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Going Green.....and Orange and Lemon!
By Melinda Reed, Perfect
Petals
Melinda Reed of Perfect Petals donates her services for several charity
events. Here she shares one of her ideas about how you can make any event
sustainable.
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The grace and beauty of freshly arranged flowers set on beautiful
tables can feed all our senses, but can they also feed the hungry? The
answer is yes; if you are thoughtful, socially conscious, and careful
when you use green apples, lemons, and oranges. Wedding or charitable
event arrangements can have two lives! |
In 2003, Liz Vogel, of Facing History and Ourselves, and
I collaborated on table centerpieces for the group's first annual Bay Area
dinner event, held at the Crowne Plaza Cabana in Palo Alto. Facing History
and Ourselves is an international organization providing educators with
tools to help students in grades 7-12 make connections between history, ethics,
and citizenship as they consider moral questions. The annual dinner highlights
their many programs and showcases student art, speakers, and student essays in a
powerful presentation.
In the first year we created centerpieces using Granny Smith apples for their
fresh, cheerful color. I was able to incorporate the apples into floral
arrangements without either piercing or gluing them, so they remained pristine
and edible, perfect for donating them to a local charity after the event. The
food closet and kitchen at Urban Ministry of Palo Alto gratefully
accepted 13 cases of fruit for their families in need. Since that successful
first dinner, Liz; Jen Kim, Liz's successor; and I have teamed up to design
creative and colorful centerpieces, and we make the donation to the food closet
a priority, with flowers a minimal accent. The table's centerpieces dual
function also demonstrates a distinctive decision.
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Since then, Facing History's dinner attendees
have enjoyed different colorful and creative table arrangements, and the
staff from the organization knows they are spending their floral
decoration funds responsibly. This year we added fresh oranges and
lemons to the apples, enhancing the arrangements to our client's
delight, and pleasing the kitchen staff at Urban Ministry.
Brooke Scharnke, executive director of Urban Ministry Palo Alto,
reported that the staff rejoiced over the amount of the good-looking,
fresh fruit that was donated and the opportunity to provide it directly
to their clients. |
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Fresh fruit that is hardy and can be stored with minimal
refrigeration is very welcome and of course more desired than the sometimes
blemished garden produce that they also gracefully accept. The use of a
food product in a clean and deliberate method is an example of careful planning
that florists or decorators can emulate when planning any event, from a dinner
for a charitable organization to a wedding. A product that fills more than one
need, uses less energy and water, and contributes to sustainable resources
satisfies twice as much. Choosing to use multiple functions for beautiful decor
not only makes us enjoy the event but makes those choices responsible as well.
All green business names are links! |
