Garden Club raises funds for hospice courtyard

6/30/2011

Sunflower bid cards waved in the air as women vied for pottery lamps, paintings, sculptures, spa packages and numerous other auction items June 20 during the Mountain View Garden Club’s third biannual “A Celebration of Herbs” at the Laurel Ridge Country Club’s pavilion.

Proceeds raised from the event will be donated to The Homestead, an inpatient hospice center currently under construction on property adjacent to the MedWest-Haywood hospital campus in Clyde. About $7,000 was raised by the brunch and auction to purchase plants, shrubs and trees for the gardens at The Homestead.

The keynote speaker for the event was Nancilee Wydra, who spoke about “Designing Garden Spaces.”

A garden can serve several purposes, Wydra said. It can offer relaxation, empowerment, connections, healing, acknowledge life transitions and be a place of joy and play.

“When designing a garden space, consider the emotional benefit; define thresholds, pathways and edges; and add the element of mystery with elevation, curves or streams,” Wydra said.

Factor in distance, light, motion and diagonal lines to provide more interest in a garden, she said.

“The places we inhabit affect the way we act, interact and react,” Wydra said. “When sequestered, we are separated from nature and don’t feel as content or alive.”

The gardens at The Homestead, scheduled to open in November, will allow residents to continue to experience nature. Each private patient room will have French doors that will allow access to an outdoor patio to enjoy fresh air and peaceful views. The courtyard will feature perennial and annual flowers and plants, as well as deciduous and evergreen shrubs and trees.

“We appreciate the generous contribution by the Mountain View Garden Club to help landscape The Homestead gardens, which we know will be enjoyed by patients and their families and guests. This indeed will be a place of relaxation and healing,” said Jenny Williams, Director of Hospice & Palliative Care Services of MedWest Health System.

The atmosphere of the six-room Homestead facility will be homelike, with provisions for family members and pet visitation.

Wydra is founder of the Pyramid School, a consulting company that gives practical application of Eastern philosophies and thought as applied to the Western way of life. She is a consultant for developers, businesses and individuals across the country. She is also the co-founder of the Feng Shui Institute of America and the author of nine books, giving practical instruction on everything from designing corporate board rooms to the design of indoor and outdoor gardens.