New Jersey’s oldest garden club is celebrating 120 years of history this year.
According to Haddonfield Garden Club’s records, Mrs. Johns Hopkins (Mary Gill Hopkins) founded the club in 1906. Mary was the daughter of John Gill V, a descendant of the founder of Haddonfield (Elizabeth Haddon), whose English father bequeathed the land to his daughter.
The first meeting had 11 friends and relatives at Mary’s summer home, known as Tavistock. The first president was Mrs. John Gill Willits. The purpose was to exchange ideas on flowers and gardens and preserve the natural beauty of the area.
Of the 12 original charter members, many were Quakers or inter-related farmers. Ten of the 12 members have been identified. There are connections to the World Women’s Christian Temperance Union and the Daughters of the American Revolution.
In 1925 the New Jersey State Federation of Garden Clubs was organized, and the Haddonfield Garden Club was one of the charter members.
“Gardening and learning about related subjects is becoming popular, especially as climate change is affecting our weather and people are more cognizant of where their food is sourced from,” said incoming co-vice president Angela Toledo. “Residents of Haddonfield and surrounding towns love having beautiful landscapes and are excited to learn about how to create their own spaces that attract birds and butterflies, use less natural resources, and help the local ecosystem.”
The group has worked on several beautification projects over the years, including: providing floral arrangements weekly to the Haddonfield Public Library; designing, planting, watering, and maintaining 24 concrete urns on Kings Highway in the business district as part of a beautification plan for Haddonfield since 1972; designing, watering, and maintaining the Blue Star Memorial Marker Garden in front of Borough Hall to honor all veterans (the memorial was spearheaded by Jeannette Glennon on behalf of the club and commemorated in November 2020); decorating the Haddonfield library for Christmas and New Year’s; and designing, watering, and maintaining the herb garden at the Historical Society of Haddonfield, highlighting plants that would have been in use in colonial times (headed by Mike Gotwols).
Over the years, the Haddonfield Garden Club has played an important role in securing the public art sculptures for which Haddonfield has become known. HATCH (Haddonfield Acts to Create Hadrosaurus foulkii) was established by the club in 2000, with three club members and a committee of volunteers spearheading the effort to create a sculpture of Hadrosaurus, the first nearly complete dinosaur skeleton found in North America. William Parker Foulke discovered it in a Haddonfield borough marl pit in 1858. Its head was never recovered.
MaryClare Malady, the outgoing club president, recalled that the Garden Club commissioned local sculptor John Giannotti to create an artwork of the dinosaur. “Mr. Giannotti also welcomed local students to his West End Avenue studio, where they assisted with adding clay to the sculpture, creating a meaningful community connection to the project.”
Giannotti sculpted Haddy in bronze. It is located at the corner of Kings Highway and Lantern Lane.
In October 2003, Malady coordinated a parade along Kings Highway from the PATCO station to Lantern Lane to celebrate Haddy’s unveiling. Malady recalls purchasing 25 dinosaur costumes at Cherry Hill Mall for kids to wear as they led the parade to the unveiling ceremony.
Another sculpture at the library of a little boy reading atop of the world globe was donated by Patricia Gargano, past Haddonfield Garden Club president, in memory of her husband, Angelo, who died in 2010.
Members have also participated in the Philadelphia Flower Show, including Hospitality Chair Cathie McGeehan, who represented the club with her beautiful African violets.
Haddonfield Garden Club members have participated in Earth Day activities held at Kings Court, along with other environmentally-focused groups such as the Shade Tree Commission. “Local kids and families delighted in seeing the display, which included a ladybug exhibit showcasing the life cycle of these creatures who benefit gardens by eating pests,” Toledo said.
Recently, the Haddonfield Garden Club participated in decorating the Indian King Tavern Museum, a building of historical significance since colonial times, as part of America’s 250th celebration.
“The spirit of our club is really helping people get those moments of joy,” Toledo said. “[Gardening] makes you slow down and appreciate the present … and takes us out of stress and the hustle and bustle. … It gives us a little lift in our day.”
