The Bloomington Kiwanis Mother’s Day Flower Sale is this Wednesday-Saturday, May 5-8 at The Shoppes at College Hills. The sale is open each day from 9am-7pm. The Club holds this event every Mother’s Day weekend selling thousands of annual and perennial plants to the community. Here are some things you might not have known about the 90+ year old organization and its Mother’s Day Flower Sale.
1 Interesting Facts about the Sale. Mother’s Day weekend in this part of the United States is the frost-free date, so it’s safe to plant your gardens & pots then! Master Gardeners are on site to advise customers on plant selection, including what herbs to have on hand for enhancing foods and which vegetables to plant in pots. The plants are of the highest quality, provided by Wendell Niepagen Greenhouses.
2 Mother’s Day Flower Sale is now an annual event. Bloomington Kiwanis Mother’s Day Flower Sale began ten years ago. The Club holds this event annually on Mother’s Day Weekend, setting up shop in a big white canopy tent, located between Yankee Candle and Ann Taylor Loft at the Shoppes at College Hills. The sale offers a host of annuals, herbs, and vegetable garden plants.
3 Where the Idea Came From. One of the Bloomington Kiwanis Senior Members, John Kirk, visited a Kiwanis Club in Fairlawn, Ohio a few years ago and learned about the success of that club’s flower sale. Armed with their past experience in pulling all the elements together and learning that there was nothing like this happening in our twin cities, he brought the project to the Bloomington Club. The first sale was in 2010, loaded with all the things that can happen when you try something the first time – storms, winds, rain and running back to Niepagen’s for more flowers. With more experience, the Club has learned what the customers are looking for and adapted accordingly. It has fast become one of the most successful fundraisers for the Club’s signature project, Camp Limberlost, as well as other worthy projects for local children.
4 Raising Funds for Camp Limberlost. Proceeds from the Flower Sale go to helping local deserving children go to camp. Each summer, since 1930, Bloomington Kiwanis sends more than 100 local kids who have been identified by elementary school teachers as children who would benefit from a camping experience, to Camp Limberlost at Timber Pointe on Lake Bloomington. Camp Limberlost, the main signature service project of Bloomington Kiwanis, is supported by fundraisers throughout the year including Pancake Days, cheese sales, golf outings and individual donations.
5 Bloomington Kiwanis Club in its 101st Year
The Bloomington Kiwanis Club was formed in 1920 and has had many local community and business leaders as members and officers through the years. It is part of Kiwanis International, a service organization whose mission is to change the world, one community and one child at a time. The Club’s history includes the Kiwanis civic gardens project in the 1930s which received the Bloomington Business award. The Club meets every Monday at noon for one hour at Biaggi’s Italian Restaurant in Bloomington. Lunch and a program are included at each meeting. More information can be found at www.bloomingtonkiwanis.org .
