Temecula Valley Rose Society

President's Message

At the beginning of the 2009 New Year, as president of the TVRS, I set some goals for the year 2009, since identifying goals is an essential prerequisite before formal plans can be made. I firmly believe in the old army "5 P's": Prior Planning Prevents Poor Performance, so we concentrated first on planning then on execution. Let's see how we did over the past 11 months with regard to goals set last January.

1. Initiate a formal membership drive that increases membership by 20%. We initiated a formal membership drive with incentives for new members as planned. Each of the new members who joined in the prescribed time frame received a free 5-gallon rose bush as an incentive. 14 new applicants applied and all were accepted as members during the scheduled two months of the drive. However, we fell a little short of the goal with only an 18% increase in membership.
2. Initiate and provide a formal orientation program for all new members. We initiated and conducted a successful new orientation program with all the new members in attendance and even several of the 2008 new members attending. This program should be continued as it proved to help make the new member feel more a part of the society right from the beginning. The 2010 program will include all the 2009 new members who joined after the 2009 membership drive had been completed.
3. Initiate a Rose Specialist training program. We successfully initiated and conducted a Rose Specialist Program (now known as a Docent Program) with 6 members being trained. These volunteers have been assigned the task of maintaining and improving the Rose Hall of Fame area at Rose Haven throughout the year.
4. Eliminate our current debt. We initiated an effort to eliminate our debt, however, due to economic conditions, we were only able to reduce the debt by 30%. This amount of reduction is considered a success, taking into account our limited resources. We will continue to work at this debt reduction in 2010.
5. Double our 2008 Grant revenues. We prepared 3 grant proposals in 2009, but due to technical difficulties one proposal could not be submitted on time. We will submit this completed application at the next available time frame. However, one proposal generated a successful award for the entrance to the garden. A list and log of possible grants has been prepared as a plan for next year's submissions. The one award received represents a 100% success rate in reaching our goal to double our zero grant awards for 2008. Several new applications are planned for submission in January of 2010.
6. Double our 2008 Donations revenue. This years total donations are up approximately 20% over 2008, but it was a good deal lower than the desired goal. This specific goal was a failure.
7. Conduct a successful Rose Festival combined with Garden Club Flower Show. A combined Rose Festival and Garden Club Flower Show was conducted successfully in May of 2009. This event will be repeated in 2010 and is expected to be a greater success than the 2009 event.
8. Expand the participation at the Last Rose of Summer event by 100%. We were able to increase the participation in the Last Rose of Summer fundraiser by 25%. Our goal was to sell 100 tickets, but we were only able to sell 60. This was a disappointment since a great amount of time and energy was expended in attempting to reach the goal. However, we were able to improve our method of advertising, planning, and developing membership participation in all aspects of the event, which should provide criteria for an even greater result next year.
9. Expand the capabilities of Rose Haven by installing trees to provide an outdoor educational area. Due to the failure to acquire a grant specifically aimed at the outdoor educational area no funds were available for the trees or outdoor educational area. We plan to resubmit our application for this specific project at the scheduled time frame. This specific goal was a failure.
10. Generate new revenues by presenting a win-win plan to potential donors. There is no specific evidence that this goal was either a success or failure. However, we have improved our image and our good will in the community. We were successful is generating new donations through the development of a process for preparing letters of introduction, requests for donations and follow up letters. Additionally, letters of appreciation and announcements of such donations to the public were initiated. A documented process and procedure has been prepared for the Awards Committee to implement in the future.

I want to take this opportunity to thank everyone for your support during the year.

I am confident that the new incoming society administration, with the help of an improved general economy, will be able to make even greater accomplishments in 2010.

Welcome New Board Members

The Rose Society has always done a great service in teaching and promoting all things roses. When the opportunity to create and maintain a Public Garden came the way of this group, everything changed. The dedication, challenge and creativity asked of both members and leadership became much more than an interest in roses, but a vision of what will be here when all the property is developed, all the lovely open space filled in. People who love the flowers have to be joined with the community, the public, the politicians and the corporations.

For these reasons we are grateful to our board of directors. They are not only our officers and leaders, but responsible members of a resourceful non-profit. The money you donate, the ideas and money they donate, are not just to continue the club but to continue the best public garden and open space in the city. To this end we all continue to recruit members and promote the garden. An interest in the outdoors and the things that live and grow there make us an endangered species, well worth nurturing and protecting.

Member Meeting Program

Our Christmas buffet luncheon will be served around noon. Guests are welcome.

December Birthdays

Florence Blacharski – 100 years young! Florence will be feted at the December meeting in honor of her 100th birthday. She has been a member of the Rose Society since 1992 and has been our Sunshine Lady, sending good wishes to our members for many, many years. This month the Society will honor her continuous dedication to TVRS with a special commendation. We invite everyone to join us in celebrating Florence's jubilee birthday. Happy birthday, Florence...and many more!

