Officers & Committees
The Elmhurst Garden Club is the largest garden club in Illinois. Our officers and committee chairs lead the club in exploring a wide variety of garden-related topics and coordinating our many projects and group outings in the community.
Browse the committee descriptions linked below:
Club Relations | Conservation & Education | Designs & Exhibits
E-Communications | Ray Graham Garden | Garden Therapy
Garden Walk & Faire | Herb Garden | Historian
Horticulture | Hospitality | House
Membership | Nature Therapy | Newsletter
Programs | Publicity | Scholarships
Ways & Means | York Community Garden Club | Cool Cities Coalition
Officers
Lynn Dowiarz
President
Debbie Kobiljak
1st VP (Programs)
Marsha Pniewski
2nd VP
(Ways & Means)
Jean Dirmish
Recording Secretary
Lillian Pagano
Treasurer
Committees
Club Relations
This committee send cards or floral arrangements to EGC members and their families in times of illness, a death, or other significant events. The committee is also responsible for welcoming new EGC members to the club and for facilitating their assimilation into the club. A new member coffee/tea may be held, during which new members can meet Committee Chairs and learn about EGC projects.
Diane Roubitchek
Chair
Louellen Rossi
Co-Chair
Conservation & Education
Conservation and Education promotes conservation and reports on environmental issues. It also organizes activities such as field trips, book discussions, and nature walks.
Deb Markello
Chair
Design & Exhibits
Designs & Exhibits provides floral arrangements for garden club events, including the holiday luncheon and the annual luncheon in April. Members can purchase arrangements made at our holiday luncheon. The committee also continues the long-standing tradition of putting up and taking down holiday decorations at the Elmhurst Public Library. The committee may also plan a design demonstration or workshop for club members or contribute floral arrangements for special events.
Shirley Swanson
Chair
Georgia Dolan
Co-Chair
E-Communications
E-Communications is responsible for the administration and updating of the club’s social media accounts and its web site. There are two co-chairs: one for social media, the other for the website.
Lillian Pagano
Co-Chair - Website
Karen Exiner
Co-Chair - Social Media
Garden Project at Ray Graham Community Learning Center
This committee began its work in 2014 to improve the back yard space for the clients of the learning center to enjoy and learn in a safe, peaceful, and accessible environment. The committee plants and maintains the gardens on the property and has undertaken many projects to enhance the experience of clients. This partnership with Ray Graham continues to grow each year.
Teri Litavsky
Chair
Garden Therapy
Garden Therapy members assist the clients of the Adult Christian Care Center at Epiphany Lutheran Church in making floral arrangements, which clients take home. We provide the clients with additional recreation and socialization opportunities and also give staff and caregiver support. The committee meets at Epiphany (Vallette and Spring Roads) on the second Wednesday of the month at 1:00pm, except for July and August.
Carol Rees
Co-Chair
Jane Moore
Co-Chair
Garden Walk and Faire
The Elmhurst Garden Walk and Faire is the club’s largest fundraiser. The walk features private gardens, public gardens, and a boutique Faire in Wilder Park. Proceeds go to various Elmhurst organizations and they fund our York High School and college scholarships. The chair is responsible for choosing and working with committee members to organize and present the Garden Walk and Faire on the second Sunday in July.
Lillian Pagano
Co-Chair
Ann Livingston
Co-Chair
Herb Garden
The Herb Garden Committee created an herb garden in a cooperative effort with the Elmhurst Park District. The herb garden was first established at Glos Memorial Park in 1980 and then moved to the formal gardens in Wilder Park in 1998. The committee works with the Park District to plant and maintain the herb garden. Committee members plant in the spring, maintain the garden several times in the summer, and prepare the garden for winter in the fall.
Mary Getty
Chair
Historian
The Historian is responsible for keeping and maintaining historical records and artifacts significant to the club. The Historian honors deceased members by preparing a eulogy, which is presented in the club newsletter or at a club meeting, and contributes to the Woman of the Year proclamation. Elmhurst Garden Club honors active members with 30 years of membership in the club with a brick installed in the Friendship Garden Walk at Wilder Park. The Historian keeps a record of who qualifies for a brick and coordinates the purchase and installation of the brick with Elmhurst Park District.
