New England Botanic Garden would not be where it is without the amazing support of so many in our community. In celebration of our long history, we’ve gathered stories from those who have been with us for more than 20 years. Explore these stories below!

Donna & Robert Chaff Specian
Submitted February 14, 2025

We have been members at Tower Hill for over 30 years and have enjoyed the Garden in every season. We have always wanted to host an event at the garden, and our daughter’s baby shower was the perfect opportunity. All went flawlessly and everyone had a great time. Baby Hayden was born in November, and we can’t wait to introduce him to all the pleasures of the New England Botanic Garden at Tower Hill.

Mary Fletcher
Submitted February 14, 2025

A fun memory I have of the old Horticultural Hall, back when it was on Elm Street, is one of my experiences as a fledgling member of the Worcester Garden Club. Thinking that I should get involved in horticulture, I volunteered to work on one of the flower shows there. My assignment: scrunching up newspaper and stuffing it in big dark trash bags to create mounds that would eventually be covered with lots of soil to look like little hills in the small garden “we” were designing. It was hands-on work for sure, and a nifty idea that made for a variation in heights in our entry. In addition to the work involved, there was lots of chaos and laughter, but when the colorful plant material was tucked into the soil, the resulting garden was quite splendid! I don’t recall the bag-stuffers getting much credit though…

Jodie Martinson
Submitted February 13, 2025

New England Botanic Garden has been such a special place for me and my late husband, David. As longtime members and supporters, we found so much joy in visiting, and it became a tradition to bring out-of-town guests there whenever they visited us in Northborough. There was something so wonderful about sharing the beauty of the Garden with friends and family. Some of my fondest memories go back to the plant shows in Horticultural Hall in Worcester. David and I loved seeing the incredible displays and connecting with others who shared our passion for plants. Those shows were a true celebration of horticulture, and they deepened our appreciation for everything the Garden offers. Even now, the Garden holds a special place in my heart. It’s filled with memories of time spent with David, and I treasure the beauty, peace, and inspiration it continues to provide.

Dawn Pettinelli
Submitted February 11, 2025

I used to work as a Master Gardener coordinator at UMass Cooperative Extension in Leicester. I also took the Master Gardener class in 1986, and John Trexler taught the tree and shrub one. We went on a walking tour in downtown Worcester near Horticultural Hall. I still remember the flower shows there.

Then, the flower show moved to the Centrum and the Master Gardeners helped out WCHS by having an “Ask the Experts” plant question table. It was fun to see Tower Hill get off the ground. I also volunteered as a docent at Tower Hill, around 1993 when Deb Hogan was there. I’m still a member and will probably be doing some volunteering as a MA Master Gardener this year.

Richard Kimball
Submitted February 11, 2025

My first involvement in the Garden was in the early days when the Lawn Garden was being constructed and the old dairy barn still stood. Joann [Vieira] organized what I believe was the first garden volunteer team. There was a small group organized to work on Saturday mornings. I don’t remember how I heard about it or got involved. We helped plant the smaller bushes and plants in the Lawn Garden, worked in the Cottage Garden, and aided in planting the trees of the original apple orchard. We were labeled the “Saturday Saints.” In those early days, after volunteering, Joann would take us on a walk through the property and talk about the then plans for the areas. Some of them came about, some didn’t. Eventually, this led to the creation of regular volunteer teams working throughout the week.

I was also involved in most of the special events, especially the plant sales each spring. One of my most vivid memories is of a plant sale down the slope where the tent pad is now. When the gates opened, a torrent of people poured down the slope, all pulling their little red wagons. I wish I had a camera for it. The early family days in the fall with hayrides and activities for children also stick out in my mind. I remember helping kids create scarecrows out of old clothes stuffed and hay.

Jennifer Rowe-Mitchell
Submitted February 11, 2025

We’ve been family-level members at the Garden for 35 years. Our children were quite small when we discovered this wonderful place, just 15 minutes from home. We loved the gardens but spent most of our time walking through the woods in those days. Always in awe at the constant changing of the landscape from season to season, week to week. Wintertime walks and snowshoeing through the woods were special favorites and a great way to de-stress from a busy work week. Summertime included picnics, bird watching from the little hide in the woods, swinging on the old garden seat, listening out for the tubular bells from the tall tree (which has long since blown down in a gale), always with cameras in hand.

As our kids got older, we got more involved in events, lectures, concerts on the lawn, and classes. But my favorite event was the Annual Plant Sale—to which we would drag not one, but two red wagons for our purchases. To this day, our garden is pretty well stocked from treasures purchased there each June.

NEBG continues to play a big part in our family’s lives. The grounds are constantly evolving, the woods ever beautiful, and now today I get to work hands on in these lovely gardens.

Doris O’Keefe
Submitted February 12, 2025

My father gave me a camera for my 10th birthday; I’ve had one, and often more than one, ever since. New England Botanic Garden has long been among my favorite places to go with my camera, and even more so as I’ve gotten older, since I don’t need to walk very far to find beautiful and interesting subjects. As I write this, there are more than 16,000 images in my photo library, with nearly 1,800 of them having been taken at Tower Hill. How to pick just a few to share? I loved the installation Wind, Waves and Light which was at Tower Hill in 2019. That year, I made it a goal to create a portfolio of images showcasing those sculptures for an exhibition that my photo group was planning for the spring of 2020. I made repeated trips to the Garden between April and October 2019, and created many images. From them I made a series of prints. Unfortunately, like so much else, the photo show was canceled at the onset of the pandemic. While I struggle to narrow down my selections to just a few to include with this story of the most memorable, and artistically productive, year at Tower Hill, I hope they bring joy to those who view them.

Linda and Norman Cohen
Submitted February 24, 2025

We have been going to Tower Hill for what we call our annual fall foliage picnic for many years with our good friends Barbara and George Bernardin. George Bernardin was an early supporter of Tower Hill and introduced us to Tower Hill Botanic Garden early on. We were always fortunate to find a round wooden table for our picnic on the right side of the building near the entrance. George and Barbara would provide the beverages and the dessert, and we would bring the sandwiches with the chips, snacks, and pickles. We were fortunate to have good weather most of the time and only had to move inside to the Bernardin kitchen in West Boylston on very few rainy days.

These group picnics began in the 1960s, before George and Norman graduated from law school. While our picnics started before Tower Hill became a reality, the moment we picnicked at the Garden, it became our place. Over the years, our children and grandchildren joined us. We even celebrated our 50th anniversary of fall foliage picnics with both the Bernardin and Cohen families in attendance. Our son purchased red commemorative shirts marking the occasion that had the dates 1960 to 2010 written on them as well as the reason for the celebration. And George found a clown to entertain us all on this very memorable day at Tower Hill.

George passed away a few years ago, but Norman and I still meet Barbara at the Garden for a fall foliage lunch in the café. We wander through the greenhouses and admire the several plants that are still in bloom outside. Sometimes we get to see an interesting exhibit. We are always pleased to have the opportunity to reminisce in this very beautiful setting and to exclaim over all that has been added over the years to make Tower Hill a very special destination for so many!