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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (RIDGELY, MD—JANUARY 30, 2007)

ARBORETUM NAMES BEVERLY GEMMILL 2007 VOLUNTEER OF THE YEAR

Growing up in Massachusetts, Beverly Gemmill and her mother had a deal: she would clean the house if her mother would tend the garden. “I didn’t like pulling weeds,” she recollects. “I always had some flowers in the yard, and I was interested in wildflowers, but that’s as far as it went.” In 2002, however, she took a walk that would captivate her senses, spark her desire to learn and set her on a course for a future she never would have imagined.

While exploring Tuckahoe State Park, Gemmill followed a trail peppered with spring beauty, a native flower she had never seen. “As soon as we saw a sign that said ‘Adkins Arboretum,’ the spring beauty were everywhere,” she says. “I just couldn’t get over it. It was one of the most beautiful sights I have ever seen.” A desire to know more about the flower led her to the Arboretum Visitor’s Center, where she signed up to become a member and a volunteer.

The discovery of spring beauty, and the volunteer opportunity that came with it, arrived at a critical juncture in Gemmill’s life. Preparing to retire from a 31-year career in nursing, she was concerned with staying active and vital in her community. “When I was busy with my career, I was busy with my career,” she says. “When I retired, I didn’t want to do nursing anymore, but I was afraid that my brain would turn to jelly. I wanted to find something that would challenge me.”

She began working in the native plant nursery and then enrolled in the Arboretum’s inaugural docent program. “The Arboretum is so wonderful about sharing and teaching,” she relates. “If you’re interested in something, you’re encouraged to go with it.” Conservation Curator Sylvan Kaufman and Gardener Buck Schuyler joined the Arboretum staff the same year that Gemmill became a docent, and she recalls a pleasant camaraderie as docents and staff learned together.

"Beverly's enthusiasm and love for learning inspire staff and visitors alike to take a fresh look at the plants around them,” notes Kaufman. From collecting specimens for the Arboretum’s herbarium, to potting, planting, and gathering seeds for the native plant nursery, writing articles for the Arboretum newsletter, and leading guided walks, Gemmill brings her trademark enthusiasm to every facet of her work at the Arboretum. “I get carried away with my enthusiasm,” she muses. “It’s both my cross and my badge. But the native plants captivate me. Gardening flowers are pretty, roses and camellias are beautiful, but native plants capture my imagination. I can’t just talk about a pawpaw; I have to tell about the butterflies as well.” (Pawpaw is the host plant of the zebra swallowtail butterfly and is the sole food source for the butterfly’s larvae.)

Her experience as a docent also led Gemmill to pursue Master Gardener training. She teaches classes about native plants and gardening in her home state of Delaware and earned the honor of 2005 Master Gardener of the Year for Kent County, DE. Her love of people and zeal for learning are evident whether she is leading a walk on the Arboretum’s trails or giving a presentation on seed propagation.

Gemmill was honored at the Arboretum’s annual Volunteer Appreciation Luncheon on Jan. 29. “I was surprised and pleased and honored,” she says of being named Arboretum Volunteer of the Year. “Volunteering here is a constant learning experience, and as a docent I want people to be interested in the Arboretum and to learn about what we have here,”

“Introducing the Arboretum to first-time visitors is one of the highlights of my volunteering,” she continues. “And with the Arboretum’s expansion plans for a new visitor’s center, we’ll have an even greater opportunity to bring the wonders of the Arboretum to more visitors.”

Gemmill lives in Felton, DE, with Walt, her husband of 47 years.

Adkins Arboretum is a 400-acre native garden and preserve at the headwaters of the Tuckahoe Creek in Caroline County. Open year round, the Arboretum offers educational programs for all ages about nature and gardening. Through its Campaign to Build a Green Legacy, the Arboretum will build a new LEED-certified Arboretum Center and entranceway to broaden educational offerings and research initiatives promoting best practices in conservation and land stewardship. For additional information about Arboretum programs, visit www.adkinsarboretum.org or call 410-634-2847, ext. 0.

                                       Beverly Gemmill was named Adkins Arboretum's

                                       Volunteer of the Year for 2007

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