Boston Flora

Tag: Friends of the Public Garden

  • Saturday, May 21 – Saturday, June 4 – Susurrus

    The Public Garden is annually the host to countless cultural events. This year beginning on May 21, the park is will be the setting of Susurrus: a play without actors and without a stage. The production is part radio play, part recital, part lesson in bird dissection, and part stroll in the park. Susurrus (pronounced sus-YOO-rus and referring to the rustling sound of wind in trees), is written and directed by David Leddy, a Scottish playwright known for his experimental works. In this installment of his, participants follow a map around the Public Garden as they listen to the piece on headphones; the different elements meld location and sound to create a theater experience in which there are no actors and only one member in the audience: you.

    The dates of the production include: May 21, May 22, May 26, June 2, June 3, June 4, and June 5. Times will vary, with groups of four admitted every 15 minutes. The piece includes about a mile of walking on paved pathways. Headphone pickup will be on Boylston Steet between Charles and Tremont.

    Tickets are on sale now at the Emerson College Arts Box Office located at 559 Washington Street. For more information, call (617) 824-8000 or e-mail tickets@artsemerson.org.

  • Sunday, May 8, 10:30 am – 1:00 pm – Duckling Day Parade

    The Friends of the Public Garden will celebrate Mother’s Day with Boston-area families during its annual Duckling Day Parade on Sunday May 8th. Registration will begin at 10:30am at the corner of Beacon and Park Streets, and the parade will begin at noon. Based on the classic Make Way for Ducklings by Robert McCloskey, Duckling Day is an annual event where children and their families retrace the steps of the beloved characters, Mr. and Mrs. Mallard and their family of eight ducklings. Led by the Harvard University Band, the parade will begin at the Boston Common on the corner of Beacon and Park Street. Children will parade through Beacon Hill dressed like characters from the story and end in the Public Garden near the famous duckling sculptures.

    Prior to the parade there will be plenty of family entertainment including a face painter, balloon artist and a magician. Mayor Menino will greet families at the end of the parade and actors from the Wheelock Family Theater will do a dramatic reading from the book. A donation of $25 per family is requested for all participants. For more information log on to www.friendsofthepublicgarden.org.  Robert E. Kennedy’s Make Way for Ducklings print, pictured below, is available through www.kennedyartgalleries.com.

     

  • Wednesday, May 4, 5:00 pm – 41st Annual Meeting of Friends of the Public Garden

    You are cordially invited to the 41st Annual Meeting of the Friends of the Public Garden Wednesday, May 4, beginning at 5 pm at First Church in Boston, 66 Marlborough Street.  Come have a glass of Madeira to salute Henry Lee’s becoming President Emeritus, and hear about “The Year in Review.”  Rsvp by April 27 to 617-723-8144, or email ellenfopg@gis.net.  If you are not already a member, call the number and inquire about the benefits and rewards of becoming a member of this pivotal and important organization.

  • Wednesday, March 23, 12:00 noon – Groundbreaking Ceremony at Brewer Fountain

    The Friends of the Public Garden, in association with the Boston Parks and Recreation Department, Mayor Thomas M. Menino, and Boston Parks Commissioner Antonia Pollak, will hold a groundbreaking ceremony for the first phase of construction of the Brewer Plaza and surrounding green space near the Brewer Fountain by Tremont Street on Wednesday, March 23, at noon.

  • Wednesday, February 23, 10:00 am – The Brewer Fountain Restoration

    Liz Vizza, Executive Director of the Friends of the Public Garden, will be the featured speaker at the February meeting of The Garden Club of the Back Bay. She will talk about the history of The Brewer Fountain on the Boston Common, and the recent undertaking to restore this Boston monument. Prior to joining the Friends in March, 2009, Liz, a graduate of Bryn Mawr College and the Conway School of Landscape Design, ran a consulting firm focused on revitalization of urban open space and cultural landscapes, and facilitated master planning and organizational development for cultural and environmental institutions.  Program free and open to the public, but reservations are required. An optional lunch will follow the presentation ($20). Email info@bostonflora.com to reserve.  Garden Club members will receive written notification in the mail.

  • Garden Club of the Back Bay Holiday Wreaths – “Green Spending”

    Why should you buy from us? Yes, we know you could order from local florists (at a significantly higher price, we might point out), or from the nurseries or groceries stores (at perhaps a slightly lower cost, with a corresponding drop in quality.) Purchasing our wreaths comes with the satisfaction of knowing you are supporting many wonderful local organizations, in addition to our own.