Membership Duties
The current iteration of the club has 61 members, and the executive officers starting their two-year terms this June are Carol Larro, president; Elaine Shipko and Angela Toledo, co-vice presidents; Jeannette Glennon, treasurer; James Foy, recording secretary; and Jeanette Leeds, corresponding secretary.
The officers for the previous two-year term, from 2024 to 2026, were MaryClare Malady and Jennifer Fuller, co- presidents; Elaine Shipko and Mary Kaufman, co-vice presidents; Jeannette Glennon, treasurer; Jeannette Leeds, corresponding secretary; and Mike Gotwols, recording secretary.
Malady — who joined almost 29 years ago — shared a funny story from years ago: She was planning to enter a 4-inch mini arrangement into a flower show. However, the morning of the show, the rose bud had opened to 7 inches wide. She had to run out into the garden before submitting her entry and add smaller buds so that she would qualify. And she won!
She also recalled another flower show entry that asked for forsythias to be part of a fairy tale-themed exhibit. She kept the flowers in a bathtub for two weeks, and every day clipped the bottom of every branch. Joking that the plants were her “fourth baby,” she was proud to have her hard work displayed during the Philadelphia Flower Show.
“It’s the challenge of a blank canvas,” she said of creating gardening displays.
The Garden Club has its own annual yearbook, which received the Certificate of Merit with Gold Seal from The Garden Club of New Jersey.
Many members of the Haddonfield Garden Club are Master Gardeners, including their award-winning yearbook editor Jane Berkowitz, who is also a member of the Shade Tree Commission, and Hospitality Committee member Kathy Boyle Linnehan.
Aside from the yearbook, the Garden Club also has a monthly gardening tip sheet, which Shipko creates and shares with the group at meetings.
Members are also active in many civic-minded and cultural groups in Haddonfield, including the Lions Club, Rotary Club, Art Goes to School program, The Greater South Jersey Choir, and the Historical Society.
Doug Rauschenberger — who was only the second male to join the garden club, and one of seven — is the designated historian for the Borough of Haddonfield. He also was the first male president, serving from 2015 to 2017, and was part of the initiative to clear Hopkins Pond of English ivy.
More Club Initiatives
Club members support the community outside of the garden, too. Since 1997, every year a Haddonfield High School student pursuing a career in horticulture or related fields has been honored with a $1,000 scholarship.
Their main fundraiser each year is the Mother’s Day Bouquet and Plant and Herb Sale, held on the Saturday before Mother’s Day in Kings Court. It is chaired by Toni Caruso and Karissa Simon.
“We sell beautiful arrangements created by our members, low-cost herbs, and perennials from member gardens. It’s a great way to meet local residents and share our knowledge and love of nature and plants in a friendly community-building activity,” Toledo said.
They also foster a sense of their own camaraderie by planning a yearly bus trip to visit a historic garden. Members and non-members alike have traveled to Winterthur Garden in Delaware, Andalusia Historic House, Gardens, & Arboretum in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, and Mt. Cuba Center in Delaware.
Joining the Club
The Haddonfield Garden Club meets from September to June, from either 12 to 2 pm or from 6:30 to 8:30 pm (evening meetings are twice a year), on the second Tuesday of the month, at either Lutheran Church of Our Savior, 204 Wayne Ave., or Grace Episcopal Church, 19 Kings Highway East.
Seven general meetings are open to the public, and members and guests alike learn about current gardening topics.
The club welcomes members from Haddonfield and the surrounding communities. There are members who are retirees, stay-at-home moms, working professionals — basically anyone who wants to experience the joy of gardening.
Toledo joked that you’re not really a gardener until you’ve killed at least 10 plants — so she encourages anyone with an interest to check out the club.
Every year, Haddonfield Garden Club holds a joint meeting with the Moorestown and Medford (Pinelands) area garden clubs. “These are fun events that expand the network of garden-loving folks to our greater South Jersey region,” Toledo said.
