Garden Club of Yarmouth

​Committee Duties and Activities

At this time we are actively recruiting new members for Civic Beautification, Horticulture Roundtable,  Membership, Newsletter,  Program, Scholarship, Telephone, Ways and Means, and Web Site.

Annual Luncheon Meeting
Work begins in mid-January to plan for the annual luncheon meeting in May.  We begin by checking out restaurants and then finalizing details such as menu, price, etc.  We prepare a reservation form to be provided to members at the March and April membership meetings.  Committee members assist with taking reservations and accepting payment at the March and April meetings.  We assist the chairman to coordinate activities on the day of the luncheon.
Bylaws
Members draft and present to the club any changes or additions to the bylaws as requested by the Board.
Civic Beautification
We undertake seasonal projects to beautify the town.  We purchase, plant, water and maintain all plants and shrubs at the corner of Buck Island Road and West Yarmouth Road, Forest and Old Townhouse Road, the Senior Center sign, and two gardens at the North Main and Highbank intersection.  We plant and maintain containers and window boxes at the three post offices and decorate wreaths for the various town buildings for the December holidays.  The major portion of the work, which involves weeding, deadheading, and watering, is done during the summer.
Conservation
The Conservation Committee focuses on environmental awareness through meetings and outreach.  Our goal is to educate and inspire the club and community to consider creating sustainable landscapes and gardens with the use of organic materials and native plants, recycling, and protecting the Cape's natural resources.  In the fall this committee is responsible for conducting a beach cleanup at Bass River or Seagull Beach as part of the Massachusetts Coastal Sweep and the International Coastal Cleanup.  We arrange for and take conservation walks throughout the year.  Committee members meet once or twice per year or as desired. 
Flower show
Our group sponsors a biennial flower show, flower arranging classes, and provides special decorations as requested. 
Handbook
This committee works during June and July to produce the club's annual handbook.  The Program, Horticulture, Membership,  Bylaws and Platform committees provide us with information about the upcoming year.  we assemble and format that information, proofread, and prepare it for printing.  We distribute the printed handbooks at the September meeting.
Herb Garden
Our members maintain an herb garden behind the Post Office on 6A near the entrance to the Nature Trails and a small kitchen herb garden behind the Bangs Hallet House.  Committee members must be available from late April to October to help with weeding, watering, deadheading and new planting.
Horticulture Roundtable
Members select topics and speakers for five programs during the calendar year.  They also arrange for one or more of the following: a one day field trip, and open garden tour (June) or an open house tour at Christmas season or some other special event decided upon by the committee.  Members also help to facilitate Horticulture Workshop meetings.
Hospitality
The members of the Hospitality Committee assist with the yearly refreshment sign-up at the September meeting.  Throughout the year committee members make reminder calls to Club members who have signed up to provide a platter or floral arrangement for the refreshment table.  At monthly meetings committee members help with set-up, tea & coffee service, and cleanup. 
Membership
The chairman and co-chairman keep attendance and all records of membership.  Two committee members are needed for each meeting, September through May, to greet members, provide them with their membership nametags and assist in collecting nametags at the end of each meeting.
Newsletter
The “Trumpet”, a bulletin of club notices and information, is published monthly September - May.
Program
Members select topics of gardening interest and speakers for eight general membership meetings.  They also assist the chair with all aspects of program preparation including set-up and introduction of the speaker at membership meetings. 
Publicity
This committee keeps the community apprised of Club events through newspapers, periodicals, cable TV and radio. We assist committee chairs with advertising by acquiring banners, signs and flyers as needed. We are also responsible for the printing and distribution of information cards.
 Scholarship
This committee distributes information and applications to schools and interested individuals.  They provide the Publicity Committee with information to keep the public aware of the scholarship and requirements.  Meetings are held in the spring to review applications and select the yearly scholarship recipients.
Telephone
Each committee member is assigned 8 to 10 club members and is responsible for calling them regarding special notices or information as required by the circumstances. This information will be provided by the chairman.
Ways and Means
We coordinate fall and spring fund raisers and the annual plant sale in May.  Members must be available in the fall and spring for planning and to co-chair the subcommittees.
Web Site
We design, produce and maintain the club web site, gardenclubofyarmouth.org. We also have a Facebook page, Garden Club of Yarmouth - Cape Cod.  Committee members should be at ease with computers and interested in areas such as web publishing, photography, and photo editing.
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January 2020