Community
Projects
The Elmhurst Garden Club has taken on a number of local projects that help to beautify our public spaces and support institutions across Elmhurst.
Discover how you can get involved to help us with these projects!
Elizabeth’s Friendship Walk
Herb Garden
This 8,800 square foot garden in Wilder Park is a joint effort between the Garden Club and the Elmhurst Park District. It contains over 50 varieties of culinary, fragrant, and medicinal herbs. The National Council of State Garden Clubs awarded it First Place for Landscape Design. Garden Club members meet in spring to plant, in summer to prepare for the Garden Walk, and in fall to prepare the garden for winter.
Garden Therapy
We help members of the Adult Day Care Center at Epiphany Lutheran Church make floral arrangements or prepare plants to take home. We meet on the third Wednesday of each month (except July and August) at 1:00 p.m.
York High School Garden Club
Our club is a sponsor and advisor to the York High School garden club. Our members help to educate and assist students in planning and growing a garden with emphasis on environmental issues and sustainability.
Ray Graham Elmhurst Community
Learning Center Garden
This sustainable garden project was designed from the ground up to help Ray Graham participants learn from it and enjoy its beauty. During our long-term partnership with Ray Graham, we have created a butterfly garden and a certified Monarch Waystation. We have also undertaken various landscaping projects and developed a greenhouse program at the Learning Center. Join us to see where our imaginations and resources take us next!
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.
Our topics are all related to nature in some way or another. We have studied birds and had a Senegal parrot, Noel, join us. We have had a Russian Box turtle, two Comfort Dog pups in training and butterflies from egg, caterpillar, chrysalis, to butterfly. We discover where these animals might live and what animal family they belong to.
We start out with some movement/music activities to get our brain’s working. We then move on to lessons which are hands on projects such as art, music, planting flowers, making arrangements and helping to recycle. Other topics we cover besides animals are senses, weather, flowers, trees and seasons.
Scholarships
We award annual scholarships to college and York High School students to study horticulture, environmental sciences, and other subjects related to natural resources. The York High School scholarship helps pay for summer programs in these subjects. The college scholarships are awarded to Illinois residents in their sophomore, junior, or senior years who major in these subjects. High School or College