What began as a neighborhood hobby has blossomed into a legacy of beauty, generosity, and friendship.
For the last 50 years, the Cress Creek Garden Club has been planting and tending gardens at various locations around town, from the DuPage Children’s Museum to those at Veterans Park, the Judd Kendall VFW, and the Paw Paw House at Naper Settlement.
“I always thought, what a great sense of ownership working in this garden gave me, like I belong to such a vibrant community, and it’s such a great feeling,” said member Jerry Tice.
The roots of the Cress Creek Garden Club
In 1975, a group of about 30 neighbors in the Cress Creek subdivision planted the seeds for the club. Since then, it’s bloomed into a full-blown not-for-profit, now exceeding 100 members from all of Naperville and even other communities.
“I just thought it was just a friendly group, a welcoming group and what they did in the community was impressive and so I thought that was a place for me,” said club president Cindy Heibel.
Rooted in a shared love of all things flowers, the Cress Creek Garden Club also raises money through its annual plant sales. From last year’s sales alone, the group donated more than $16,000 to local charities and provided roughly $20,000 in scholarships to students studying horticulture and other environment-related fields.
“Our world is growing, and I feel our club has really helped out and a lot of these students have come back and helped us when we have fundraisers, and it’s very satisfying,” said member Barbara Williams.
Nurturing flowers and friendship
When they’re not busy nurturing plants and flowers, members of the group say they take time to nurture their friendships with one another.
“They remember your birthday. If you’re sick, they send you a get-well card,” said member Linda Coers. “And you know that somebody out there is thinking about you and then when we get together and you have the luncheons, it’s so great to see everybody.”
An award-winning club
This year, the Cress Creek Garden Club won 16 Garden Club of Illinois awards, including Garden Club of the Year.
“Those things are important to show how much we do, but what the ladies offer to the community is an award itself,” said Heibel.
In November, the club will host its official 50th anniversary celebration during its fall fundraiser at the Bolingbrook Golf Club.
“When you look at how transient life seems to be and how people are always moving on, the fact that an organization has been here for 50 years speaks so well of it,” said Tice.
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