President Harriet Langford presented Ashantilly Center's 2017 Scholarship to graduating Senior Maya Campbell at the Awards Ceremony on May 18. Maya plans to attend Georgia State University in the Fall. Unbeknowst to us prior to awarding the scholarship, Maya's grandmother had worked at one time for the Haynes family (founder of Ashantilly). A hand-printed certificate was provided by the Ashantilly Press.
We are grateful for the generous donors who made this $1000 scholarship possible.
We are so excited about the work being done on Ashantilly's exterior. The vast improvement is awesome! We are so grateful to Sherwin Williams Company, and their representative, Gilford DeBenedetto, for their generous donation of materials for this project. And a special thanks to Tony Mathews Specialty Painting and Remodeling Services for their outstanding work and helping us to be able to do this! You guys rock!!
A big crowd gathered for Art in the Park during Darien's annual Blessing of the Fleet. Noel Gieleghem was on hand demonstrating the heritage craft of boondoggle. Sara printed over 400 small broadsides which were distributed to visitors to Ashantilly's booth. Donna and Harriet sold lots of T-shirts and books, and Cathy, Paul, David and Dave were on hand to help! Thanks to all for making this a successful outing!
New McIntosh County agent, Geoffrey Duesterbeck, was introduced to local farmers at McIntosh Farm Bureau's meeting held at Ashantilly. Farm Bureau's members also got a tours of the vegetable garden and Print Shop. We're glad to have Geoffrey here to help with all of the farming and gardening problems in the county!
Great Speakers, and great vendors, not to mention the limitless Mimosas (the non-invasive type) brought a crowd to Ashantilly for Coastal Wildscapes' Spring Native Plant Sale! McIntosh County's new County Agent, Geoffrey Duesterbeck, was on hand to introduce himself to these gardners and give information about programs that are available.
Coastal Wildscapes' Eamon Leonard presented an excellent talk on what to plant to attract birds to your yard. A packed crowd learned about plants and features to use in the landscape for birds, and then enjoyed a great lunch catered by Joye Hanrahan. It was definitely "for the birds"!
Ashantilly Center celebrates Scottish Heritage Month (March) with an annual Scotch Whisky Tasting. Tim Rutherford, our friend and supporter for many years, moved to Asheville NC and was not availble to lead this tasting. Vince Becker, of Habersham's Liquors in Savannah, came to the rescue! Vince did a great job of teaching participants about the finer qualities of this rich Scottish tradition. And give a shoutout to Habersham's for their generous discounts that helped make this fund-raiser successful!
A nice crowd attended the closing reception for Winter Residency artist, Laura Gardner. Guests were able to view the work she has done during her 3-week stay. We thank her for accepting and working so hard! Check the Center for some of her cards and broadsides.
Gracie Chandler talked about her book, her efforts to write it, and told stories from her birthplace, Sapelo Island. She was informative and very entertaining! A reception and booksigning followed her talk.
Joye Hanrahan again delighted guests with her magnificant High Tea! Bob Allison was again on hand to "tickle the ivories" and provide beautiful piano music during the tea. Great fun!!