Donna Frederickson
Chair
Horticulture
The Horticulture Committee reports on current horticultural issues. Information may be presented at club meetings or in the monthly newsletter. The committee also organizes horticultural events outside of the club’s regular meetings, which may include field trips and an annual members-only garden walk in June.
Carol Doyle
Chair
Hospitality
The Hospitality Committee is responsible for coordinating the food and beverage services at our regular meetings. This includes recruiting monthly hostesses and advising them of their responsibilities, setting up the coffee/tea/water service, storing the clubs’ formal tablecloths, and monitoring and purchasing supplies.
JoAnne Carlson
Chair
Tiny Halloren
Co-Chair
House
House is responsible for setting up the rooms for our regular meetings at Wilder Mansion and is a liaison between EGC and the Elmhurst Park District’s manager of Wilder Mansion.
Jeanne Reder
Chair
Christine Seroka
Co-Chair
Membership
Membership committee members greet members and guests, provide name tags, and welcome new members at meetings. The committee is responsible for collecting dues and membership forms. In May, the membership roster is updated and sent to Garden Clubs of Illinois. The chair maintains a record of active members. The committee provides contact information for new members in the newsletter and maintains the data history (contact information, photo, and an activity log) for each member. The chair is responsible for printing the Membership Directory in August and distributing the Membership Directory at the September meeting.
Gina Horn
Chair
Kelly Goldstein
Co-Chair
Newsletter
The Newsletter chair collects, assembles, and distributes the club newsletter to the membership every month except July and August.
Anna Bridgman
Chair
Lynn Dowiarz
Chair
Nature Therapy
Nature Therapy is a partnership between Elmhurst Garden Club (EGC) and Ray Graham Association (RGA). The RGA serves people with special needs. Eight to twelve adults participate on the third Wednesday of the month year round. We meet at the Ray Graham Elmhurst Community Learning Center located at 420 E. Madison in Elmhurst. Our lessons are inside and outside depending on the weather and topic.
Publicity
The Publicity chair is responsible for creating public awareness of club meetings, special events, outings, and various club projects through the press and online media. Publicity regarding the EGC Annual Garden Walk and Faire held in July is an essential responsibility of this committee.
Susan McCoyd
Chair
Scholarships
The Scholarship Committee administers the two annual Elmhurst Garden Club scholarship programs: (1) the York High School Summer Exploratory/Experiential Scholarship and, (2) the college scholarships. This work includes revising and disseminating the publicity flyer and applications for both scholarships, receiving student applications online and by mail, selecting scholarship winners, and communicating with scholars throughout the year. The committee also prepares for the annual Meet the Scholars Lunch and Program at the March Garden Club member meeting.
Joyce Murphy
Chair
Programs
The First Vice President is responsible for formulating programs for the club’s monthly meetings. This Vice President works with the chairs of Conservation and Education, Horticulture, and Designs and Exhibits for program suggestions. She coordinates program requirements with the chair of the House Committee and introduces the program speakers. She attends the annual District II Programs Meeting for program ideas. She also organizes the Annual Spring Luncheon. She orders a President’s pin from National Garden Clubs for presentation to the out-going president at the Annual Meeting or another event at the end of the term of office.
Debbie Kobiljak
Chair
York Community High School
Garden Club
Committee members serve as consultants and mentors to York Garden Club, a Junior Club of EGC. This committee supports and partners with the YGC teacher advisors on all facets of gardening. During the school year, YGC meets on Wednesdays after school. Our weekly meetings in the summer are on Wednesday mornings.
Laurie Loresch
Chair
Joyce Murphy
Co-Chair
Elmhurst Cool Cities Coalition
Elmhurst Garden Club sends a representative to the Cool Cities meetings. Cool Cities and EGC share many of the same objectives and occasionally work together.
Mary Getty
Representative
Ways and Means
The Ways and Means Committee raises funds for the internal affairs of the club. One example of a fundraising event is the sale of raffle tickets for baskets we assemble for the December and April luncheons. Other fundraisers occur throughout the year.
Marcia Pniewski
Chair
Eileen VanDeWalle
Chair