The Diboll Garden Club 1960-2020
Introduction
In April 2020, the Diboll Garden Club celebrates their 60th anniversary and The History Center is happy to help them commemorate this milestone with this online exhibit.
On April 22, 1960, nine Diboll women met in the home of Marge Shepherd to organize the Diboll Garden Club. The women elected Mrs. Shepherd as Chairman Pro Tem and agreed to meet again with prospective members at the Pine Bough restaurant the next month. At the first official meeting, members elected Marge Shepherd as President, Eloise Hanks as Vice President, and Pearl Hoot as Secretary-Treasurer. According to a club history written in the 1990’s, charter members included Alice Dale, Maggie Donahoe, Beth Denman, Jimmie Beth Durham, Janice Fulmer, Gertie MaeLawrence, Pris Magill, Helen McGee, Ruth McMullen, VirginiaNelson, Viola Smith, Teresa Neville, Esther Weber, Pearl Ramsey, Molly Jo Temple, Flava Vaughn, and Carolyn Wood.
Through its history, the Diboll Garden Club has organized projects to promote the beautification of the city, its homes, and its gardens, and promote conservation. Some of their projects have included landscaping around school campuses and city buildings and road medians, beatifying parks, and working with the local nursing home to provide landscaping and benches. The club promoted and organized Arbor Day celebrations, helped plant trees to celebrate the Bicentennial, raised money for the library, and for many years club members created hanging baskets for the road median light poles and decorated them for Christmas. They also decorate the Diboll Day Queen parade float and a club float every two years. The club sponsors a “Yard Beautiful” contest each summer. The city’s designation as a “Tree City USA” and a bird sanctuary is due in large part to the hard work of the Diboll Garden Club’s members.
The Diboll Garden Club is still an active organization that continues to work for the beatification of the city and the edification of its members.
Members of the Diboll Garden Club, December 07, 1961. Seated left to right: Marge Shepherd, Beth Denman, Carolyn Wood, Eloise Hanks, Virginia Nelson, Esther Weber, Alice Dale. Back row: unidentified, Johnnie Barrington, Pearl Hoot.
Diboll Garden Club won first prize in the civic club division of the Diboll Day parade, 1962. Club members designed and constructed the float, which consisted of 3,000 handmade pink and blue roses.
Garden club representatives Marge Shepherd, Pearl Ramsey, Virginia Nelson, and Eloise Hanks plant a tree in January 1962.
Diboll Garden Club officers for 1964-65 were (left to right) Bettye Greer, secretary; Birdie Pate, treasurer; Mary Gable, vice president; and Maggie Donahoe, president.
Diboll Garden Club members held their annual Christmas Party at The Pine Bough Restaurant in December of 1964. Members seated: Virginia Nelson, Carolyn Wood, Marjorie Shepherd, Bettye Greer, Mary Gable, Maggie Donahoe, Birdie Pate, Eloise Hanks, Louise Lindsay, Viola Smith and Alice Dale. Standing: Ruth Curry, Beth Denman, Martha Fitzgerald, Shirley Blake, and Rosa Mae Garrett.
The Garden Club’s entry in the 1966 Diboll Day parade.
The Diboll Garden Club held their December 14, 1967 meeting at the Pine Bough Restaurant. Hostesses were Mrs. Manning Garrett, Mrs. Shepherd and Bettye Greer. Beautiful decorations emphasized the Christmas theme and members received miniature toy drums as favors. Everyone brought a bag of cornmeal for the box to be given to the needy. Bettye Greer poses with the decorations.
Diboll Garden Club members attended the 11th annual Historical Tour of Natchitoches, Louisiana. In this image, Birdie Pate, Alice Dale, and Viola Smith enjoy the gardens at the Melrose Plantation with hostess Dr. Colleen Nelken, member Marge Shepherd’s sister.
Diboll Garden Club’s float won first place in the civic division during the 1968 Diboll Day parade.
In this official proclamation, the City of Diboll proclaimed the week of October 14-19, 1968 as Civic Pride and Beautification Week in the City of Diboll, Texas.
The Diboll Garden Club float placed second in the 1970 Diboll Day parade.
The Diboll Garden Club installed its new officers on May 28, 1970. New officers include (left to right) Mrs. Charles Donohoe, treasurer; Mrs. Bill Oates, secretary, Bonnie Faircloth, vice president; Mrs. Henry Holubec, president. Mrs. Margaret Pickett installed the officers at the Pine Bough Restaurant.
Diboll Garden Club members visited Hodges Gardens near Many, Louisiana in October of 1971.
The theme for the Diboll Garden Club’s 1974 Diboll Day parade float was "Diboll Women - Then & Now."
Billie Oates installed new officers at the May 1974 meeting of the Diboll Garden Club. Left to right: Billie Oates, Vivian Holt, Marge Jennings, Nancy Weber and Phyllis Burnett.
Nan Miller, James Jennings, Beth Denman, Geneva Jordan, and Irene Paulsey hosted the December 1975 Diboll Garden Club Christmas luncheon.
The Diboll Garden Club presented a new guest register and huge potted plant to South Meadows Nursing Home on December 18, 1975. Making the presentation were Phyllis Burnett and Margaret Pickett of the Civic Projects Committee; President Nan Miller, South Meadows Administrator Jo Nell Placker and Civic Project Chairman Billie Oates.
Mrs. Clyde Thompson (left) and Margie Jennings (right) ride on the Diboll Garden Club’s “Sail on America” themed float during the 1976 Diboll Day parade.
