Taradale Floral Art Group Celebrating 50 years 1969 - 2019
Let’s Celebrate – a fitting way to mark Taradale’s 50th Anniversary
Taradale Floral Art Group marked its 50th Anniversary on 14th March this year with an anniversary luncheon following the Annual General Meeting. Tables decorated with ‘Golden Glow’ posy bowls, made by the members, helped to give the event a festive air.
Looking back to the Club’s origins we learn that in March 1969 a special meeting was held at the local Borough Council chambers “to ascertain if there was sufficient evidence to warrant the formation of a Floral Art Group”.
Approximately 60 women were in attendance and the motion that a group be formed was carried unanimously.
Officers were elected, an annual subscription was set for $1.00 and the matter of affiliation to the Floral Art Society of New Zealand was to be considered when there were the required twenty members. This was resolved by the time we got to the June meeting with our first President, Jean (S G) Ward, later serving as a Councillor for FASNZ.
Reading the Club’s early history, it is hard to imagine that the 40 entries in the monthly competition were balloted to 25 to make life easier for the judge!
Joining us in our Golden celebrations we had much pleasure in welcoming Nancy Murphy representing FASNZ. Nancy was able to explain and answer questions with regard to WAFA (World Association of Floral Artists) and to FASNZ. She also honoured our celebration by proposing the toast to the continued success and future of our club.
We were delighted to welcome back our former club member and FASNZ Education committee member, Fay Edgecombe, now of Tauranga, to conduct a public demonstration in the afternoon two days later on 16th March.
We had asked Fay to provide designs on the theme of ‘Let’s Celebrate’. Our audience of around 60 enthusiastic floral artists and their friends certainly did just that.