    Each year we make grants to not for profit groups which are making a difference in our lives. In addition to the Friends of the Public Garden and the Commonwealth Avenue Mall Committee, we donate to the Emerald Necklace Conservancy, the Charles River Clean Up Boat, the Boston Nature Center of the Massachusetts Audubon Society, the Esplanade Association, COG, and to City Roots/The Urban Ecology Institute. This is by no means the complete list of beneficiaries (click on to our Projects page on the menu above for details) but we give approximately $20,000 annually to area groups accomplishing great works which we do not have the expertise or manpower to do ourselves. The dollar amount of these grants is dependent upon our earnings, so we urge you to be generous and allow us the opportunity to enhance your holiday environment with our fresh balsam wreaths.  We also directly pay for the planting, pruning, and inoculation of the street trees in our neighborhood – another $20,000 annual expenditure, give or take a thousand.  As Everett Dirkson used to say,  and I paraphrase, “A million here, a million there, and pretty soon you’re talking real money.”  Click HERE for an order form.

  • Friends of the Public Garden Video

    The Garden Club of the Back Bay is pleased to announce that three of our current and past members are featured in a newly released video which beautifully recounts the history of the Friends of the Public Garden and its tradition of Park stewardship.  Past President Margaret Pokorny is interviewed, and you will glimpse vintage pictures of the late Stella Trafford, and at least one photo of member Patti Quinn.  Interviews with Henry Lee and Antonia Pollak are impressive.  Shots of the Commonwealth Avenue Mall in the 1970’s are frightening – we can barely imagine how our parks were degraded during those years.  To view the eleven minute movie, click on to http://fopg.wordpress.com/2010/11/12/our-history-through-film/.

  • Eugenie Beal Honored by The Trustees of Reservations

    The Trustees of Reservations, the nation’s oldest regional land trust and non-profit conservation organization, recently honored retiring Board Member Eugenie Beal at the organization’s annual meeting and dinner held on September 25th at the Boys & Girls Club in Leominster.

    Eugenie “Genie” Beal has served on The Trustees of Reservations’ (The Trustees) Board of Directors since 2006. She received The Charles Eliot Award from The Trustees in 2007 in recognition for championing the cause of conservation in Boston for more than 30 years. As chair of the Board of Boston Natural Areas Network (BNAN), her leadership was pivotal in crafting the affiliation of BNAN with The Trustees of Reservations. She was the first chairwoman of the Boston Conservation Commission in the 1970s, founding Director of the Boston Environment Department, Special Assistant to the Massachusetts Secretary of Environmental Affairs, and a founder of Boston Natural Areas Fund (now BNAN) in 1977. Under Ms. Beal’s leadership, the mission of BNAN also embraced community gardens and greenways and became one of the leading urban open space organizations in the country. She was also founder of both the Emerald Necklace Conservancy and the Arboretum Park Conservancy and served as chairwoman of the Common Committee for the Friends of the Public Garden. The American Society of Landscape Architects also honored Beal’s extensive dedication and contributions to the Boston landscape at their centennial in 1999.

    The Garden Club of the Back Bay sends its congratulations to Ms. Beal, who is a shining example of the power of the individual volunteer. The terrific photo below is by Peter Vanderwarker.

  • Friday, November 5, 6:30 pm – Friends of the Public Garden 40th Anniversary Gala

    The Friends of the Public Garden will host a celebration to wrap up the entire 40th Anniversary year on Friday, November 5, beginning at 6:30 pm at the Taj Boston, 15 Arlington Street in Boston.  To participate in this benefit event, call 617-723-8144, or email friends@harronandassociates.com.

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  • Wednesday, October 6, 4:30 pm – Parks Panel Discussion

    On Wednesday, October 6, beginning at 4:30 pm, The Friends of the Public Garden, along with Boston College Citizen Seminars and The Colonnade Boston Hotel, host a panel, moderated by former Governor Michael Dukakis, with speakers from around the country.  They will discuss the importance of urban parks and the necessity of public-private partnerships to preserve and support them in this time of fiscal challenges.  The event will take place at the Boston Public Library, 700 Boylston Street, and is free and open to the public.  For more information log on to www.friendsofthepublicgarden.org.

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