Hello fellow green space enthusiasts! Ever heard of Gardendale Country Club? Probably not -- unless you were born and raised in the late 1950s and early 1960s in Delano, Minn., about 30 miles west of Minneapolis. Gardendale Country Club was created by my twin brother Dan and I on our hobby farm when we were youngsters.
The sign included with this piece is the actual sign we painted back then to draw crowds to the club. It was a nine-hole whiffle-ball course, complete with flags and tees. The holes swung around the chicken barn, the clothesline, the pump house, and various other locations. We had a great time cutting fairways and greens and tees with the lawn mower (Lawn Boy as I recall).
Friends would come out to the country from town to play, as we whiled away the hours pretending to be Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player, Arnold Palmer, Billy Casper, Tom Weiskopf and others. Sorry, we didn't have any females playing with us or we would have added Patty Berg and a few others to the list.
You see, well-managed green spaces have always been a part of my life. We graduated from whiffle-ball golf when I was 13 to a new nine-hole golf course that opened five miles away. We would tie our used golf clubs on the back of our bikes with twine string, then head off to Crow Greens Golf Club. It was built out of an old cow pasture. Kinda played like one too, but we didn't care. It was a real golf course.
Why am I reminiscing? Because Project EverGreen, which created Yard Enthusiasts of America, recently announced its Because Green Matters Award winners for 2007. They are Verandah, Bonita Bay Group's master-planned golf community near Fort Myers, FL; and the Evergreen Marriott Conference Resort/Stone Mountain Golf Club near Atlanta. Each of these two properties have thoroughly integrated promotion and preservation of green spaces into their planning. "Wow" is about all I'm left with when I think about these two organizations.
For example, Verandah was the first community to achieve certification as a Green Development by Florida's Green Building Coalition. Walk through Verandah on one of its many trails and you feel like you're back decades ago wandering through the picturesque marshes admiring everything from the spectacular foliage and wild flowers to armadillos and alligators. Throw in 36 holes of golf and it's a real panacea for someone like me.
Meanwhile, 16 miles from Atlanta is the Marriott property that says it "validates our constant efforts to apply 'environomics' which is the practice of preserving green space in harmony with operating a successful business." I've met Anthony Williams, the director of grounds there, and he has a passion unequaled in our business when it comes to taking care of green spaces. The property is a Certified Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary, its converted 12 acres to native grass/windflowers habitat, and has comprehensive programs for water management, wildlife habitat preservation and integrated pest management.
We make our Because Green Matters winner announcements on Earth Day each year. Anthony was a little busy that day -- April 22 -- helping to give away 700 trees for planting by those staying at the complex.
These properties exemplify what Project EverGreen's mission is all about -- raising awareness of the environmental, economic and lifestyle benefits of green spaces. What a thrill for me to work with this organization and our companion club Yard Enthusiasts of America to bring this message to the public. The green, green grass of home seems a long time ago. It's organizations like our two winners who bring back the good times of my youth. I can't help but smile when I think about it.