Laguna Beach Garden Club 2006 Grants

The Laguna Beach Garden Club general membership voted at the January 2006 meeting to award two grants of $10,000 each to Orange County Coastkeeper of Newport Beach and to El Morro Elementary School in Laguna Beach.

The OC Coastkeeper grant is funded by profits from sales of  our special edition book "The Secret Gardens of Laguna Beach".  The grant will be used to establish a demonstration garden at Rancho Mission Viejo on the Ortega Highway to educate homeowners, landscape contractors, and developers regarding environmentally responsible gardening and landscape maintenance.  For more information on Orange County Coastkeeper and the Coastkeeper Gardens, go to www.coastkeeper.org

The El Morro School grant is funded by general funds accumulated from several years of garden tours that netted more funds than budgeted for horticultural scholarships at Saddleback College and other club philanthropy (See current yearbook for list).  The funds will be used to construct a teaching garden for all elementary grade levels. 

"Our goal is to create a thriving garden that supports our curriculum, beautifies our campus and provides an opportunity for parent and community involvement", wrote school principal Chris Duddy, who submitted the grant proposal. 

In May 2006, at the Saddleback College Annual Scholarship Awards Ceremony, the Laguna Beach Garden Club awarded 4 scholarships of $500 each.  These scholarships are awarded in the areas of ornamental horticulture, landscape design, and environmental studies.