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GEORGINA MENTIS
by Cloverleaf Garden Club Webmaster
Mr. Art Drysdale wrote the following article dedicated entirely to our beloved Georgina.
"..., Georgina Mentis passed away on Thursday night, September 4 (2003). She had been suffering badly from cancer for the last year or more. The last time I talked to her was in June, when I suggested she come on my programme and talk about peonies--one of her fondest loves in the garden. But she declined because she wasn’t feeling well at all.
Georgina must have been born with a sense of wonder. She had passion like no one else I have known, except perhaps the late Lois Wilson, author of the 1969 Chatelaine Gardening Book. Geo, in addition to her passion, was fearless. If she saw a problem or an injustice, and she was ever so observant, she wouldn’t rest until it was fixed, no matter what had to be done...
Her knowledge of plants, and of decorative flower arranging was just superb. She started into flower arranging when she first joined the Cloverleaf Horticultural Society back in the late 50s. Here’s how she put it herself just a few years ago: “In 1950, my husband and I moved from Toronto, where I was born, to the Village of Port Credit, numbering a little over 3,000 people. We built a house that needed a garden. Cloverleaf Horticultural Society had an American Judge as President in 1956 and she gave an exciting Christmas demonstration that so intrigued me I was eager to become a member of the group. Life in a smaller community meant that the executive had to have a discussion as to whether a person with a foreign background, such as I, would be allowed to join the club. Fortunately, their decision put me on the garden path.”
She absolutely excelled at flowering arranging, and became a great teacher of it for others. She had a Greek background and found learning the plant names came very easily. And she certainly knew her plants. She was hard to stump!" Click here for full article.
This article, entitled "Georgina Mentis", was published on September 14, 2003 in www.icangarden.com, and re-printed here with permission from Mr. Drysdale. (2011-05-01) |
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