Other birthdays Roger Bell Frank Brines Charlie Brodbeck May Olson Don Nordike Kevyn Perry Jean Triplett Bernice Wendt Mary Ann Sakala.

Member Profile: Florence Blacharski

Florence and her family moved to Southern California from New Haven, Connecticut. Due to the dampness there she had developed chronic bronchitis and was told she had five years to live. They bought a home in San Bernardino and lived there forty years, raising a family (son Richard, and twin boys Peter and Paul). Husband Joseph was a C.P.A. and practiced there until he retired. The couple traveled around the world a couple of times and had some fine adventures. Florence went on an around-the-world cruise for her ninetieth birthday.

The Blacharskis did not plan to live in Temecula with their children, but when Joseph became ill the roof was raised on the home of son Dr. Paul and daughter-in-law Mary Lou in the avocado groves of De Luz. An apartment, complete with elevator, was constructed above the garage and Florence still resides there. The air is wonderful for her and the view a joy.

Florence discovered the Rose Society during a tour of Edie O'Hair's garden at least ten years ago and has been a member since. These last several years she has been our Sunshine Committee lady, sending get well and the monthly birthday greetings, but feels now she must give that up due to shaky handwriting. She is a wonder at her job and we thank her for her wonderful service and support of our group.

Welcome New Members

Thank You, Thank You

The Rose Society has always done a great service in teaching and promoting all things roses. When the opportunity to create and maintain a public garden came the way of this group, everything changed. The dedication, challenge and creativity asked of both members and leadership became much more than an interest in roses, but a vision of what will be here when all the property is developed, all the lovely open space filled in. People who love the flowers have to be joined with the community, the public, the politicians and the corporations.

For these reasons we are grateful to our Board of Directors. They are not only our officers and leaders, but responsible members of a resourceful non-profit entity. The money you donate, the ideas and money they donate, are not just to continue the club but to continue the best public garden and open space in the City of Temecula. To this end we all continue to recruit members and promote the garden. An interest in the outdoors, and the things that live and grow there, make us an endangered species, well worth nurturing and protecting.

Rose Haven Update

A cheerful group of volunteers planted daffodils along Cabrillo on a warm sunny morning in November then much to our surprise it rained just after Thanksgiving – as we had hoped. This Third Saturday project was easy and fun, and will bring glorious color to the area in dull February when the roses are dormant. Thank you to all who participated in the activity. Watch for more Third Saturday projects starting in January and come out and join in.

In early December the regular garden committee will meet and the focus will be planning the Entry area. As you may have heard, we are the delighted recipients of a Roripaugh Family Foundation Grant to develop a heritage garden adjacent to the entry. Bids are being sought for the project and several on the committee have impressive ideas. We certainly look forward to developing and beautifying our entry after waiting several years.

If you are looking for a quiet respite from Holiday activities, we invite you to visit Rose Haven. Some of our December days are warm enough for a picnic, and a walk up to the gazebo provides some exercise. The view from there is quite spectacular. An abundance of roses are still blooming, the succulents are at their best, and the pond is a tranquil delight. The address is 30500 Jedediah Smith Road, Temecula. Please refer to our website for additional information and photos.

Take a little time for leisurely visits to rose supplier web sites where you can research the varieties they're offering for next year, and order catalogues if you prefer hard copies. Oh, and you can order roses now too! It's always best to order early to make sure you get what you want. Also, when you're out and about, give yourself some time for a few quiet visits to plant nurseries and garden suppliers too. It can give you lots of ideas and you might find some bargains.

You still have time to follow last month's suggestions. Those included preparing the planting sites for new roses that you'll put into the ground in January or February. That advance preparation gives the soil a chance to settle down and become colonized by the good soil critters. You should also take some time to clear away debris on the soil surface. That will save you a lot of time and anguish later because it eliminates or reduces the presence of many diseases, harmful fungi, and other critters spending their winter vacations in your garden.

Because you want to signal to your roses that it's time to slow down and prepare for the spring, there are a few things you can just NOT do this month. For example, don't apply fertilizer this month; also, don't deadhead – just leave the spent flowers and their rose hips on the plants. And don't prune the stems; instead, wait until January or February.

I do encourage you to take a stroll through your garden just to keep appraised of its condition or need of any attention, and to imagine the great blooms you're going to have in the spring! Until next month, I wish you all the best holiday wishes!

For more ideas, visit TVRS' Rose Haven garden at 30500 Jedediah Smith Road, Temecula, as well as our web site: TemeculaValleyRosesociety.org/index.shtml.