Today we’d like to introduce you to Sweetwater Oaks Garden Club.
Hi Sweetwater Oaks, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Fifty one years ago, a small group of women in the then-new Sweetwater Oaks community decided to start a garden club. Mostly transplants from up north, they wanted to help each other deal with the strangeness of Florida: the heat, the humidity, the sun. They wanted to beautify their neighborhood.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
The club has grown to be a small but determined group of about 60 people. Covid was difficult for us, we couldn’t have the events that we need to support our scholarship fund. We exist primarily to help each other learn about plants and to support the students that depend on our scholarships.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
We are so proud that our Garden Fair is all about strengthening our community and supporting small businesses. Our vendors are local growers, small area farmers and neighborhood craftspeople. We showcase unique flavors from our independent food trucks, specialty cuisine creators, and artisans offering flavors of their heritage. Some of our vendors are absolute first-timers and we’re especially proud of them and their entrepreneurial spirit.
We can still offer the event admission for free, because the Garden Fair vendors and sponsors are supporting our scholarship fund. The fund is dedicated to UF horticultural students that are foreign students or part-time, a group that doesn’t usually qualify for scholarships. The fund also pays for less privileged area students to attend Camp Wekiva and encounter Central Florida nature, some for the first time. We are proud that our venue is handicapped accessible unlike most other garden events.
Any big plans?
We are working hard to keep all our costs low so as much money as possible can go to our scholarship fund. It’s difficult with insurance costs, venue fees, even port-a-potty rental going up. But so far our sponsors have been amazing. We have been keeping our Garden Fair booths as inexpensive as possible so that very small vendors can still afford to attend and find their community. In the future, we’d like to somehow include local musicians in our Garden Fair
Pricing:
- Admission is free
- Parking is free
- Donations gratefully accepted
Contact Info:
- Website: https://SWOGC.org
- Instagram: Sweetwater_oaks_garden_club
- Facebook: Sweetwater Oaks Garden Club
Image Credits
Adam Fichthorn