In September 1976, the Diboll Garden Club presented a check for $100 to Ellen Temple, chairman of the Town Enhancement Committee, to help buy 200 live oak trees to be planted by the committee. Pictured from left are City Manager Jeff Holberg, Ellen Temple, and Diboll Garden Club President Louise McKinney.
On October 25, 1979, members of the Diboll Garden Club and the Flower Gardeners held a joint meeting to hear a program presented by Barbara Sample of Everything Grows. Mrs. Sample, left, with hostesses Charlotte McClintock, Ruth Currie, Flava Vaughn, Beth Denman and Lil Sweeny.
An Sweeny, left, president of the Flower Gardeners, installed the Diboll Garden Club’s new officers for the 1980-1981 program year at the May 1980 meeting. Pictured (left to right) next to Mrs. Sweeny are Jeanne Crager, president; Sophie Lenderman, vice-president; Lorene Chance, secretary; and Irene Paulsey, treasurer.
Diboll Garden Club members constructed a flowery float and won first place in the civic division of the 1984 Diboll Day parade. Pictured here on left in pink is Judy Gartman and the driver of cart is Diane Garrett.
Diboll Garden Club’s 1985-1986 program year officers, from left: Sim Gowan, President; Edythe Weeks, Vice-President; Jean Rowe, Secretary; Glenda Shepherd Treasure.
On January 17, 1986, the Diboll Garden Club celebrated Arbor Day by planting a magnolia tree at Forest Haven Cemetery. Pictured, from left to right: Mr. McKinney, Nan Miller, unidentified, Sim Gowan, Mr. Shepherd, Vernon Cupit, Louise McKinney, Oneta Hendrick, unidentified, Dick Hendrick. Mrs. Marge Shepherd is kneeling.
The Civic Project Committee of the Diboll Garden Club landscaped the entrance of Diboll High School with help from the Lions Club, Pilot Club, Booster Club and Temple Inland. Pictured from left to right: Geneva Ard, Raymond Macias, Alan Miller, Jack Beene, Sophie Lenderman, Vernon Cupit, Dave Martinez Sr. and Mozelle Devereaux.
Members of the Diboll Garden Club donated a new flag to the South Meadows Nursing Home in 1991. Shown at the presentation are (from left) Virginia Nelson, Nan Miller, President Mozelle Devereaux, Billie Oates, Mollie Middlekauf, Civic Projects Chairman Dee Hodsden, Oneta Hendrick, Louise McKinney, Administrator Jo Nell Placker, Aline Stovall, Flava Vaughn, and Jessie Conner.
Diboll Garden Club members stand in front of the citizens' memorial in the Forest Haven Cemetery on February 25, 1993 after planting new shrubbery around the base of the monument. Pictured from left to right: Mozelle Devereaux, Edythe Weeks, Aline Stovall, Jessie Conner, Billie Oates and Oneta Hendrick.
Members of the Diboll Garden Club donated two benches to South Meadows Nursing Home in September 1993. Pictured sitting from left to right: Sophie Lenderman, Connie Courtney, Flava Vaughn, Louise McKinney. Pictured standing, from left to right: Virginia Nelson, Oneta Hendrick, Mozelle Devereaux and nursing home administrator Jo Nell Placker.
Pictured here are the Diboll Garden Club officers for the 1995-1996 program year. Treasurer Jessie Conner, Vice-President Nan Miller, President Clara Breazeale, Secretary Edythe Weeks, and Connie Courtney.
Diboll Garden Club members decked out in their Halloween finery for the meeting in October 1998.
The Diboll Garden Club met at the T.L.L. Temple Memorial Library in September 2000. Hostesses were Ann Cady, Mozelle Devereaux and Edythe Weeks.
Jonathan Gerland of the T.L.L. Temple Memorial Library and Archives presented the Diboll Garden Club’s January 2001 program. He is pictured here with hostess Oneta Hendrick (left) and Jessie Conner (right).
Garden Club members enjoyed the informative tour of Millard’s Crossing in October 2003. Here members learn about education in an early 1900’s school room.
The Diboll Garden Club enjoyed lunch at Storybook Inn on February 28, 2005. Eating outdoors on the patio shaded by a huge old oak tree are, left to right: Ginger Capps, Sandra Medley, Peggy Burt, Sandra Pouland and Jo Ann Rainwater.
Peggy Burt installed officers at the May 2008 Garden Club meeting. The tea party theme and program emphasized the benefits of tea for the body, soul, and mind. Each officer was presented a china teacup and the president a tea pot. Pictured left to right in their “Mad Hatter’s Tea Party” attire are Peggy Burt, Sue Beaty, treasurer; Billie Willmon, secretary; JoAnn Rainwater and Sandra Pouland, vice-presidents and Ginger Capps, president.
Diboll Garden Club members enjoyed the extraordinary beauty of the Azalea Trails on March 22, 2011.Pictured from left: JoAnn Rainwater, Kathy Sample, Betty Hendrick, Dolly Whitaker, Bettye Greer, Garvis Baldree, Chubby Slack, Gay Storch and Carolyn Hutson.
Diboll Garden Club members, Christmas 2010.
On March 27, 2012 Garden Club members enjoyed a memorable trip to Jasper to see azaleas and a gourmet lunch at La Paz Bed and Breakfast. Left to right top row: Kathy Sample, Gay Storck, Cheryl Kenney, and Susan Schinke-Pearce, Middle row: Barbara Wynn, Carolyn Hutson, Dolly Whitaker, and Billie Robinson. Front row: Gloria Neel, Garvis Baldree, Bettye Greer, Joyce Carr and Linda Miller.
