhancement grants for improvements in our central business district. One of our local groups, the Irvington Green Initiative, was recently given funds for building a demonstration rain garden along side our newly installed Pennsy Trail and we've another community garden in the works. Finally, we have not completed our work here. We've big imaginations. From the perspective of club, we envision a enabling, children's or biblical garden and maybe an medicinal herb garden. Join Us After viewing our web pages, we hope you will join our fellowship of spirited men and women garden enthusiasts. Our annual dues, payable each January, are $25.00 for an individual and $35.00 for a family membership. Should you not want to join, consider making a donation toward there planting and up keep of our Benton House Historic or Kile Oak Habitat Gardens consider a making a donation. If not sure you want to join, but want to "try us out", you are welcome to attend one or several of our meetings. Dues can be mailed to the Irvington Garden Club, Post Office Box 19147, Indianapolis, IN, 46219. Consider Volunteering We recognize that many of you are raising "wee ones" or teenagers, have full time jobs, not yet retired, or simply too busy. Should that be the case you might consider donating only a few hours each month to one of our endeavors. We would like that! We've many tasks to do, like setting up our booth at a farmer's market, selling or taking tickets for our garden tour, watering flower pots at the Benton House, helping pick up logs and brush at the Kile Oak, or potting plants at our nursery. Additionally, should you only be able to work from your home, consider writing articles for our handouts, monthly newsletters or press releases, researching our native plants, wildflowers and grasses, or bagging your empty quart, half and gallon plastic pots and let us recycle them. |
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Irvington Garden Club |
