By:Nicole Falco
Gullo, Scala, Diehl, and approximately 30 other women share their love of gardening with each other the third Thursday of every month at the Lutheran Church of Our Savior, located at the corner of Rockaway and DuBois avenues. The women belong to the Garden Club of Valley Stream, an organization dedicated to civic beautification. Muriel Hillander, club president, summed it up when she said, "We love flowers."
"I was always interested in flowers and gardening," Gullo said. "I always had a yard at home when I grew up. I love to arrange flowers and I enjoy going to meetings."
Gullo, one of the club's original members, said her sons do an excellent job of supplying her with flowers on all the "important days" so she can satisfy her passion for arranging.
The club was chartered in 1964. According to Gullo, the first meeting was held in the late Mary Billinger's house. About six ladies attended that first meeting. Billinger taught them the proper way to repot flowers. Word soon spread and the club was born. Today, the club regularly invites guest speakers to its monthly meetings. Speakers discuss watering techniques, the proper way to grow roses, horticulture, flower arrangements and more.
"I try to keep up with the latest things that are going around and I always try to find new methods of doing things," said Kaye Aichinger, a member since the early 1980s. "I always enjoyed flowers. I was raised in the city and I guess when I came [to Valley Stream], I just loved the atmosphere, the trees and the flowers. I really got into it." Aichinger's home garden includes four 75-foot evergreens, a dogwood tree, lilies and azaleas.
According to Gloria Drucker, chairwoman of conservation and publicity, speakers must be accredited by the Federated Garden Clubs of New York State before they can share their knowledge with garden clubs. Local garden clubs, like the one in Valley Stream, are typically affiliated with the state organization, which hosts an annual luncheon. The federation also publishes a newsletter, funds scholarships for members' children and grandchildren and organizes World Gardening projects. This year, the federation is sending volunteers to Haiti to teach young people how to cultivate their land.
Locally, the Garden Club of Valley Stream maintains the herb garden at the Pagan-Fletcher Restoration and decorates the Henry Waldinger Memorial Library each Christmas. In the past, club members were responsible for maintaining the shrubbery surrounding the Hendrickson Park lake and the garden outside the Valley Stream Post Office.
Besides guest speakers and civic beautification projects, members also enjoy a little friendly competition and each other's company. The club holds competitions in horticulture and floral arranging.
"It's the people who are members and their talents that I enjoy," Diehl said. " I'm primarily a horticulturist, so I enjoy their creative ability." Besides the garden club, Diehl, a member since 1976, is a member of the Long Island Rose Society, the American National Horticultural Society and is a master gardener with Cornell Cooperative Extension in Hempstead.
Millie Amico, the club's treasurer and a seven-year member, says the club is well-rounded. "I love learning about flower arrangements and I do like gardening," she said. "I just like the work that's done in the club and I like the ladies that are in the club."
Drucker, who counts water conservation among the club's most important causes, said, "If you're in the club long enough, you can take a bouquet of flowers or three flowers and arrange them to make your home look better."
Like many clubs throughout the community, the garden club is always looking for new members. Anyone interested in learning more about the club can attend one of its monthly meetings, held the third Thursday of the month at the Lutheran Church of Our Saviour. Meetings begin at 11 a.m. and include refreshments.
"I'm glad that we started and I hope that it will keep on going forever," Gullo said.
