Garden Walk Cancelled

Pandemic Interrupts Annual Fundraiser

By Jean Ercolani

Park Hill Garden Walk Organizer

June 28 would have marked the 20th annual Park Hill Garden Walk. However, instead of celebrating 20 years of this remarkable event, it is with great sadness that the Garden Walk Committee, in conjunction with the Greater Park Hill Community board, decided to cancel this year’s fundraiser.

Restrictions and continued uncertainty associated with COVID-19 drove us to this decision. The safety of our gardeners, artists, volunteers, attendees and the entire community is our top priority.

Generally every year, thousands of dollars in proceeds from the Garden Walk go to GPHC, Inc., a volunteer-based Registered Neighborhood Organization that promotes the character and vibrancy of Park Hill through its resources, information and advocacy, while preserving the quality of life and the history of the neighborhood through community participation.

These funds help support the RNO’s food programs, sustainability programs, the Greater Park Hill News and more. Without events such as the Garden Walk these programs will suffer. Therefore, we ask that you please donate to GPHC, Inc. directly (check out page 12 for instructions on how to do that, or online at greaterparkhill.org). Even small contributions are extremely helpful. Perhaps consider donating what you would have spent on your Garden Walk ticket. And remember, your donation is tax deductible.

We still hope to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the Garden Walk in some way. We’re currently cooking up what we think is a pretty cool idea, and will announce details in next month’s issue of the newspaper.

It goes without saying that the Garden Walk Committee is disappointed in this turn of events. We had several new artists joining the already amazing participating group of artists – some who have for many, many years. We also had nine stunning gardens, each with their own personality and uniqueness. Fortunately, nearly all nine gardeners have already committed to participating in next year’s event.