Mondee Tilley | The News
Landscape architect Chip Calloway, center, leads the Garden Gate Gardening Club over to the area where he designed a rose garden the club plans to build behind the Joan and Howard Woltz Hospice Home in Dobson.
DOBSON — In honor of a dear friend and former Garden Gate Gardening Club member, Julie Bray, the club met Tuesday with landscape architect Chip Calloway at the Joan Howard Woltz Hospice Home in Dobson to discuss plans for a rose garden behind the home.
Calloway said he lost his mother who was staying in the home for her end-of-days care, so he donated his time to design a garden for those who have lost a loved one or for those visiting or staying in the Woltz Hospice Home.
“This is near and dear to my heart,” said Calloway over lunch at the home with the garden club.
The club’s president, Rosie Sink, explained to the group that there is a lot of sunshine in the spot where the garden is planned.
“I think this is such a wonderful project. Hope we can get local residents and businesses to help out with this project,” said Sink. “This came from heaven. Just look at the sky.”
Sink said Bray had four small children, so this project is especially meaningful for the group.
“She was here — so this means a lot to us,” said Sink.
Club member Susan Campbell remembered spending the last week of Bray’s life with her at the hospice home.
“Her favorite color was ‘yallow.’ She was from Virginia, so that’s how she said it,” said Campbell. “I know she is tinkled pink looking down from heaven at this project.”
She is passionate about making sure there are yellow roses in the garden there in memory of her friend who died at the age of 45.
Sheila Jones, director of development and marketing for Mountain Valley Hospice and Palliative Care, said the garden club needs to make sure the garden is wheelchair accessible for residents at the home.
“The whole point of this is making sure that people are able to enjoy the view of this garden,” said Jones.
Before the group walked out to the area where the garden will be planted, Calloway showed them some slides of his work. Members of the club, let the word “Wow” out as each slide of his work came up.
Calloway said people love to get married in his yard that is just outside of downtown Greensboro.
He said a few years ago, he invited chef Alice Waters to his home where he showed her his edible garden. She then invited him to California to design an edible garden for a school there.
Plans for the garden include a drip irrigation system, a bench and a picket fence.
Donations for the garden will be certainly appreciated, Sink said.
Reach Mondee Tilley at mtilley@heartlandpublications.com or at 719-1930.
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