Volunteers needed to take over flower boxes

By Llewellyn Melvill

During the Centennial year, I thought the town should have some flower boxes to contribute to the celebration.

The town council agreed to finance the material for the planter boxes. That was the start. Gordon built them. We made self-watering pots and planted red and white petunias in them that year.

We encouraged businesses and residents to plant red and white flowers. The town looked great with many beautiful displays of red and white.

After that, we built a few more boxes and moved them to their present locations. Different combinations of colours followed over the years. It was fun trying to choose the varieties of flowers every year.

Joanne McBain, centre, assists Gordon and Llewellyn Melvill fill one of the planters along Main Street.

Gordon and Llewellyn at the Welcome to Oyen sign in 2019.

Oyen Greenhouses grows the best flowers, and the owners and staff make every year special. I truly appreciated their help over the years.

As time went on and we slowed down with age, the businesses agreed to take over watering the boxes closest to their business. That was very much appreciated. It was getting increasingly difficult to get in and out of the truck to water all the boxes. Our old knees didn’t care for that. We still cared for five spots in town until this year. 

This year’s planting of the town flowers was a struggle—Mother Nature didn’t want to cooperate with us.

My right-hand man couldn’t help me much as he has lost a lot of muscle mass and can’t do what it takes to be as much help as needed.

Luckily, I was able to get some great gals to volunteer to help get the job done—Susan Wilson, Joanne McBain and Sharon Berg. They ate a lot of dirt along with me. It seemed when we were out planting, the good old winds would be at their worst. 

Just as things were getting to the end of the planting, I landed in Medicine Hat Hospital for two weeks with kidney stones. 

Luckily, the gals stepped up and got the rest planted. They also watered the planters we usually do.

As I said, Mother Nature was not on our side. The winds and heat were too much for eight of the plants. Lee Van Otterloo from Oyen Greenhouses and Sharon Berg replanted them—a huge thank you.

We are so fortunate to have such a great greenhouse in our community! You will not find a healthier variety of beautiful plants or a broader selection of petunia colours. I, for one, want to give them a big RAVE.

We have enjoyed caring for the flowers for the last nine years, but with heavy hearts, we must retire. We truly appreciate the businesses for tending to the flowers after they are planted and hope they will continue to do so in the future. It truly makes the town look cared for.  Maybe they would volunteer to plant their boxes in the future, with flowers of their choice, if the town continues to cover the cost. That would solve a big job that one or two people would have to do.  Overall, 43 plants were planted. 

The welcome to Oyen sign, the information sign, the park at the end of Main Street, and the two big grey boxes are the ones we have looked after planting and watering for the season. These are the ones that would have to be looked after by someone. Maybe the town crew could water them after someone planted them.  

I am willing to help anyone who would like to take over the planting of the flowers in these areas.

If we work together, I know this community will figure out a way to keep the flowers around for years to come. They say it takes a village to raise a child. Well, I say, “It takes a great community to keep a village looking good.”

Thank you to all the volunteers over the years who have helped us with this project; we have truly enjoyed every year.

We have heard many out-of-town visitors say how beautiful the flowers are and how nice it makes the town look.

Over the years, a variety of flowers have been planted at the Welcome to Oyen sign. All were a welcoming sight as visitors came into town. We saw numerous people taking pictures. 

So, here’s hoping someone will continue to plant and maybe look after the few spots that we did. 

Enjoy the rest of the summer and take time to smell the flowers!