We held our December meeting today although some of us couldn’t make it due to the ice storm in the central part of the state. Thanks to Dean Dittmar for the pictures.

Our speaker was Gwenne Hayes-Stewart, Executive Director, Gateway Greening – Gwenne graduated from the Kansas City Art Institute in 1969 and received a Masters in Art in 1971; and in Fine Art in 1972 from the University of Iowa. She has developed strong relationships with community development groups as well as many funding sources. Gwenne became a Master Gardener in Iowa City in 1984 where she served from 1979-1994 on the Project Green Steering Committee, an Iowa City group promoting greening in public spaces and schools, a prototype organization for U-City in Bloom. Gwenne currently is on the board of the American Community Gardening Association, where she serves as an officer on the Executive Committee.

The topic for today’s meeting was learning more about the Horticulture Co-op of Metro St. Louis, providing contemporary educational opportunities for green industry professionals and the general community.

We also held a HOLIDAY CANNED FOOD DRIVE with all proceeds to a local food bank.

Our next meeting will be a little different; we’ll be participating in the Missouri Governor’s Conference on Agriculture on Monday, January 7th, 2008 at the Millennium Hotel in downtown St. Louis.